OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma City University blasted Northwestern Oklahoma State 19-6 on Wednesday at Jim Wade Stadium to advance to the Sooner Athletic Conference baseball tournament championship game.
The Stars (44-14) face Lubbock Christian (Texas) at 10 a.m. Thursday for the SAC Tournament title. Lubbock Christian (43-11) knocked OCU into the losers bracket with a 10-9 victory earlier Wednesday.
OCU would need to beat Lubbock Christian twice to capture the SAC Tournament crown, while Lubbock Christian can take the title with a win. Both OCU and Lubbock Christian are assured berths in the NAIA Championship Opening-Round Tournament next week.
The Stars, ranked seventh in the NAIA, built a 19-3 advantage over Northwestern through four innings using a nine-run inning.
In the fourth, Brian Fisher brought in two runs on a triple to the left-center gap. Nathan Bryan had an RBI double, and Terrance Jackson had an RBI base hit. Steve Vitale had a grounder that scored one run, and it became three runs on the play after an error.
Scott Dalrymple drove in a run on a base hit to left field, and Fisher doubled to bring in another run.
Vitale led off the third by smashing a solo homer to right-center field. After Garrett Regan singled, Chad Carman launched a two-run shot over the left-field wall. Matt Presley nailed a three-run blast to left.
OCU had a four-run first. Kirk Walker knocked in a run on a double, then scored on Carman's double-play grounder. Mark Purser and Fisher hit back-to-back RBI doubles.
Jackson, a junior from Greenville, Ala., picked up the win. Jackson (6-2) struck out seven in a complete-game, seven-inning effort.
Fisher, a sophomore from Spring, Texas, went 4-for-4 with two runs scored and four runs driven in, and Walker, a junior from Bakersfield, Calif., went 3-for-4 with two runs scored and an RBI. Presley, a junior from Colorado Springs, Colo., went 3-for-3 with two runs scored and three RBIs, and Jackson went 2-for-5 with two runs scored and an RBI.
Against Lubbock Christian, OCU hit six homers. Presley hammered his second homer of the game with one out in the ninth inning.
Vitale added a two-out, two-run blast to right that cut the Stars' deficit to 10-9 to chase Lubbock Christian starting pitcher Paul Gonzalez. Regan singled up the middle of the infield off reliever Hunter Scott. Scott came back to retire Carman to secure the win for Lubbock Christian.
Scott notched his seventh save this year. Gonzalez went 8.2 innings and struck out 10 in moving to 8-1. Clint Maune suffered the loss, going to 3-2.
Jackson led off the game with a homer over the right-field wall. Rafael Thomas did the same for Lubbock Christian in the bottom of the inning.
Purser nailed a two-run shot to straight center in the second for OCU. Lubbock Christian answered with five runs in the third.
In the third, J.J. Muse had a lead-off solo homer. Ross Blondin chipped in a sacrifice fly, then with the bases full Richard Bohlken had a bases-clearing, three-run double.
In the fourth, Purser pounded a lead-off homer to left for the Stars. After Fisher reached on a hit by pitch, Presley nailed a two-run blast over the right-center wall to tie the game 6-6.
Lubbock Christian seized an 8-6 edge on Thomas' two-run shot to right. Lubbock Christian added to its lead on Doug Kroll's two-run homer to left in the seventh.
Presley went 3-for-4 with two runs scored and three RBIs, and Walker went 2-for-5 with a run scored. Purser was 2-for-4 with two runs scored and three runs driven in. Carman had two hits.
OCU-LCU Boxscore
OCU-NWOSU Boxscore
Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament
At Oklahoma City
Jim Wade Stadium
Monday's Results
Lubbock Christian 12, Rogers State 8
Oklahoma City 15, Northwestern 13
Southern Nazarene 10, Wayland Baptist 6
Tuesday's Results
Northwestern 6, Rogers State 3, RSU eliminated
Lubbock Christian 8, Wayland Baptist 3, WBU eliminated
Oklahoma City 13, Southern Nazarene 4
Northwestern 19, Southern Nazarene 12, SNU eliminated
Wednesday's Results
Game 8: Lubbock Christian 10, Oklahoma City 9
Game 9: Oklahoma City 19, Northwestern 6, NWOSU eliminated
Thursday's Games
Game 10: Lubbock Christian vs. Oklahoma City, 10 a.m., championship
Game 11: If necessary, 1 p.m.
