Omaha, Neb ? Of North Carolina’s four errors in a 3-2 loss to Oregon State in the College World Series championship game, Bryan Steed’s proved the most costly.

Tar Heels coach Mike Fox wouldn’t let the junior second baseman take the fall, though.

Steed’s off-target throw to first on an eighth-inning grounder allowed the Beavers to score the winning run Monday night.

“This is not ever about one player, it’s never about one pitch,” Fox said. “This is a team sport. I love Bryan Steed to death. So do his teammates.

“It’s as much me. I mismanaged the game a couple of times… You can put any of that on me. We’re not putting any of it on the players. That’s for sure.”

Steed came into the game in the fifth inning after Matt Spencer had pinch hit for Garrett Gore, who started at second base.

Steed caught a short fly in the sixth and made a clean play on a grounder in the seventh.

But in the eighth, with two out and Oregon State runners on first and second, he botched what would have been an inning-ending groundout. Steed picked up pinch hitter Ryan Gipson’s grounder, but his throw went wide of first baseman Tim Federowicz, allowing Bill Rowe to score from second base.

“It was a pretty routine ground ball,” Steed said. “The reason I got rid of it so quickly was that the pinch hitter was pretty quick. We got that from the dugout. I probably just got rid of it a little too quick. It was a little bit up the line. I didn’t make the play.”

Steed started 43 games and committed 13 errors, second most on the team.

Oregon State scored its first run on two errors on the same play by Carolina starting pitcher Daniel Bard.

Bard tried to bare hand John Wallace’s bunt but couldn’t come up with it. Then he threw wildly to first, allowing Tyler Graham to score.

The Tar Heels survived their other error – catcher Benji Johnson’s throw into center field when Mitch Canham stole second base in the third.

It was the fourth time North Carolina committed four or more errors in a game this season.

The Tar Heels had four in an 11-5 victory over Alabama in super regionals and a season-high five in a loss to North

Carolina-Greensboro in April.