Friday College Baseball Roundup

Cowboys Win Series Opener In Morgantown 

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Oklahoma State recorded its third shutout of the season Friday night as the 18^th-ranked Cowboys opened their series against West Virginia with a 6-0 win at Hawley Field.

The Cowboys scored all of their runs over the final three innings as they improved to 24-10 overall and moved into second place in the Big 12 Conference standings at 6-4.

OSU junior Jon Perrin outdueled WVU ace Harrison Musgrave to earn his second-straight win and improve to 4-2 on the season. Musgrave, the reigning Big 12 Pitcher of the Year, entered the game 5-0 in nine career conference starts, but the southpaw allowed three unearned runs in 7 1/3 innings and fell to 3-2 on the year.

Offensively, the eight and nine hitters in the OSU lineup – Tim Arakawa and Craig McConaughy – each collected two RBIs, while Gage Green and Corey Hassel also drove in runs.

Both pitchers put up zeroes over the game's first six innings, but that changed in the seventh. Aaron Cornell led off the frame with an infield single, and after he stole second, Robie Rojas also picked up an infield hit. Up next, Arakawa laid down a sacrifice bunt and reached on an error to load the bases with no outs.   

After Musgrave struck out McConaughy for the first out, Green stepped to the plate and lifted a shallow fly ball to right field. Cornell raced home, and Shaun Wood's throw was up the line as the sacrifice fly gave OSU a 1-0 lead.

In the bottom of the seventh, the Mountaineers (16-13, 2-4) looked poised to answer and take the lead. With one out, Perrin hit pinch hitter Max Nogay with a pitch, and an infield single put WVU runners on first and second.

The Cowboys would call on Vince Wheeland to relieve Perrin, and he quickly got a groundout that advanced both runners. Up next, Taylor Munden sent a drive into the right-center field gap, but Conor Costello was able to make a great running catch to rob Munden of extra bases and keep OSU's lead intact.

Fueled by the standout defensive play, the Cowboys rallied for four runs in the eighth to drive Musgrave from the game. With the bases loaded and two outs, Arakawa drove in two runs with a single, and McConaughy followed with a two-RBI single of his own to all but seal the win for OSU.

Hassel provided one final insurance run in the ninth on another two-out RBI, this one a double to right center field, and Brendan McCurry completed his second scoreless inning in relief to give the Cowboys the win.

The two teams return to action Saturday at 3 p.m. (CST) as OSU looks for its third-straight conference series win.

Sooners Mount Comeback But Fall In Extras Against ‘Horns

NORMAN, Okla. – The No. 26 University of Oklahoma baseball team erased an early six-run deficit, but ultimately fell to No. 7 Texas in extra innings, 10-8, before 2,011 fans at L. Dale Mitchell Park on Friday night. The Sooners fell to 23-12 overall and 4-3 in the Big 12, while the Longhorns took over first place in the league at 27-8 and 7-3.

Texas claimed a six-run lead in the top of the first inning on three hits, three walks and an error off OU right-hander Corey Copping. Copping pitched just 0.2 innings as he allowed all six unearned runs.

The Sooner rally started in the bottom of the third when sophomore center fielder Craig Aikin hit a base hit through the right side that should have loaded the bases with one out, but an error in right sent in Oklahoma's first run of the game. A second run came in on an error as sophomore left fielder Hunter Haley hit a soft liner to short that was dropped.

The lead was cut to three when freshman third baseman Sheldon Neuse doubled to right field; driving in Aikin. With two outs, freshman designated hitter Niko Buentello trimmed the lead to one with a two-run single up the middle.

Head coach Pete Hughes was ejected by the second base umpire for arguing balls and strikes with the first base umpire after it was determined that junior catcher Mac James went around on a check swing. Facing a 0-1 count, James hit a double that touched the left field foul line and one-hopped the wall to score Buentello from second and tie the game, 6-6.

In the fifth inning, Haley led off with a base hit through the right side, went to third on a double down the left field line by Neuse and scored on a fielding error as Neuse's doubled got past the left fielder. Sophomore first baseman Anthony Hermelyn added to OU's lead with a sacrifice-fly; bringing in Neuse and giving the Sooners an 8-6 lead.

Senior right-hander Kindle Ladd entered the game in the first for Oklahoma and proceeded to pitch five scoreless innings. He remained in the game to start the seventh, but was pulled after back-to-back doubles led off the innings. Ladd pitched 5.1 innings and surrendered two runs on three hits and two walks and took a no-decision as the tying run scored in the seventh.

The two teams were scoreless in the eighth and ninth innings. Shortstop C.J. Hinojosa led off the top of the 10^th with his first home run of the season over the wall in left to give Texas the lead. The Longhorns loaded the bases with nobody out and added an insurance run with a walk.

Sophomore right-hander Ralph Garza Jr. took his first loss of the season; dropping to 4-1. He pitched a scoreless ninth innings with two strikeouts, but allowed two runs on three hits and a walk in the 10^th. Right-hander Morgan Cooper (3-1) tossed three perfect innings to earn the win for the Longhorns as he struck out four. Right-hander John Curtiss worked around a lead-off walk to pick up his fifth save of the season.

Game two of the series is scheduled for 4 p.m. Saturday afternoon.

Golden Eagles level Lumberjacks in run-rule victory, 11-1

NACOGDOCHES, Texas – For the second time this season, the Oral Roberts University baseball team opened a conference series with a mercy rule victory as the Golden Eagles cut down Stephen F. Austin on the road 11-1 on Friday.

ORU moved above .500 for the first time since March 3, 2012, as the Golden Eagles improved to 17-16 overall and 5-8 in Southland Conference play. The Lumberjacks dropped to 15-18 and 6-7 in the league.

All 10 Golden Eagles that came to the plate in the game recorded hits, including a pinch hit single by Graham McIntyre. Jose Trevino led the Golden Eagles with four hits, three runs batted in and crossed the plate twice, while Emmanuel Forcier picked up four hits, including a double. Matt Brandy and Brandon Healy also had multiple hit games with two single apiece.

ORU outhit the Jacks 18-7 in the victory, the most hits by a Golden Eagle squad since scattering 18 on March 31, 2012, against Louisiana Tech.

Guillermo Trujillo (2-2) threw his second complete game of the season, allowing just one run and striking out four in the victory. The Jacks ran four pitchers to the mound in the seven inning affair with Cameron Gann (4-1) taking his first loss of the season in 4.2 innings.

Conner Fikes and Nick Ramos each had a pair of hits for SFA, and Kyle Thornell added a double.

The Golden Eagles first three-run inning in came in the top of the third. Healy, Forcier and Logan Domenico connected for three straight singles, setting up a two-RBI single to left Trevino, giving the Golden Eagles a 2-0 lead. The next batter, Boss, flew out to deep right to drive in Domenico to make it 3-0 ORU.

Boss started the fifth inning with a single through the left side, scoring later in the inning on a two-run single by Audie Afenir. Brandy also scored on the Afenir single to extend the Golden Eagle lead 5-0. Forcier delivered the first ORU extra-base hit, the 12^th total hit for the Golden Eagles, with a double to right to score Afenir for the sixth ORU run of the evening.

In the ORU half of the sixth, Trevino started the inning with a single to left and scored on a Graham McIntyre pinch hit single to extend the lead to 7-0 for the Golden Eagles.

The ‘Jacks answered in the home half of the sixth as Will Vest delivered an RBI single to plate Nick Ramos to cut the ORU lead to 7-1.

ORU sealed the mercy rule victory in the top of the seventh with four runs on four hits. Trevino came to the plate with runners on the corners and picked up his second RBI single of the game to score Healy to make it 8-1 ORU. Two batters later, Anthony Sequeira doubled into the gap in left center to bring home Forcier, and Brandy followed by driving in Trevino and Sequeira for the final 11-1 spread.

The Golden Eagles look to clinch their first Southland series victory on Saturday as they hook up with the Lumberjacks in game two in Nacogdoches, Texas, at 2 p.m.