SPRINGDALE, Ark. – Oklahoma Baptist's offense came up big as it held on for a 14-10 win over Henderson State on Friday in a Great American Conference Tournament elimination game. Tomorrow at noon, the Bison will once again meet top seed Southern Arkansas in the title bout.
It will mark the third time in OBU's D2 history that it will have played in the conference tourney championship. Previously, the team won the 2019 title in Enid against Harding. The green and gold will need two wins over the Muleriders to claim the title.
Against Henderson, OBU scored in each of the first four innings and seized an 8-2 advantage.
Leading 2-1 heading in the third,
Alex Schroeder smacked a three-run bomb to center and scored
Dan Pruitt and
Kade Self. That boosted the lead to 5-1.
After HSU came back with a single run in the third, the Bison came through for three more in the fourth. With runners on first and third, Pruitt roped a double to right field and pushed
Isiah Lissade home.
Jayden Shafer followed with scored run on a wild pitch before Self drove in Pruitt with a one-bagger to right center.
On the mound, OBU's
Ryan Turbeville and
Cameron Pool did a good job limiting the Reddies' attack. While the No. 4 seed attained 10 hits through five innings, the Bison turned two double plays none bigger than one in that fifth frame.
With bases loaded and one out, a 4-6-3 double play was turned by Shafer, Lissade and Pruitt. That came after HSU had scored a run two batters earlier. OBU led 8-3 after the double play.
Down the stretch, specifically in the ninth, Henderson State threatened OBU's massive lead.
Before HSU's final inning of work, the Bison came up with some, what turned out to be, big hits. The top-half of the ninth featured a
Rafael Gutierrez solo bomb, a Shafer two-run double, and Pruitt RBI triple. The Bison plated five runs and pushed their lead to 14-3.
A collective shock then occurred when the Reddies came up to bat. They scored seven runs on three hits, got a two-run throwing error from OBU's catcher and a two-run double by Greyson Stevens. Plus, HSU ended up with the tying run at the plate. But with two out,
Will Duncan gave every Bison fan a sigh of relief when he struck out Dillon Thomas to end the game.
