After dropping the Bedlam series over the weekend, OU looked to bounce back on Tuesday night against UT Arlington. This matchup marked a homecoming for UT Arlington coach Clay Van Hook, who was a former assistant coach at OU, and pitcher Aaron Calhoun, who was a former OU pitcher.
With the hope of bouncing back from pitching miscues over the weekend, the Sooners went with Carson Atwood on the mound to face off against the Mavericks. This would mark Atwood's first start of the season, as he entered the game with an ERA of 4.02.
Atwood made the most of the start, as he sat the first three UT Arlington batters down 1-2-3. The Oklahoma offense wasted no time in this one, with Anthony Mackenzie putting the first run of the day on the board after a fielding error. With more runners on base, Kendall Pettis would hit a sacrifice fly to send Bryce Madron home. In a very odd start, OU led 2-0 with zero hits on the night. Freshman standout Jaxon Willits shot a single into center field which allowed two more runners to reach home, and Oklahoma quickly led 4-0 after one.
Despite the success from Atwood to start the game, his day was done after a single frame. OU would end up rotating between 11 pitchers in this one, with the staff likely trying to save the bullpen for the series against Kansas State this weekend.
Next onto the mound for the Sooners was Will Carsten, who quickly turned in an impressive 1-2-3 inning as well. The Oklahoma bats did not have the same success in the second, with UT Arlington's defense shutting OU down. The Sooners led 4-0 after two.
Carsten enjoyed another great inning in the third, and sat down three batters without issue. As they normally do, the Oklahoma bats quickly got hot. It was started with a Jackson Nicklaus single, and he stole second base. Thanks to a bunt by Jaxon Willits, Nicklaus made his way around the bases and extended OU's lead to 5-0. With two outs in the frame, the offense exploded. Both Anthony Mackenzie and Bryce Madron would pick up RBI singles, which was quickly followed by Easton Carmichael hitting a two-run RBI double. Oklahoma would finish the inning leading 9-0.
Malachi Witherspoon would be the next pitcher to see the mound for OU. Despite giving up two runs, he would eventually dial it in and retire the side in the fourth. Although the bats were electric to end the third, the momentum did not continue. The Sooners went down in order, but OU led 9-2 after four.
As stated previously, Skip Johnson and company rotated between 11 pitchers in this one. Both Dylan Crooks and Ryan Lambert saw the mound in the fifth, where the Oklahoma defense forced another scoreless inning. Unfortunately for OU, the cold bats showed back up in the fifth. Despite Mackenzie and Madron getting on base, OU was unable to put any runners across the plate. The Sooners led 9-2 headed into the sixth.
Similar to the fifth, the sixth inning was a quick one as Lambert stayed on the mound and made quick work of the Mavericks lineup. Oklahoma would be retired in order and maintain their 9-2 lead.
With opportunities running out, UT Arlington would claw back in the top of the seventh, cutting the OU lead to 9-4. After three innings of silence, the OU bats got on track again in the seventh. Anthony Mackenzie came up clutch, launching a two-out RBI triple off the wall and eventually making his way to home plate after a wild pitch. OU led 11-4 after seven.
Neither team was able to find success at bat in the eighth, but the Mavericks made a big push in the ninth. Thanks to a series of walks and a grand slam, Oklahoma fans were quickly silenced as UT Arlington cut the lead down to 11-9. With their tying run on, OU would bring out their 11th and final pitcher, Brendan Girton, who would close the game out and help OU survive a scare.
Next up for Oklahoma is a clash against Kansas State on Friday night in Norman.
With the hope of bouncing back from pitching miscues over the weekend, the Sooners went with Carson Atwood on the mound to face off against the Mavericks. This would mark Atwood's first start of the season, as he entered the game with an ERA of 4.02.
Atwood made the most of the start, as he sat the first three UT Arlington batters down 1-2-3. The Oklahoma offense wasted no time in this one, with Anthony Mackenzie putting the first run of the day on the board after a fielding error. With more runners on base, Kendall Pettis would hit a sacrifice fly to send Bryce Madron home. In a very odd start, OU led 2-0 with zero hits on the night. Freshman standout Jaxon Willits shot a single into center field which allowed two more runners to reach home, and Oklahoma quickly led 4-0 after one.
Despite the success from Atwood to start the game, his day was done after a single frame. OU would end up rotating between 11 pitchers in this one, with the staff likely trying to save the bullpen for the series against Kansas State this weekend.
Next onto the mound for the Sooners was Will Carsten, who quickly turned in an impressive 1-2-3 inning as well. The Oklahoma bats did not have the same success in the second, with UT Arlington's defense shutting OU down. The Sooners led 4-0 after two.
Carsten enjoyed another great inning in the third, and sat down three batters without issue. As they normally do, the Oklahoma bats quickly got hot. It was started with a Jackson Nicklaus single, and he stole second base. Thanks to a bunt by Jaxon Willits, Nicklaus made his way around the bases and extended OU's lead to 5-0. With two outs in the frame, the offense exploded. Both Anthony Mackenzie and Bryce Madron would pick up RBI singles, which was quickly followed by Easton Carmichael hitting a two-run RBI double. Oklahoma would finish the inning leading 9-0.
Malachi Witherspoon would be the next pitcher to see the mound for OU. Despite giving up two runs, he would eventually dial it in and retire the side in the fourth. Although the bats were electric to end the third, the momentum did not continue. The Sooners went down in order, but OU led 9-2 after four.
As stated previously, Skip Johnson and company rotated between 11 pitchers in this one. Both Dylan Crooks and Ryan Lambert saw the mound in the fifth, where the Oklahoma defense forced another scoreless inning. Unfortunately for OU, the cold bats showed back up in the fifth. Despite Mackenzie and Madron getting on base, OU was unable to put any runners across the plate. The Sooners led 9-2 headed into the sixth.
Similar to the fifth, the sixth inning was a quick one as Lambert stayed on the mound and made quick work of the Mavericks lineup. Oklahoma would be retired in order and maintain their 9-2 lead.
With opportunities running out, UT Arlington would claw back in the top of the seventh, cutting the OU lead to 9-4. After three innings of silence, the OU bats got on track again in the seventh. Anthony Mackenzie came up clutch, launching a two-out RBI triple off the wall and eventually making his way to home plate after a wild pitch. OU led 11-4 after seven.
Neither team was able to find success at bat in the eighth, but the Mavericks made a big push in the ninth. Thanks to a series of walks and a grand slam, Oklahoma fans were quickly silenced as UT Arlington cut the lead down to 11-9. With their tying run on, OU would bring out their 11th and final pitcher, Brendan Girton, who would close the game out and help OU survive a scare.
Next up for Oklahoma is a clash against Kansas State on Friday night in Norman.
