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University of Central Oklahoma Athletics

The Official Site of Central Oklahoma University Athletics Central Oklahoma Athletics
TK McWhertor
4
Winner Emporia State ESU 11-8, 8-4 MIAA
3
Central Oklahoma UCO 13-8, 6-6 MIAA
Winner
Emporia State ESU
11-8, 8-4 MIAA
4
Final
3
Central Oklahoma UCO
13-8, 6-6 MIAA
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Emporia State ESU 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 1 0 4 8 0
Central Oklahoma UCO 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 3 11 0

W: Lee,Ryan (2-2) L: Littlejim, Gabe (3-3) S: Scrimsher,Drew (1)

Game Recap: Baseball | | Chris Brannick

Central Oklahoma Edged By Emporia In Series Finale

EDMOND – The University of Central Oklahoma baseball team lost its second straight game Sunday afternoon, falling 4-3 to Emporia State in Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association play at Wendell Simmons Field.
 
The 18th-ranked Bronchos are now 13-8 on the season and drop to .500 in league play at 6-6.
 
"We didn't have a good weekend and we need to focus on getting that corrected pretty quick," UCO head baseball coach John Martin said. "We got one win when we didn't play all that great, but then a good team like Emporia made us pay for it over the next two. We'll get it figured out and put this behind us."
 
UCO Sunday had a pitching dual through the first two-thirds of the game. Broncho starter Gabe Littlejim struck out two ESU batters in the first inning, two more in the second inning, and all three in the fifth inning before finishing with 10 Ks in 6 1/3 on the day. Emporia though had similar success. Hornet starter Ryan Lee fanned six Bronchos in six innings of work as the game held close. A solo homer by ESU in the top of the fourth was the game's only score through six innings.
 
Emporia added to its 1-0 lead though in the seventh, scoring twice. The first run given to Littlejim after a one-out single. Landon Bond came in for the Broncho righty and struck out his first opponent. But after Bond hit the next ESU batter, UCO went to Junior Obeso, who gave up a two-RBI ground-rule double to right center that made it 3-0 Emporia.
 
UCO got one back in the bottom half, finally getting on the scoreboard when TK McWhertor found his way across the plate. The catcher led off with a single, and moved to second on Ryan Harrel's single. He moved to third when Brock Schaffer grounded into a double play, and then scored when Dru Barrier singled on a hard hit ball to the shortstop.
 
Unfortunately for the Bronchos, Emporia responded back in the eighth. A double and a single with one out in the inning off of Obeso made it 4-1.
 
McWhertor led off the ninth with a double himself, his third hit of the game. After TJ Black pinch-ran for McWhertor, and moved to third on a Harrel groundout, Schaffer stepped up and smacked a 2-0 pitch deep over the right field fence to cut the lead to 4-3.
 
The Bronchos though wouldn't have any more. Barrier grounded out to the pitcher and Philip Scott flied out to right field to end the game.
 
UCO scattered 11 hits on the day Sunday, the most in the three-game series. McWhertor's three led the way, while Harrel added two. McWhertor, Schaffer, and Paul Kropf each had extra base-hits.
 
Littlejim took the loss and is now 3-3 on the season. The Bronchos did tally up 15 more strikeouts Sunday. UCO struck out 17, 16, and 15 in the three-game series against Emporia State. Each of those marks ranks in the top-10 in school history.
 
Central Oklahoma now turns its attention to a non-conference game against Southeastern on Tuesday. The Bronchos run-ruled SOSU, 10-0, in the first game of the season in Edmond on Feb. 1.
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