Oklahoma Baptist opened some eyes with its Great American Conference premiere Friday, sweeping GAC preseason favorite and 16th-ranked Southern Arkansas 7-2, 5-0.
It was just the seventh time in four years the Muleriders lost a series.
Jinny Parra (3-0) and Carson McPherson (2-0) both went the distance on the mound for the Bison. Parra fanned seven over nine innings of work before McPherson tossed a two-hit gem with 12 strikeouts in a seven-inning contest.
Southern Arkansas struck first in the opener, breaking a scoreless tie in the fourth inning on a home run by Billy Germaine. A pair of throwing errors on a stolen base by Jake Tisevich in the fifth made it 2-0.
The Bison tied the game in the sixth on a run-scoring balk and an RBI double by Hunter Heath.
OBU put the game away in the seventh with a five-run inning, which included RBI singles by Dustyn Cook and Kevin Olmeda and a three-run home run by Brandon Cuddy.
The Bison had 10 hits in the game, including three by Cook and two each by Olmeda and Kevin Abblitt.
McPherson dominated the second game, allowing only two singles and one of those on the infield.
The Bison scored in the first on an RBI ground out by Heath and added another run in the third when Cuddy got himself in a run-down that allowed Cook to score from third.
Joseph Moran added a two-run double in the fourth and Austin Cooper doubled home a run in the sixth.
The Bison had another 10 hits in the second game, including two apiece by Cook, Olmeda, Moran and Abblitt.
The Bison, 9-1 overall and 2-0 in the GAC, finish off the three-game series with a 1 p.m. game against the Muleriders at Bison Field Saturday.
