No. 6 Bronchos Make Home Debut This Weekend

No. 6-ranked Central Oklahoma makes its 2023 home debut this weekend when the Bronchos play five games during the three-day Raising Cane's Festival at Gerry Pinkston Stadium.

UCO, 4-2 on the young season, opens at 3:30 p.m. Friday against Arkansas Tech (6-4) before facing East Central (0-4) at 6. The Bronchos take on No. 16 Southern Arkansas (9-0) at 3:30 p.m. Saturday, then finish Sunday against Southeastern Oklahoma (3-6) at 1 p.m. and Southwestern Oklahoma (3-6) at 3:30.

"We're looking forward to playing at home in front of our fans," head coach Cody White said. "We learned a lot about ourselves in our first tournament of the year and have been working hard to correct the mistakes we made in those games."

UCO will take an extended break after this weekend, not returning to action until hosting Northwestern Oklahoma for a doubleheader on March 1.

ABOUT THE BRONCHOS: UCO opened the season Feb. 3-5 at the Division II Spring Invitational Kickoff, going 4-2 in that rugged event.

The Bronchos earned wins over then-No. 3 Texas-Tyler (9-5) and then-No. 18 Angelo State (13-9) in addition to beating St. Edward's (9-1) and Texas Woman's (5-4). UCO lost to St. Mary's (2-0) and Oklahoma Christian (8-3), with those teams ranked 19th and 22nd, respectively, in the latest NFCA poll.

UCO hit .274 in those six games, averaging 7.2 hits and 6.5 runs per game.

All-American Jacee Minter led the offense, batting .450 (9-for-20) with four doubles, one triple, one home run and seven runs batted in. The junior star moved into eighth place on the school's career doubles list with 40 and to ninth on the all-time homers chart with 25.

Tatum Long had a .357 average (5-for-14) with four doubles and five RBI in the opening weekend, while Rylee Lemos and Shayla Harper both hit .333 (each going 6-for-18). Lemos had three stolen bases and Harper added two homers, a triple and five RBI.

The Bronchos have a 4.27 team earned run average in the early going, giving up 7.8 hits and 4.8 runs a contest.

Corrina Rivas went 2-1 with a 3.63 ERA while pitching a team-high 17 1/3 innings, striking out nine and walking five. Jordyn Pipkin is 1-1 with a 2.90 ERA and seven strikeouts in 9 2/3 innings.

Head coach Cody White picked up his 350th career win during the opening weekend of play and is now 353-139 in his 10th year at the helm.

ABOUT THE OPPONENTS: All five of UCO's opponents this weekend are members of the Great American Conference.

Arkansas Tech is hitting .239 as a team to go along with a 2.19 ERA. The Bronchos own a 7-2 lead in the series and has won the last five meetings.

East Central has a .163 team average and 7.58 team ERA after one weekend of play. UCO owns a 45-24 advantage in the series and is riding a six-game winning streak against the Tigers.

Southern Arkansas has battered its first nine opponents in an unbeaten start and is hitting .360 with a team ERA of 1.72. Alyssa Miller leads the Muleriders with a .750 average (18-for-24). UCO has a 6-3 series lead, including a 3-2 victory in last year's NCAA Division II Central Regional II Tournament.

Southeastern Oklahoma enters the weekend with a .203 average and 3.93 ERA. The Savage Storm have a 39-30 lead in the series, though UCO has won the last six meetings.

Southwestern Oklahoma is batting .218 with an 8.15 ERA in the early going. The Bronchos have won eight straight over the Bulldogs, extending their series lead to 81-12.

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Players Mentioned

#11 Shayla Harper: IF; 5' 7"; Senior; R/R

#12 Jacee Minter: OF; 5' 6"; Junior; R/R

#8 Rylee Lemos: OF; 5' 6"; Freshman; L/R

#15 Jordyn Pipkin: P; 5' 6"; Sophomore; R/R

#24 Tatum Long: IF; 5' 8"; Junior; R/R

Players Mentioned

#11 Shayla Harper
: 5' 7"; Senior; R/R
: IF

#12 Jacee Minter
: 5' 6"; Junior; R/R
: OF

#8 Rylee Lemos
: 5' 6"; Freshman; L/R
: OF

#15 Jordyn Pipkin
: 5' 6"; Sophomore; R/R
: P

#24 Tatum Long
: 5' 8"; Junior; R/R
: IF