Tag: Easton Carmicheal

Sooners cruise to a 14-0 win over Oral Roberts to open NCAA Tournament play

Kyson Witherspoon and Carter Campbell combined for the shutout and the Sooners offense erupted for a 14-0 win over Oral Roberts in the NCAA tournament.

It was the first time the Oklahoma Sooners hosted postseason baseball at L. Dale Mitchell Park in Norman since 2010, and the boys in Crimson and Cream were ready to rock and roll from the opening pitch.

Oklahoma entered the NCAA Tournament fresh off a loss to their in-state rivals, the Oklahoma State Cowboys, in the Big 12 Tournament Championship game. However, with how the Sooners have played since conference play began, bouncing back was easy for them.

Their first opponent was an Oral Roberts team that the Sooners had already faced this season, splitting a pair of midweek games.

Kyson Witherspoon got the start. Oklahoma opted to save Braden Davis in case the Sooners were in the loser’s bracket or had to face Duke.

Witherspoon escaped early danger, stranding the bases loaded to end the first. Oklahoma immediately opened things up with a triple from centerfielder John Spikerman and a Bryce Madron sac fly. Madron returned to the starting lineup after sitting out the Big 12 tournament to rest an injury from the end of the regular season.

 

With the Sooners up 1-0, they never looked back. Witherspoon worked around two runners in the second and third innings to hold the Golden Eagles scoreless.

In the bottom of the third, Madron let the rest of the home crowd know he was healthy as he blasted a two-run home run to right field, giving OU a 3-0 lead.

After some clean innings from Witherspoon, Oklahoma opened the game up on an Easton Carmichael three-run home run to make it a 6-0 game.

Witherspoon finished his day tossing six innings of shutout ball. He struck out nine batters and sat down the last ten batters he faced. Simply, it was a dazzling performance in his NCAA Tournament debut.

Oklahoma continued to pile on runs the rest of the way. Scott Mudler hit a solo home run and had a two-run single. Spikerman had a two-run single. And Jackson Nicklaus added an RBI single himself.

Carter Campbell finished the pitching from the seventh inning onward and kept things spotless, giving up no runs to complete a dominant performance from the Sooners.

It’s hard to imagine Skip Johnson drawing up a more perfect opening game. Minimal pitchers were used, and the team showed tremendous discipline at the plate, which made Oral Roberts pay for mistakes in the form of 17 hits.

Oklahoma will advance to the winner’s bracket and will face UConn tomorrow at 8 p.m. local time under the lights. The winner of that game will be just one win away from clinching a spot in the Super Regionals.

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Skip Johnson wins Big 12 Coach of the Year, 12 Sooners earn conference accolades

After a fantastic season, Skip Johnson was named Big 12 Coach of the Year and 12 Sooners received Big 12 honors.

The Oklahoma Sooners baseball team has had a remarkable season in 2024. They were picked to finish fifth in the Big 12 in the preseason poll and went on to win the conference’s regular season title.

Oklahoma finished the year 34-18 and 23-7 in Big 12 play and 2.5 games up on Oklahoma State in the regular season race. The Sooners clinched the conference title with a three-game sweep of the Baylor Bears on the second to last weekend of the season.

After their incredible season, Oklahoma Sooners manager Skip Johnson was named Big 12 Coach of the Year on Monday. It was the Sooners first Big 12 regular season title in school history.

Michael Snyder, who led the league in batting average during conference play earned first-team All-Big 12 honors. So did DH Easton Carmichael and sophomore pitcher Braden Davis. Carmichael led the Sooners in batting average on the year, hitting .363 with four triples, six home runs, and 59 RBIs. Davis was 8-3 on the season, but 7-1 in Big 12 play and earned two Big 12 Pitcher of the Week awards during the season.

Earning second-team honors were outfielder Bryce Madron and pitcher Kyson Witherspoon.

Madron led the league with 65 runs scored and finished in the top 10 in conference play in runs scored, RBIs, total bases, slugging percentage, and stolen bases. On the season, he paced Oklahoma with 11 home runs.

Witherspoon was 6-1 in Big 12 play and 7-3 on the season. He leads the team with a 4.24 ERA and 75 strikeouts in 70 innings.

Jaxon Willits earned Big 12 Freshman of the Year after hitting .341 in conference play.

Reliever Carter Campbell, utility player Anthony Mackenzie, catcher Scott Mudler, infielder Jackson Nicklaus, outfielder John Spikerman, and Willits earned Big 12 honorable mention honors.

The Sooners now get ready for the Big 12 tournament, which begins on Tuesday in Arlington. Oklahoma’s first game comes Wednesday.

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Oklahoma’s Bryce Madron named Big 12 Player of the Week

Oklahoma’s Bryce Madron named Big 12 player of the week as he powered Oklahoma to a 4-1 week.

If you’ve been following Oklahoma baseball this season, it’s been an up-and-down roller coaster. Oklahoma is peaking at an extraordinary level and is fresh off its most impressive week of the season.

They went 4-1 and completed a three-game road sweep of a top-25 TCU squad. Oklahoma is hitting, defending, and pitching at a high level right now, and it’s impressive to watch.

Last week, senior leader and outfielder Bryce Madron led the team’s offensive surge. His efforts earned him the Big 12 Player of the Week award. This is the second consecutive week an Oklahoma player has earned player of the week honors. The week before, Easton Carmichael was named Co-Big 12 Player of the Week.

Madron was in a groove, hitting .438 (7-for-16) with a home run and four RBIs. He also showcased elite plate discipline, drawing four walks. When he got on the bases, he was a problem for the opposition, as he stole three bases and came around to score five times.

This is nothing new for Madron, Oklahoma’s best offensive weapon last year, and is undoubtedly trending that way this year. He is hitting .353 on the season with two homers, eight extra-base hits, and 15 RBIs. He leads the team with 26 runs scored, 17 walks drawn, and a .483 on-base percentage. Simply put, he’s the most complete offensive player on the team.

Oklahoma will look to keep the good times rolling when they seek revenge on No.19 Dallas Baptist for a late February loss in a midweek tilt on Tuesday evening.

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