Why was Clemson baseball's Jack Crighton ejected? Exploring Tigers star's scuffle during super regional game

Tensions often flare during the college baseball postseason, and the Clemson Super Regional is no exception. Game 3 between the Clemson Tigers and the Florida Gators saw a wild moment in the top of the second as Tigers sophomore Jack Crighton was ejected following a massive scuffle between the two teams.

During the inning, Gators' two-way sensation Jac Caglianone aggressively tagged Tigers' redshirt freshman Nolan Nawrocki before he could reach first base. The shove from Caglianone prompted both benches to rush to the field to break up the fight, with Crighton coming in from second base to get involved in the altercation.

After the dust settled, the umpires decided to eject only the Tigers infielder, which left Crighton seething. He went back to argue with the umpires but was held back by head coach Erik Bakich. The sophomore then left the field, making his frustrations evident until he left.

Soon after the incident, Bakich talked about the play and the umpires' explanation of why they chose to eject only Crighton despite the involvement of multiple players from both teams.

"You can almost see it in slow motion happening: a swinging bunt and two guys running for the ball collided. Competitive kids and emotions got hot," Bakich said (via ESPN).

"But the explanation for throwing out Crighton that I got was he was on base and left his position on base, even though it was the third out of the innings coming and he was coming back to the dugout."

Clemson Baseball currently in stalemate with Florida Gators

At the time of publishing, the Tigers' battle with the Gators saw them tied in a fierce stalemate. Centerfielder Cam Cannarella brought the Tigers back in the game, scoring a three-run home run for the No. 6 national seed in the top of the ninth. This forced the game to go beyond nine innings, with the score tied at 9-9.

NCAA Baseball: Clemson Regional-Clemson vs Coastal Carolina

Meanwhile, Caglianone gave the Gators an incredible start with a two-run home run in the bottom of the first. He was supported by Colby Shelton, who drove in three runs for last season's College World Series runners-up. The winner of this game will make the College World Series, which will commence in Omaha on June 14,