By Kaden Boyd
In a thrilling game of baseball, the Sooners faced off against the ranked No. 24 Dallas Baptist Patriots. The game began with Spikerman drawing a walk in the first inning and advancing to second base on a passed ball during Bryce Madron’s at-bat. Madron, in a 3-2 count, hit a bloop single into center field, scoring Spikerman from second base. This early success put the Sooners on the scoreboard, but the next three batters were quickly sat down, ending the momentum and turning the inning over to Dallas Baptist.
Making his debut as a Sooner, Grant Stevens took the mound. He struggled early on, ending the first inning with 2 runs scored off a two-run shot to right-center field by Dallas Baptist’s 4-hole hitter, Miguel Santos. However, the Sooner offense didn’t let this stop them. In the second inning, Jackson Nicklaus came to the plate and hit a home run of his own on the second pitch he saw. Despite this, the Sooners couldn’t keep the momentum going and once again turned the inning over to Dallas Baptist.
Stevens started to look more comfortable on the mound, getting his offspeed pitches to work well for him, but still struggling with fastball consistency. The game stayed tied and Stevens looked to stay hot, but Dallas Baptist was ready for the offspeed pitches. Luke Heefner, in the bottom of the fourth, sat back on a curveball inside and pulled it down the line for a triple, scoring the runner that was sitting on first base making the score 2-3 now. This marked the start of a breakthrough for the Dallas Baptist offense, who went on to score 2 more runs with 2 outs in the inning. Just when it seemed like the Patriots were about to tack on more runs, Jackson Willits made a diving catch to get out of the inning and stop the bleeding and end the inning down 2-5.
The 5th inning was quiet for the Sooner offense, and Skip ended up going to the bullpen where we saw Will Carsten. Carsten allowed one run in the 5th inning, making the score 2-6 going into the top of the 6th inning. The Sooners had a great 6th inning at the plate, forcing bases loaded and even scoring one run on a hit by pitch from Kendall Pettis. The Patriots, however, went to the bullpen with bases loaded and 2 outs with Spikerman at the plate. One more run scored for the Sooners on a passed ball, but that was all the noise the Sooners could make, making the score 4-6.
Just when it seemed like the defense was back and the flood gates had stopped for the Patriots, they hit yet another home run in the bottom of the 6th to extend their lead to 4-7. As a fan, it was suffocating to the point where you believed that it was over. But if there is one thing I have learned since Skip Johnson has been our head coach, it is that the Sooners are NEVER out of a ballgame.
With one runner on second and 2 outs, Snyder came up to the plate hoping to make some noise and bring the Sooners back into this game…and boy did he make noise. Michael Snyder launched a moonshot two-run home run to cut into the Patriots lead. The Sooners now down by one with Jackson Nicklaus at the plate have momentum and are ready to tie this ball game up. That would be exactly what Jackson Nicklaus does as well, sending another ball over the fence to tie the ballgame up at 7. That was all that the Sooners could make happen and the inning would end, but it now felt as if the Sooners were gonna come back and win this thing.
In the bottom of the 7th inning, we were finally able to see Jacob Gholston, or as Toby Rowland called him on the broadcast, “The Kid”. Gholston was selected in the 17th round in the previous MLB draft, but likely would have been higher if he had not had an injury in the playoffs of high school baseball senior season. His outing was not ideal, nor expected, sending the very first batter he faced to first base on four straight balls. Skip would instantly go to the bullpen and that would be all that we saw of Gholston. Despite this, the Sooners remained hopeful and continued to fight. With runners on 1st and 2nd base and 2 outs, Skip would go to the arm of Dylan Crooks, who had already had an incredible weekend in Arlington. Crooks first batter he faced sent a line drive back at him, causing the ball to hit off Crooks glove and roll to shortstop where everyone would advance and load up the bases. With the bases full of Patriots, DBU’s power bat Nathan Humphreys came up to the plate looking to deliver the knockout blow. Humphreys got the pitch he wanted and sent an absolute bomb to right-center field for a grand slam to take the lead 7-11.
That would be all that we would see from either team the rest of the night, sending the Sooners home from their four game “Dallas Tour” with a loss. However, this game was a testament to the resilience and determination of the Sooners. Despite the challenges, they continued to fight and never gave up.
I had the privilege to ask Grant Stevens how he felt about his first outing as a Sooner, and how he felt about the team in general, this is what he had to say:
“Yea just struggled commanding my fastball so had to rely on secondary [pitches]. But this team is everything! Energy, effort, focus, never gave up fighting. Every guy hitting or throwing you trust on that mound or box. First time in my career I truly trust every single player no matter the score knowing we have a chance. Can’t wait to see the crowd here in Norman this week and compete Vs another great team! Boomer!”
This spirit and trust in each other is what makes this team special and will undoubtedly carry them through the rest of the season.
Sooners now go home to face Wright State in a 4 game series, where they look to bounce back and get a couple wins out of this upcoming weekend. Games this weekend are Friday at 4 PM, Saturday 1 PM, Saturday 4 PM, Sunday 2 PM.
Tickets can be purchased on the Oklahoma athletics website, or, if you want to enjoy a game out on the berms you are more than welcome! The “Berm bums” will be for both games on Saturday and would love to have you out! Boomer!
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