Cummings Leads ORU To 5-3 Victory Over UALR

The Oral Roberts baseball team put up four runs in the first inning and hung on to beat UALR 5-3 Tuesday night at J.L. Johnson Stadium.

ORU takes the two game season sweep over UALR having also topped the Trojans 15-2 in seven innings March 24. The Golden Eagles have now won 10 in a row at home and have won 18 of their last 20 games.

Noah Cummings was 2-4 in the game with a career best four RBIs, including a 3-run homerun in the first inning. Tyler Buss got the start on the mound and gave up three runs, but only one earned run. Hayden Holley (3-0) got the victory on the mound with one inning in relief.

Turning Point

Up 4-3 in the top of the third, pitcher Sean Leary fielded a sacrifice bunt attempt and gunned the lead runner down at third. ORU followed with a strikeout and Whatley gunned the runner attempting to steal third to end the threat and hold on to the lead.

Individual Leaders

Oral Roberts: Cummings led the way with a pair of hits and four RBIs in the game. Anthony Sequeira and Audie Afenir each had a pair of base hits as well.

UALR: The Trojans had six hits in the game, but no one had more than two hits. Leadoff man Petr Sila drove in two of the three runs for UALR.

Inside the Box Score

- The two teams combined for seven runs in the first two innings, but then nothing until the bottom of the eighth inning.

- Derrian James, who has been red hot the past few weeks, was held without a hit for the first time in 11 games.

- Logan Domenico returned to the lineup after missing 25 games with an injury. Although he wasn't able to get a hit, he walked three times.

- ORU used a combined eight pitchers in the game, with starter Tyler Buss and Sean Leary each pitching the most at two innings each.

Scoring Summary

- ORU batted around in the first inning en route to four runs in the frame with five hits and a wild pitch.

- Sequeira­ earned the first RBI on a single to center to score Matt Whatley. A Cummings 3-run homerun put the Golden Eagles up 4-0.

- UALR answered right back with a Justin Steelmon triple to leadoff the second, scoring on an RBI single by Jason Prevatt to make it 4-1.

- Still in the second inning, a throwing error put Trojans on second and third with two outs, and Sila drove one into right center to score both runners, cutting ORU's lead to 4-3.

- Cummings came through again for ORU in the bottom of the eighth; getting ORU an insurance run after a double play got the Golden Eagles out of a bases loaded jam in the top of the inning.

- Sequeira led off the bottom of the eight with a double to right center, and after moving to third on a sacrifice bunt, Cummings knocked one through the left side to make it 5-3. It was Cummings' fourth RBI of the game.

Up Next

ORU remains at home to face South Dakota State this weekend. First pitch Friday is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.