After losing all three games against West Texas A&M University at home on Friday and Saturday, the Oklahoma Christian University baseball team swept Dakota State University on Saturday and Sunday in their second three-game series of the weekend.
Senior Cody Rosecrans said the losses to West Texas A&M were disappointing, but the team had to turn its attention to the next game of the weekend.
“Today was a rough day,” Rosecrans said after the third loss on Saturday. “These kinds of days happen in the sport we play. But you just have to put it behind you and move on to the next game.”
The Eagles began their six-game weekend with a doubleheader against the West Texas A&M Buffaloes on Friday. Oklahoma Christian scored one run, when Jordan Lopez doubled to right and sent Zac Cobble home in the fifth. West Texas A&M scored four runs in the sixth inning and another run in the seventh, making the final score of the first game 5-1.
Game two on Friday showed an even wider margin of score as the Buffaloes cranked 12 runs over seven innings while the Eagles failed to answer offensively. The final score was 12-0.
Oklahoma Christian played its final game against West Texas A&M on Saturday. After five innings the Eagles trailed the Buffaloes 4-3, but did not score again over the remaining four innings while West Texas A&M added five more runs to the scoreboard. The Buffaloes took the last game of the series 9-3, sweeping the Eagles.
The team addressed its mistakes against West Texas A&M, and prepared to correct them in its three games against Dakota State, Rosecrans said.
“We just need to play harder and have more fight in us,” Rosecrans said. “Our hitters need to go out and put good swings on the ball and our pitchers need to go and get outs. We are a good team, we just need to find our groove and then we will take off.”
The Eagles appeared to have found their groove by Saturday evening.
After an early 2-0 Dakota State lead in the first inning, Oklahoma Christian scored four runs in the second and third innings, securing a 4-2 advantage.
The Trojans scored once in the fifth, but a single RBI from Ben McKenzie in the bottom of the sixth sent Lacy home. Dakota State failed to score in the top of the seventh, ceding the game to the Eagles without taking the plate with a 5-3 win.
Oklahoma Christian took the mound against Dakota State on Sunday for its second doubleheader of the weekend with a 30 degree cooler temperature than the day before.
According to Rosecrans, the weather potentially gave Dakota State an advantage that Oklahoma Christian would have to play past.
“I know that they are used to the cold weather and it looks like our games could get a little chilly,” Rosecrans said. “So I don’t expect the weather to affect their game at all. They drove a long way for these games and I’m sure they’re excited. We need to match their intensity and take care of business.”
Again the Trojans charged out of the gates with a first-inning 2-0 lead that went unanswered by the Eagles for three innings. But a five-run eruption in the bottom of the fourth generated a 5-2 Oklahoma Christian lead.
The Eagles scored five more runs over the fifth and sixth innings, while Dakota State failed to earn another run after its initial two-run first inning, sealing a 10-2 win for the Oklahoma Christian.
While its bats were not as hot in the second game on Sunday, Oklahoma Christian’s defense and pitching proved effective in a 3-0 shutout against Dakota State.
The Eagles scored one run in the second inning after an error at first base sent McKenzie home, and added two more in the fifth when Lacy and Cobble crossed the plate.
The final score sat at 3-0, reflecting Oklahoma Christian’s record against the Trojans in their three-game series over the weekend.
Senior Kelby Reneau said improvements on both sides of the ball reflected the different outcome against Dakota State.
“We pitched better and we hit better in key situations,” Reneau said. “We kept them from having a big inning late and [did] better with runners in scoring position or with two outs.”
The Eagles baseball team will travel to Bethany, Oklahoma to face Southern Nazarene University on Feb. 17.
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