EDMOND -- Central Oklahoma rallied late to edge Oklahoma Baptist, 8–7, in a back-and-forth non-conference baseball game Monday at Wendell Simmons Field in Edmond.
Oklahoma Baptist struck first in the top of the opening inning when
Ben Green singled and later scored on a sacrifice fly from
Tui Amosa.
The Bison added to their lead in the fourth, using timely hitting and pressure on the bases to push across two runs. Amosa opened the frame with a single, and after a double by
Alex Sanchez, the Bison cashed in on a fielder's choice from
Keenan Morris and an RBI single from
Braden Smith to take a 3–0 advantage.
The lead grew to 5–1 in the fifth as
Quinn Johnson ripped a two-run double down the right-field line, scoring Green and
Kaleb Latimer. Johnson finished the day 3-for-4 with three RBI, while Green reached base four times and scored three runs.
UCO began to chip away in the middle innings and then surged ahead in the sixth. After a leadoff double, Carson Taylor launched a two-run homer to right field, sparking a three-run frame that tied the game at 5–5.
Oklahoma Baptist briefly regained momentum in the seventh when Latimer scored on an RBI groundout by Amosa to make it 6–5, but the Bronchos answered in the bottom half, taking advantage of a defensive miscue to knot the score again.
The Bison pulled ahead once more in the ninth on Johnson's RBI single, but Central Oklahoma had the final say. With two runs needed, Caleb Castle delivered a clutch two-run single up the middle, sealing the walk-off victory for the Bronchos.
Brody Berlowitz earned the win in relief for Central Oklahoma, while
Davin Ronquist took the loss for OBU in the final inning.
Next on the schedule for the green and gold is a home date with Missouri - St. Louis in Shawnee on Feb. 8 at 2 p.m.
