OKLAHOMA CITY – The OCU baseball took the series this weekend over #25 Freed-Hardeman by taking two out of three in the final series before Sooner Athletic Conference play opens.
Game One
Oklahoma City 3, Freed-Hardeman 0
W: Kade Shatwell (1-0)
L: Colton Huntt (4-1)
SV: Chad Pike (6)
Key Leaders
- Kade Shatwell – W (1-0), 6.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 SO
- Trent Kiraly – 2-3, 2B, RBI, R
- Chad Pike – 1-3, HR, 2 RBI, R | SV (6), 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R
HOW IT HAPPENED
All three of the Stars runs came in opening at-bats as Trent Kiraly drove in the game's first run with an RBI double to left center that brought in Darian Duhon.
With Kiraly on second, Chad Pike came to the plate and launched a two-run homer out of the yard to put Oklahoma City (13-7) up 3-0.
Kade Shatwell went on to sit down 10 straight Freed-Hardeman (15-2) hitters while allowing just one hit after the first inning.
Pike came in to shut things down in the final inning putting the Lions away to hand the number 25 team in the country its second loss of the season.
GAME NOTES
- Oklahoma City earned its third win against a ranked opponent this season by snapping a nine-game winning streak for Freed-Hardeman.
- OCU needed just three runs in the first to do it behind a spectacular pitching performance by Kade Shatwell.
- Shatwell made his career debut at Jim Wade Stadium by tossing six shutout innings and striking out four.
- Trent Kiraly doubled for the third consecutive game and put together a 2-for-3 day while scoring once and batting one run in.
- Hunter Lenochan extended his hitting streak to eight games by joining Kiraly as the Stars only other hitter with multiple knocks in the game.
- Chad Pike got it done on the mound and at the plate by delivering the two-run home run in the first that led OCU to the 3-0 victory. Pike also earned an NAIA-leading sixth save after coming in relief for Shatwell in the seventh by sitting down the Lions 1-2-3 to win the game.
Game Two
Oklahoma City 11, Freed-Hardeman 4
W: Jacob Burkett (2-2)
L: Houston High (4-1)
Key Leaders
- Hunter Lenochan – 4-4, 2B, 2 R
- Chad Pike – 2-4, 2 HR, 4 RBIs, 2 R
- Darian Duhon – 2-4, HR, 3 RBIs, 3 R
- Jacob Burkett – W (2-2), 5.0 IP, H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 SO
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Oklahoma City (14-7) offense caught fire in game two by scoring in of the first four frames. The Stars saw their biggest inning come in the second by scoring four runs after Darian Duhon's three-run shot followed by Aiden Van Rensum singling to left to bring home Kiraly.
OCU capped off its four-inning run with its second home run of the game coming from Chad Pike which brought home three runs that stretched the lead out to 10-0.
Freed-Hardeman (15-3) got on the board for the first time in the sixth and followed up with a three-run inning in the seventh.
The Stars had one final run in them coming in the bottom of the eighth inning as Pike launched his second home run of game two right back into left-center field which capped things off giving OCU an 11-4 win to take the series.
GAME NOTES
- Oklahoma City won its fifth straight game while scoring double-digit runs for the seventh time this season.
- Jacob Burkett made his sixth start of the season and quite possibly his best one. Burkett went five innings and allowed just one hit while striking out three batters and pitching his first shutout this year. Burkett moves to 2-2 on the season.
- Chad Pike homered for the fifth time this season which makes it three straight games Pike has gone deep in. The senior put together a 2-for-4 day while driving in four runs and scoring twice.
- Hunter Lenochan continued to stay hot at the dish by setting a career-high of hits in the game with four while extending his hitting streak to nine games.
- Trent Kiraly added a double for the fourth straight game while scoring in his fifth straight and driving in a run for the fourth time in a row.
- Darian Duhon went 2-for-4 while scoring three times and driving in three runs on his third home run of the year that he hit back in the 2nd inning.
- Issac Horstman shined in his relief appearance after entering the game in the seventh inning and finished things out from there. Horstman threw three shutout innings without allowing a hit or a run and struck out a season-high of four.
- OCU held Freed-Hardeman to a season-low two hits as the Stars took the series from the #25 Lions.
Game Three
Freed-Hardeman 11, Oklahoma City 7
W: Colton Bryant (4-1)
L: Connor Ferguson (0-2)
SV: Evan Koob (6)
Key Leaders
HOW IT HAPPENED
Freed-Hardeman (16-3) took control in game three by scoring two runs in the first two innings then scoring three in the fifth to take a 7-1 lead.
Trent Kiraly and Tristan Williams brought the Stars a bit closer by leading a three-run inning behind a two-run homer from Kiraly and an RBI double by Williams to score Pike from second.
Oklahoma City (14-8) trailed by just two runs entering the final inning of play needing to keep the deficit where it was. The Lions got back on the board for the first time since the fifth inning by breaking away with a four-run inning to take an 11-5 lead.
The Stars were able to inch closer as Tristan Williams blasted a two-run shot over the left-field wall but that became all OCU could get as FHU grasped its first win of the series to avoid the sweep.
GAME NOTES
- Despite the loss, Oklahoma City took the series from #25 Freed-Hardeman and improved to 14-8 on the year.
- Tristan Williams posted a game-high four RBIs and launched his fifth home run of the season which ties Chad Pike for second on the team. Williams extended his streak to 10 games after going 2-for-3.
- Hunter Lenochan matched Williams with his 10-game hitting streak as the Stars second baseman was able to keep it alive with a base hit in the fifth.
- Trent Kiraly continued to mash as he posted a three-hit game which extended his hitting streak to six consecutive games. Kiraly has also scored in six straight while hitting an RBI in four consecutive.
- Darian Duhon went 2-for-5 at the plate and scored for the fourth game in a row bolstering his team-leading total of 24 runs scored.
- Connor Ferguson got the start on the mound for the Stars and lasted 4.2 innings while surrendering seven runs on five hits while striking out four.
- Frankie Danell III was the top reliever out of the bullpen for OCU going 3.1 innings without allowing a run on one hit and struck out two.
- After taking two in the series, Oklahoma City moves to 5-1 all-time against Freed-Hardeman.
WHAT'S NEXT
Oklahoma City opens SAC play next weekend against Mid-America Christian on Mar. 8-9 on Denney Crabaugh Field at Jim Wade Stadium.
