The Associated Press

OMAHA, Neb. - Kevin Melillo had four hits and was ejected and reinstated after a collision at home plate, leading South Carolina to a 15-4 win over LSU on Monday, eliminating the Tigers from the College World Series.

The Gamecocks trailed 3-1 before they scored six runs, four unearned, with two outs in the sixth.

South Carolina had the bases loaded with two outs when Nick Gardiner singled to right off Lane Mestepey (7-4). Landon Powell scored easily, but Melillo collided with catcher Matt Liuzza after the ball bounced under Liuzza's glove.

Umpire Bob Homolka called Melillo safe, but immediately ejected him for not trying to avoid the collision.

South Carolina coach Ray Tanner came out of the dugout to protest, and after the umpiring crew consulted with supervisor Dave Yeast, Homolka's decision was reversed and Melillo was reinstated.

"He really didn't plow through him," Tanner said. "He kind of held up a little bit. Nobody went to the ground. You'd hate to see a player ejected in a game like this."

Jim Paronto, secretary-editor to the NCAA Baseball Rules Committee, said in a statement that Homolka initially believed the collision was caused by a flagrant act by Melillo but it was later determined that it was not.

"I was coming down the line and I could see Landon telling me to get down," Melillo said. "I was kind of looking to see where Liuzza was going to go, where the ball was going to take him, so I could try to take an angle and slide around him.

"The ball led him up the line and we collided a little bit. It was nothing intentional. He understood that."

It was the second CWS game in which the collision rule came into play. Georgia shortstop Justin Holmes was ejected for running into catcher Nick Hundley in the Bulldogs' 8-7 win. Holmes was out on the play.

The Gamecocks went on to score four more runs in the inning, three on throwing errors by the Tigers. South Carolina added six more runs in the eighth inning to seal the victory.

South Carolina (51-16) today will face the loser of Monday's winner's bracket game between Cal State Fullerton and Miami.

LSU (46-19) was knocked out of the CWS in two games for the second year in a row by South Carolina.

LSU, which had won two of three regular-season meetings between the teams, was dealt its worst loss since being beaten 15-4 by Mississippi State in 2002. It was the Tigers' worst loss in the CWS since Cal State Fullerton beat them 20-6 in 1994.

"We didn't defend the field well for a few innings," LSU coach Smoke Laval said.

MAJOR LEAGUE CWS: If history is any indication, several players strutting their stuff at Rosenblatt Stadium this year will find their way to the major leagues. There were 95 former CWS participants in the majors as of April 21. Every team, except Florida, had at least one former player in the series, with Boston and Houston boasting the most with seven each. Some of the most famous CWS graduates still playing in the majors include Roger Clemens, Barry Larkin and Jason Giambi.

ON A ROLL: Top-seeded Texas has won two straight, and that's bad news for the opposition. Texas has started the CWS 2-0 11 times and won the national championship three times, in 1949, 1983 and 2002. The Longhorns have outscored their NCAA Tournament opponents 71-21.

Texas next plays the winner of today's Georgia-Arizona game.