KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Oklahoma City University leapfrogged to the top spot in the first regular-season edition of the 2011 NAIA baseball coaches' top 25 poll, the NAIA announced Tuesday.
The Stars, who were listed seventh in the preseason announcement on Nov. 16, 2010, tallied 17 first-place votes for 583 points. Second-ranked Lee (Tenn.) and third-ranked Embry-Riddle (Fla.) were each awarded a pair of first-place nods. To see the current rankings, click here.
At 27-3, top-ranked Oklahoma City's three losses are the fewest among ranked clubs. The Stars rode a 23-game winning streak from Feb. 12-March 19 before suffering an 18-12 loss to NCAA Division II Southeastern Oklahoma State on March 22. Since then, the Stars have won four straight, outscoring opponents 61-4. OCU has gone 16-0 in Sooner Athletic Conference play.
Kirk Walker, a senior from Bakersfield, Calif., tops the Stars with a .433 batting average, 52 hits, 11 doubles and a .471 on-base percentage. A four-year starter at shortstop, Walker holds OCU career records for hits (326) and runs scored (252). As a team, OCU leads the NAIA with 11.7 hits per game and a .981 fielding percentage.
Corey Theriot, a senior from Iowa, La., spearheads OCU's pitching staff with a 7-0 record. Theriot has a 3.42 earned run average and 41 strikeouts in 55? innings pitched. He has one shutout and has combined on two other whitewashes this year.
“We are a team of grinders,” OCU coach Denney Crabaugh said. “We are learning how to win and finding ways to win.”
Previously unranked Oklahoma Baptist rocketed to No. 4 with 505 points. The Stars face Oklahoma Baptist at 4 p.m. Thursday at Jim Wade Stadium to begin a three-game set. The two squads also meet 6 p.m. Friday in Shawnee, Okla., before returning to Jim Wade Stadium for a 2 p.m. contest Saturday.
Fueling Oklahoma Baptist's ranking was a winning streak of 12 straight from Feb. 22-March 10 and a current stretch of eight consecutive victories. The Bison are 26-5 overall and 11-1 in SAC action.
Teams that were unranked in the preseason poll that have landed among the Top 25 include: Oklahoma Baptist, No. 12 Northwood (Texas), No. 13 Rogers State, No. 14 Union (Ky.), No. 19 Biola (Calif.), No. 20 Missouri Baptist, No. 21 Auburn Montgomery, No. 23 Southeastern (Fla.) and No. 24 Tabor (Kan.).
The Sooner Athletic Conference landed four squads among the top 25: Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Baptist, No. 13 Rogers State and No. 18 Lubbock Christian (Texas). Eleven conferences/independents/unaffiliated groups have at least one team represented in the preseason poll. The Southern States Athletic Conference leads the way with five listed squads in Lee, Brewton-Parker, No. 10 Faulkner (Ala.), No. 15 Southern Poly Tech (Ga.) and No. 21 Auburn Montgomery (Ala.).
Suffering the steepest fall was defending national champion and preseason No. 1 Cumberland (Tenn.), plummeting to No. 17. The Bulldogs' record stands at 23-11. Lubbock Christian, who was also a preseason top-five program, dropped from fifth to 18th with a mark of 22-8.
