Sooners Beat KSU in Another Slugfest

Originally Published: May 2, 2010 5:19 PM CDT

Corey DeMoss
Oklahoma Sports Staff Writer

NORMAN, Oklahoma – The OU baseball team continued its offensive tear and held off a ninth-inning rally to beat Kansas State 15-11 Sunday at L. Dale Mitchell Park.

The Sooners (32-12, 10-9) got off to a quick start, scoring five runs in the bottom of the first. After Kansas State (30-12, 10-7) scored one run in the top of the inning, Garrett Buechele started OU’s scoring with a solo home run to tie the game.

After a groundout for the second out of the inning, the Sooners went on a two-out rally. After Max White singled, Ross Hubbard drove him in with an RBI double. Tyler Ogle followed with a walk, and Cody Reine broke the game open with a three-run home run.

After the Wildcats put one run on the board in each of the second and third innings to cut the lead to 5-3, the Sooners broke out with their second huge inning of the game. White blasted a three-run home run, OU’s third long ball of the game. Reine followed moments later with a two-run single to give him five RBIs in the game and stretch the lead to 10-3.

Max White added another RBI in the fifth when he was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, and K-State scored two unearned runs in the sixth to cut the lead to 11-5. After the teams traded runs in the bottom of the sixth and top of the seventh, the Sooners added three more runs in the eighth to take a seemingly commanding 15-6 lead. But the Wildcats did not go quietly.

Kansas State’s first three runners of the ninth inning reached base to loaded the bases, and one of them scored on a wild pitch. After OU pitcher Ryan Duke hit a batter with a pitch to load the bases again, Carter Jurica connected on a grand slam to give the Wildcats five runs in the inning and bring them back within four runs.

Duke managed to recover and record two consecutive out to finish things off and give the Sooners a series win. The Sooners have now scored nine or more runs in five consecutive games, four of which ended in victories.

Kansas State entered the weekend ranked No. 2 in the Big 12 behind only Texas, and the Sooners were fourth. OU drew closer by winning two of three games, and the Bedlam series could go a long way toward deciding the final standings. OU will next face Arkansas-Little Rock at 7 p.m. Tuesday, and will take on OSU starting at 7:35 p.m. Friday.