SHAWNEE – Oklahoma Baptist left no doubt as to who the better team was during its 6-4 defeat of No. 13 (NCBWA) Southern Arkansas on Saturday at Bobby Cox Field.
OBU won for the fifth time in six games and boosted its record to 19-11 and 10-8 in the Great American Conference.
Remarkably, it's just the second time SAU has been swept in a GAC series since joining the league in 2012. During the 2016 season, Southeastern swept the Muleriders on Apr. 15-16.
Key Leaders
- Alex Schroeder posted team-highs with two hits and three RBI.
- Jacob Campbell notched a two-run homer, his seventh of the year.
- Senior pitcher Nolan Feazle was solid again. He tossed 6.0 innings, fanned four, allowed two earned runs and got nine fly-ball outs.
- Bryant Thornton earned another save, his fourth of the year. He struck out four and got five combined groundouts and fly-outs to help the Bison preserve victory.
What Went Right
- Coming through in the clutch. With the game tied 2-2 in the sixth, Schroeder went first pitch swinging on reliever Sean Sieve. A towering blooper landed fair down the right-field line and cleared the bases. That scored Jayden Shafer, Isiah Lissade and Jaden Wiley and pushed the Bison ahead 5-2.
- Also in the sixth, a routine groundball off the bat of Troy Shields was mishandled at short and it allowed Schroeder to score.
- Feazle. The senior, as he has done all season long, turned in another good performance. His slider was highly effective on Saturday, and he ended up shutting out SAU in four of six innings pitched.
- Thornton. His fourth save of 2024, which is one off the GAC lead, came after he entered in the seventh. The junior retired the side in that frame, allowed a couple of homers in the eighth and then sealed the deal retiring three of four batters in the ninth. He is now tied for the most saves by a Bison pitcher in the D2 era. During the 2016 transitional year, Brad Adams also secured four.
- Defense. This Bison team turned another double play, their 13th of the season while not committing an error. That's the 14th time in 30 games they have not erred.
What Went Wrong
- SAU did get the first lead of the game after it connected with three hits in the first. They also tied the game at 2-2 in the fourth after back-to-back hits from Carter Claerhout and Jaden Woolbright.
- In the eighth, the Muleriders hit consecutive homers as Grant Roosma and Brandon Nicoll went deep to right and left, respectively.
On The Horizon
- The Bison will stay at home for a non-conference midweek affair against Southeastern Oklahoma State on March 26 at 6 p.m.
