Tag: Summit League

Super Regional Preview: Golden Eagles look to swoop in and take CWS appearance from Ducks

Oral Roberts comes into the Eugene Super Regional as an underdog even though its riding a 21-game winning streak.

Make no mistake about it. Oral Roberts comes into the Eugene Super Regional as the underdog. But as winners of 39-of-42, the Golden Eagles don’t believe that should be the case.

And they could be right.

ORU has won 21 straight games and their lost defeat came on April 22 when it lost 4-2 to North Dakota State. Overall, the Golden Eagles possess a record of 49-11 with wins over the likes of Oklahoma State, Washington and traditional college baseball power Dallas Baptist as they won the Stillwater Regional last week.

So what’s the secret to their success?

Having two All-Americans doesn’t hurt the cause. Centerfielder Jonah Cox became Oral Roberts’ first All-American since 2008 with his ungodly .424 batting average. He’s third in the country with 106 hits that included 10 home runs, 64 runs batted in, eight triples, and 16 doubles. Cox also has 27 stolen bases and was caught just three times.

The second All-American is closer Cade Denton with his 15 saves and 1.65 earned run average.

But according to Golden Eagles coach Ryan Folmer, the collective whole and not the individuals is what makes this team special.

“It’s an easy group to coach. You want to be playing this time of year and you want to keep playing,” he said. “We went on the road in what seems like forever ago and we talked about how going on the road has a chance to galvanize your team.”

Oral Roberts has been on the road for three straight weeks and it seems to suit them.

Coming to PK Park and playing in front of about 4,000 Duck fans will be the champion of the Summit League’s biggest challenge to date. Both schools will be battling for their first College World Series appearance in their programs’ history.

If Oregon wants to go to Omaha, it’ll take more than keeping Cox off base. Nearly every ORU starting position player hits over .300 and they have a team average of .324.

Neither team has announced their starting pitchers, but the Golden Eagles have a trio of pitchers that have started the majority of their weekend series.

Brooks Fowler comes in with a 9-1 record and a 3.11 ERA. The sophomore started the regional-clinching game against Dallas Baptist and he went five innings, giving up four runs and seven hits.

Harley Gollert, a redshirt senior from Canada, comes in with a 10-1 mark and a 4.00 ERA, but in his most recent appearance, Washington roughed him up a bit. He didn’t get out of the first inning as he gave up six runs and seven hits in 2/3 of an inning.

The third starter is Jakob Hall with his 8-3 record and 3.25 ERA. He started the regional-opening game against Oklahoma State, but went just 2.2 innings due to an extended weather delay.

Oklahoma wins wild slugfest over Oral Roberts 14-12 to break losing skid

Oklahoma baseball got back in the win column Tuesday night winning a high-scoring battle over Oral Roberts 14-12.

Oklahoma baseball returned to L. Dale Mitchell Park on Tuesday night needing a win about as bad as possible. The Sooners entered play having dropped seven of their last eight games and seemingly having lost their way in just about all facets of the game, this was a big game to try and get right.

Awaiting them was in-state foe Oral Roberts, who despite being below .500 on the season had picked up multiple impressive wins throughout the year. The Golden Eagles are never an easy team to beat, and they were more than game for this one.

As has been the norm as of late, right-hander Javier Ramos was given the ball for Oklahoma to start the game, but he wouldn’t last long. He was only able to record a single out before being yanked in the opening frame, eventually being charged with four earned runs in the process.

The disaster opening inning would continue under the watch of the normally-effective Carson Carter, who came in out of the bullpen in a much earlier spot than we have often seen him. He would struggle to force soft contact allowing another four Oral Roberts runs to come across to have the Golden Eagles out to an 8-0 lead before the Sooners ever came to bat.

Oklahoma would do a good job making an immediate dent in that sizable early hole in the bottom half of the inning. After two batters were hit by a pitch and a walk was drawn, second baseman Conor McKenna cut loose for a grand slam to left field to chop the deficit in half at 8-4.

Oral Roberts would get two of those right back in the top of the second on a solo home run by left fielder Joshua Cox and an RBI single by the designated hitter Jordan Wiley. The Golden Eagles led 10-4 midway through two frames.

The Sooners, meanwhile, would put up another four spot in the bottom half of the inning on two-run hits by left fielder Diego Muniz and right fielder Brett Squires. In the first two innings of the game, 18 total runs were scored and just 12 total outs.

After both teams were turned away scoreless in the third, Squires would come up big once again with a mammoth two-run home run to left field to bring Oklahoma all the way back and tie the game up at 10-10. The game wouldn’t stay knotted up for long, though.

Oral Roberts shortstop Anthony Martinez would return the favor with a solo shot in the top of the fifth to put the Golden Eagles back on top. Catcher Alec Jones would then hit one of his own in the seventh to make it a 12-10 at the seventh inning stretch.

In the bottom half of the inning, after a walk drawn by shortstop Brandon Zaragoza and a single by the pinch-hitting Justin Mitchell, center fielder Tanner Tredaway lifted one up and over the wall right down the left field line for a three-run homer to put the Sooners in the lead 13-12.

After right-hander Luke Taggart pitched a clean top of the eighth, Oklahoma would add to their lead in the bottom half with catcher Jimmy Crooks coming across to score on a passed ball. The Sooners would take a 14-12 advantage into the final frame. Preseason All-American closer Jason Ruffcorn would come on and shut the door in the ninth to finish things off and get the much-needed win.

The win gets Oklahoma back to even on the season at 14-14 and it really can’t be overstated how important it was to put this game in the right column. After how rough the last couple of weeks have been, and falling behind 8-0 in the first inning, finding a way to rally and get this one is simply monumental for the team’s confidence moving forward.

The Sooners will now take a couple of days off before returning to L. Dale Mitchell Park for the first of a three-game set against Kansas on Friday night.

Oklahoma baseball struggles defensively, drops season opener to Omaha 6-3

Oklahoma baseball dropped their season opener on Sunday to Omaha 6-3 at L. Dale Mitchell Park in Norman.

After a wild week that saw their season-opening opponent change three separate times, Oklahoma baseball finally took the field for the first time on Sunday. But, the long week of uncertainty and winter weather may have taken its toll as the Sooners committed four defensive errors on their way to a 6-3 defeat at the hand of the Omaha Mavericks (1-0).

Oklahoma gave the ball to their ace Wyatt Olds, who performed well over his four innings. He only allowed one hit and struck out seven, but defensive miscues allowed two runs to cross under his watch – one of them unearned. He then handed things off to Dalton Fowler, who picked up the loss after allowing two runs over his 2 2/3 innings pitched.

The Sooners bats remained mostly cold all the way until the sixth inning when they suddenly came to life. With two men on base, Diego Muniz came through with a pinch-hit RBI single to get them their first run of the year. Second baseman Conor McKenna and catcher Justin Mitchell then followed that up with run-scoring hits of their own to push Oklahoma ahead 3-2.

But, the defensive issues reared their ugly head again as a throwing error allowed the tying to run to score the very next inning. A Mavericks triple by center fielder Garrett Kennedy then put them ahead 4-3 and they wouldn’t relinquish the lead again – even tacking on two more runs in the ninth to sow up the 6-3 win.

Omaha managed to have twice as many runs (6) as hits (3) on the day due to the unusual defensive struggles throughout the game. Skip Johnson mentioned postgame the week of having to practice indoors due to the weather may have played a part in the bad defensive play.

The Sooners would threaten in the bottom of the ninth with runners on first and second with nobody out, but a double play and a strikeout silenced the rally and got Oklahoma off to an 0-1 start to the season.

All in all, it was a day of shaking off rust in general for the team that hadn’t played a competitive baseball game in a whopping 348 days. The hectic schedule and weather throughout the week certainly didn’t help things either, as the poor play in the field was largely out of character from what we saw a year ago. Especially from shortstop Brandon Zaragoza, who is as sure-handed as they come, who had an error in the ninth inning that helped the Mavericks push their lead out.

It seems ridiculous to put too much importance on a game in February, but Monday’s series finale feels like a bounce back performance could really be useful to shake this one off before heading to Texas for several games against quality opponents in professional ballparks.

Game two of the series will be Monday at noon CT back at L. Dale Mitchell Park in Norman.

When, where, how to watch Oklahoma baseball’s series against Omaha

Everything you need to know for Oklahoma’s two-game series against Omaha beginning on Sunday.

After the longest offseason in the history of college baseball and a tumultuous week that saw their season-opening opponent change three different times, Oklahoma baseball is finally set to begin the 2021 season.

The Sooners had an elite pitching staff a year ago joined by a solid lineup and a quality bullpen that seemingly had them as a legitimate contender for the College World Series. But alas, the season was canceled just as it was really getting going at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The world is an entirely different place than it was when we last saw Oklahoma play 348 days ago, but they are back and ready to give it a new go with their new team. While the production lost in the rotation is inarguably significant, they bring back a solid set of starters once again along with a lineup and bullpen that should be improved from a year ago.

Awaiting the Sooners on Sunday will be Omaha, creating the first ever meeting between the two programs. The Mavericks are coached by Evan Porter who enters his fifth season leading the program.

For this two-game series to open the 2021 season, here is everything you need to know:

Game 1 – Sunday

PITCHING MATCHUP:   Oklahoma RHP Wyatt Olds (0-0, 0.00) vs Omaha TBA

WHEN:   2:30 p.m. CT

WHERE:   Norman, Oklahoma

HOW TO WATCH:   SoonerSports.tv ($)

HOW TO LISTEN:   Sportstalk 1400 AM/99.3 FM KREF; Tune In Radio App; Sportstalk1400.com (Toby Rowland)

Game 2 – Monday

PITCHING MATCHUP:   Oklahoma LHP Jake Bennett (0-0, 0.00) vs Omaha TBA

WHEN:   Noon CT

HOW TO WATCH:   SoonerSports.tv ($)

HOW TO LISTEN:   Sportstalk 1400 AM/99.3 FM KREF; Tune In Radio App; Sportstalk1400.com (Toby Rowland)

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Oklahoma baseball schedules two-game home series with Omaha beginning Sunday

Oklahoma has found their fourth different opening-weekend opponent with Omaha coming to Norman for two games on Sunday and Monday.

This has been one of the more wild weeks of Oklahoma baseball in recent memory and it hasn’t involved a single game being played. After having their first series of the year canceled three separate times, the Sooners have miraculously managed to find a fourth different opening-weekend opponent as they have scheduled a two-game home set against Omaha running on Sunday and Monday.

The timeline for the week has been all over the place with the originally scheduled home series against Southern being canceled due to weather on Monday and replaced by games with Wichita State in Round Rock, Texas. Then, those matchups were canceled two days later due to issues related to the weather at the facility the games were set to be held.

Later the same day, Oklahoma managed to set up a three-game set with Texas A&M-Corpus Christi to be played at the Islanders’ ballpark but then that was reported as being off last night. And now, finally, the Sooners have scheduled Omaha for Sunday and Monday.

Catch all that?

Due to all efforts being put into clearing the field for play, fans and outside media will not be allowed to attend these opening games but they will be streamed on SoonerSports.tv and the radio broadcast will be available on Sportstalk 1400 AM/99.3 FM in Norman.

Game one will be 2:30 p.m. CT on Sunday, with the second coming on Monday at noon CT at L. Dale Mitchell Park.

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When, where, how to watch Oklahoma basketball take on Oral Roberts

Everything you need to know ahead of Oklahoma basketball hosting Oral Roberts at the Lloyd Noble Center on Wednesday night.

With full conference play just right around the corner, Oklahoma (3-1, 1-0) looks to continue to fine tune things at home Wednesday night when they host Oral Roberts (3-3).

The Sooners are fresh off of an 85-54 decimation of Florida A&M on Saturday and are looking to keep things moving in the right direction with two more home contests against lower competition this week.

This will be the 18th time these two in-state schools have collided with Oklahoma having taken 15 of the first 17 meetings including an 11-1 mark in games played in Norman.

The Golden Eagles come in having won two straight games albeit against very small programs in Southwestern Christian and Bacone College. However, Oral Roberts is far from a team unwilling to challenge themselves as just this year already they have taken on Missouri, Wichita State and Oklahoma State – even pushing the Shockers and Cowboys to just five-point final margins.

For this matchup of Oklahoma schools, here is everything you need to know:

WHERE: Norman, Oklahoma

WHEN: 7:00 p.m. CT

HOW TO WATCH: Fox Sports Oklahoma Plus

HOW TO LISTEN: Sooner Sports Radio Network—KOKC AM 1520 and KRXO 107.7 FM in OKC and KTBZ AM 1430 in Tulsa

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Summit Final: North Dakota vs. North Dakota State odds, picks and best bets

Previewing Tuesday’s North Dakota vs North Dakota State college basketball Summit League Tournament championship matchup, with college basketball betting odds, picks and best bets

The North Dakota Fighting Hawks (15-17) square off with the North Dakota State Bison (24-8) in the Summit League title game Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET at the Denny Sanford Premier Center in Sioux Falls, S.D. We analyze the North Dakota-North Dakota State odds and betting lines, while providing college basketball betting tips and advice on this matchup.

North Dakota vs. North Dakota State: Three things you need to know

  1. It’s a battle for state of North Dakota bragging rights — and also a trip to the big dance — while being played in the state of South Dakota.
  2. NoDak State won the first meeting, 83-74 at home Jan. 19 to cover the eight-point spread; UND won the rematch Feb. 22, winning on its home floor 71-68 despite being a 4.5-point ‘dog. The over/under split in both meetings.
  3.  North Dakota State enters this one just 3-4 against the spread across the past seven outings, while UND has covered in four of its past five games overall.

Get some action on this game or others by placing a bet at BetMGM!

North Dakota vs. North Dakota State: Odds, betting lines and picks

Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. ET.

Prediction

North Dakota State 71, North Dakota 68

Moneyline (ML)

North Dakota State (-250) is favored to win this one, but rival North Dakota (+200) has really given the Bison fits this season. PASS and look to the spread for better value.

New to sports betting? A $10 bet on North Dakota State to win outright would profit $4; a $10 bet on North Dakota to win outright would profit $20.

Against the Spread (ATS)

North Dakota (+6, -110) looks for the miracle 3-for-3 run in the Summit tourney to get into the NCAA Tournament as a sub-.500 team. North Dakota State (-6, -110) will win this game, but look for the Fighting Hawks to cover. They’re playing with a lot of confidence right now.

UND has only been to the NCAA Tournament once, in 2017; NoDak State has four appearances since 2009, including last season when they topped North Carolina Central in the First Four. They also stunned Oklahoma in a 5-12 game back in 2014, winning in overtime.

Take NORTH DAKOTA +6 (-110).

Over/Under (O/U)

The Under is 1-0-1 in two meetings this season. This one (138.5; Over +100 / Under -121) is going to be close — perhaps very close — and the lean is to the Under because nerves might get the better of the teams in the early going.

The best choice is to just AVOID.

Want some action in this one? Place a bet at BetMGM now. For more sports betting picks and tips, visit SportsbookWire.com.

Follow @JoeWilliamsVI and @SportsbookWire on Twitter.

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