OKLAHOMA CITY - The OCU baseball team enters this weekend after its best start to a season since 2019 as the Stars hold an 8-2 record with #13 MidAmerica Nazarne and familar opponent from last year;s NAIA Opening Round in Doane University coming to town for a five game set on Friday and Sunday.
Full Schedule
Oklahoma City vs #13 MidAmerica Nazarene - Feb. 16 | 11 AM
Oklahoma City vs #13 MidAmerica Nazarene - Feb. 16 | 1:30 PM
Oklahoma City vs Doane University - Feb. 18 | 11 AM
Oklahoma City vs Doane University - Feb. 18 | 1:30 PM
Key Hitters
- Trent Kiraly - .515 AVG, 1.594 OPS, 5 HR, 12 RBIs
- Darian Duhon - .500 AVG, 1.392 OPS, 2 HR, 10 RBIs
- Noah Kang - ..385 AVG, .986 OPS, 4 2B, 7 R, 3 RBIs
Key Pitchers
- Connor Ferguson - 13.1 IP, 3.38 ERA, 8 R, 5 ER, 7 BB, 9 SO
- Andrew Limbaugh - 1-0, 14.0 IP, 3.86 ERA, 9 R, 6 ER, 5 BB, 12 SO
- Chad Pike - 2-0, 3 SV, 6.1 IP, 1.42 ERA, BB, 8 SO
OKLAHOMA CITY STARS (8-2)
- OCU enters this weekend with another round-robin matchup facing competition against #13 MidAmerica Nazarene and a familiar foe from last season's NAIA Opening Round Doane University.
- The Stars opened the 2024 season with an 8-0 start, their best since 2019 before dropping back-to-back games on Saturday to #7 Bellevue (7-1) and Concordia (11-1).
- Senior Trent Kiraly leads OCU as the top hitter for the Stars with a team-leading .515 AVG and five home runs. Kiraly enters Friday's games on an eight-game hitting streak after going 7-or-13 in the four-game series last weekend including a walk-off home run to beat Concordia 6-5.
- Darian Duhon began the season against LSU-Alexandria with five straight hits to start his 2024 campaign and ever since Duhon has yet to cool down. The junior comes in second on the team behind Kiraly in hits (15), RBIs (10) and batting average (.500).
- Centerfielder Aiden Alexander has posted a hit in eight of nine games and despite going without in game one on Friday which snapped his six-game hitting streak, Alexander continues his streak of getting on base in all 10 games this season.
- Senior Connor Ferguson leads the starting pitchers in ERA despite three no-decisions to his line. Ferguson comes in with a 3.38 ERA in 13.1 innings pitched and comes off an outing against Bellevue on Friday where he gave up seven hits and five runs, four earned.
- Andrew Limbaugh falls in right behind Ferguson with a 3.86 ERA and a 1-0 record earning the win on the mound against LSU-Alexandria. Limbaugh's previous outing came against Concordia on Friday as the senior went five innings and struck out a season-high six batters while allowing four runs, three earned.
- The OCU bullpen is headed by Chad Pike and Reese Ratchford who have been able to shut down teams in the late innings. Pike has already racked up two wins and three saves while allowing just one run in five outings.
- Ratchford earned his only save against LSU-A and picked up a win against Clarke back on Feb. 2. The sophomore was handed the ball on Saturday against Concordia to make his first start of the season and went 2.1 IP while giving up five runs on six hits.
MidAmerica Nazarene Pioneers (4-4)
- Key Leaders
- Drew Woodley - .500 AVG, 1.622 OPS, 11 R, 11 H, 3 2B, 2 3B, HR, 4 RBIs,
- Brycen Sherwood - .435 AVG, 1.232 OPS, HR, 5 RBIs, 11 BB
- Zach Trevino – 2-0, 17.0 IP, CG, 1.59 ERA, 4 BB, 19 SO
About the Pioneers
- MNU visits Oklahoma City as the number 13 ranked team in the country after a 35-28 season a year ago while appearing in the NAIA World Series.
- The Pioneers enter with a 4-4 start to the 2024 season after coming off a series win last weekend taking two of three games against Huntington University.
- The Pioneers are led by two of their .400-plus hitters, Drew Woodley and Brycen Sherwood. Woodley holds a .500 batting average and enters with a seven-game hitting streak and has racked up multi-hit games in four of the last five outings.
- Sherwood, however, has shown excellent plate discipline, drawing 11 walks while hit by a pitch five times. Sherwood holds the second-highest total number of hits on the team with 10 while stealing four bags without being caught.
- MidAmerica Nazarene starting pitcher Zach Trevino is off to a hot start to the 2024 campaign with a 2-0 record in three appearances having a 1.59 ERA. Trevino began the year against Arizona Christian with nine strikeouts before an outing against Baptist Bible where the senior tossed a complete game shutout while giving up just three hits and striking out three.
- Pioneers Head Coach Ryan Thompson reached 500 career victories by winning the first game of a 3-game series vs. Huntington on Friday.
Doane Tigers (4-0)
- Key Leaders
- Luke LaChance - .727 AVG, 1.932 OPS, 3 2B, 3B, 5 RBIs
- Joe Osborn - .250 AVG, 4 RBIs, 2 2B, R
- Kaden Crawford – 1-0, 7.0 IP, 2.57 ERA, CG, 6 H, 2 R, BB, 3 SO
About the Tigers
- Doane begins the 2024 season with a 4-0 start after opening last weekend with wins over Columbia College and Culver-Stockton.
- The Tigers come off a 2023 stint with an outstanding season going 43-12 before being knocked out of the NAIA opening round by Oklahoma City.
- Joe Osborn comes in with a .250 batting average but has notched a base hit in all four games with a pair of doubles and earned a two-RBI game against Columbia College on Saturday.
- Senior Luke LaChance has begun the season on an offensive tear with three straight games of multiple hits and comes off his most recent outing going 3-for-3 at the plate with two runs scored a triple, and an RBI.
- Kaden Crawford was the top arm for the Tigers to start the season going seven full innings allowing just two runs on six hits and earning the win against Columbia College.
- The wins for Doane last weekend tied the school record for best start to a season at 4-0. It also marks the first time that Doane has won their first four games when opening play in January or February as their previous 4-0 start included four wins during the fall of the 2016-17 season.
What's Next
Oklahoma City will take on Sterling for a single nine-inning game on Tuesday, Feb. 20 at 2 PM on Denney Crabaugh Field at Jim Wade Stadium.
