CRETE, Neb. – Rain forced the Stars to take their originally scheduled home series against the Doane (Neb.) Tigers north to Crete Ballfield Complex. Oklahoma City opened the series with a doubleheader, losing both games on Saturday against the Tigers.
Game 1
Doane 6, Oklahoma City 0
With a bounce-back in mind for
Keith Lytle's squad, the Stars were unable to break through against a strong outing by Doane's starting pitcher. Kaden Crawford fanned 11 OCU hitters and pitched a complete game.
Tanner Ellis made his fourth start of 2026 for the Stars; Ellis gave out seven free passes to the Doane offense, compared to Krawford, who allowed zero walks.
A bright spot for OCU in game one was the relief pitching of freshman
Lance Martin. The first-year player from Walters, Okla., pitched 2.1 innings and did not allow a single hit or walk to the six batters he faced.
Doane only amassed two more hits than OCU, but a crooked number in the fourth propelled the Tiger offense. Doane opened the bottom half of the inning with a double down the left field line. Following the extra-base hit, Oklahoma City pitching committed two wild pitches and four walks in the inning. A hit batter and two stolen bases allowed added insult to injury for OCU during the fourth inning– ultimately, Doane scored four runs in total during their half of the inning.
The fourth-inning surge put the Tigers far enough ahead to secure a win in game one.
Game 2
Doane 4, Oklahoma City 2
In game two, OCU outhit Doane 7-5, but just like game one, inning four proved troublesome. Once again, a crooked number in the thick of the contest proved to be too much for OCU to overcome.
Cayden Maxwell provided a valiant effort on the hill for the Stars, going the full six innings and striking out seven Tigers' hitters. The Houston Christian transfer held Doane scoreless for the first three innings before getting roughed up in the fourth inning. OCU provided their starter a run of offense with a sacrifice fly in the opening frame;
Trent Baker collected an RBI, plating
Aiden Alexander.
Three runs on three hits in the fourth inning provided distance on the scoreboard for Doane. In the top half of the inning, OCU left three on base but tallied two hits.
Ultimately, in the fifth inning, the Stars cut the lead in half when
Wyatt Pace drew a walk, and
Cooper Holtorff scored on a passed ball by the Doane backstop. Heartbreakingly, the Stars left the tying runs on base, ending the ballgame.
Next Up
OCU and Doane are back at it at 11 a.m. for game one of a Sunday doubleheader, with game two scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. After the Stars return from Crete, they will host Sterling at Denney Crabaugh Field for one game on Tuesday, Feb. 17, at 2 p.m.
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