Baseball 2/12/2024 12:00:00 PM Chris Brannick

Central Oklahoma Hosts East Central Tuesday

Bronchos Shift Another Game Back To Edmond Due To Field Conditions

EDMOND – Central Oklahoma and East Central will meet for the second time in three weeks Tuesday when the longtime rivals play a non-conference midweek game at Wendell Simmons Field.

First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m.

The game was originally scheduled to take place in Ada, Oklahoma but excessive precipitation has left Ken Turner Field at ECU unplayable. UCO hosted the Tigers for the Edmond First Pitch Classic Feb. 1-4 and the Bronchos came away with an 11-1 win over the Tigers in their first meeting of the season.

Central Oklahoma is 8-0 on the season after sweeping the competition at the Edmond First Pitch Classic two weeks ago. The Bronchos beat ECU, New Mexico Highlands, Oklahoma Baptist, and then Highlands a second time. This past weekend, UCO took all four games against Arkansas Monticello in a series that was also shifted back to Edmond due to field conditions in Arkansas.

East Central is 1-8 on the season. The Tigers went 0-4 at the Edmond First Pitch Classic, losing to Central Oklahoma, Emporia State, and twice against Pittsburg State. ECU then beat Randall University in Ada last week before getting swept in a four-game series with Fort Hays State in Ada this past weekend.

UCO has a 15-game winning streak against ECU dating back to 2012.

COACH SPEAK

Central Oklahoma head baseball coach John Martin has begun his ninth season leading the Bronchos. The Kansas native is 253-148-1 during his time at UCO. He's won one MIAA title (2018) and made three NCAA national tournament appearances (2017, 2018, 2019).

"We were looking forward to another road trip so we can get our guys into a travel routine," Martin said. "But this kind of stuff happens in the spring and we're grateful we'll have the chance to get the game in.

"East Central is a good team and we'll have to continue playing at the level we've started out at," Martin continued. "We've had a lot of different guys step up in the first two weeks and we hope they can keep it going this week."

PITCHING POINTS

Central Oklahoma's pitching staff is conceding 2.2 runs per game on 5.6 hits per game. The Bronchos have a 2.11 earned run average as a team. UCO also has 72 strikeouts in nine games, 10.1 strikeouts per nine innings.

Starters Caleb Burchfield, Brett Pense, Preston Giltner, and Dax Sharp have been solid with two starts each in two weeks. Burchfield is 1-0 with a 0.90 ERA and 10 strikeouts in 10 innings pitched. Pense is 2-0 with a 0.90 ERA and has seven Ks in 10 innings of work. Giltner, who threw a complete game one-hit shutout Saturday, is 1-0 with a 2.45 ERA and 12 strikeouts in 11 innings of work. Sharp's 0.82 ERA leads the way, with the lefty knocking down 11 batters in 11 innings of work. Sharp is also 1-0.

Out of the bullpen, nine different Bronchos have helped out. Aaron Hosack, Valek Cisneros and Justin Smith are each 1-0. Cisneros and Austin Burda both have two saves. Smith's eight strikeouts are a team-high for relievers.

BRONCHOS AT BAT

Central welcomes East Central back to Edmond averaging 7.2 runs per game on 7.6 hits per game. The Bronchos have a .274 team batting average. With 61 hits on the year, UCO has 22 for extra bases (14 doubles, seven home runs, and one triple).

Garrett Long and Carson Carpenter lead the team with a .450 batting average. Long, a junior second baseman, is 9-for-20 in eight games with a double, a homer, and seven runs scored. Carpenter, a junior right fielder, is also 9-for-20 with two doubles, two homers, and one triple. He has 10 runs scored and seven RBIs.

Kaleb Glass, hitting .286 through seven games played, has a team-high 11 runs scored and is 6-for-6 stealing bases. Orlando Gonzalez is hitting .250 through eight games. He has a team-high five doubles and is tied with Carpenter for the team lead with seven RBIs.

TIGER TALK

East Central comes back to Edmond with a .226 team batting average and an 8.88 team ERA. The Tigers average 3.4 runs per game on 6.8 hits per game. Opponents are averaging 9.1 runs per game on 9.3 hits per game against East Central this season. Nick Blankenship has a team-high 10 hits, including three doubles, to lead the offense, and Beau Driggers and Chat Hayes both have 11 strikeouts to lead the pitching staff.

EXTRAS

Glass has six stolen bases this season and now has 48 in his career, which is four short of No. 10 on UCO's career list … Central Oklahoma has used five different outfielders in eight games, with Carpenter the lone Broncho to play all eight … The Bronchos have used 17 different position players in eight games this season with Carpenter, Gonzalez, and Long playing all eight games … UCO has used 13 pitchers in eight games with a four-man starting rotation … Martin reached win No. 250 on Friday in Central's Game 1 win over Arkansas Monticello to become the third Broncho head coach to reach the milestone.

UP NEXT

Central Oklahoma is scheduled for a home-and-home weekend non-conference series against Oklahoma Christian this Saturday and Sunday. UCO will host OC Saturday at 3 p.m. and the teams will play against Sunday in Oklahoma City at the same time.

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Players Mentioned

#32 Caleb Burchfield: P; 6' 3"; Senior; */R

#39 Valek Cisneros: P; 6' 5"; Senior; */R

#1 Kaleb Glass: OF; 6' 0"; Senior; R/R

#27 Orlando Gonzalez: IF; 6' 0"; Junior; R/R

#12 Brett Pense: P; 6' 4"; Redshirt Freshman; */R

#16 Austin Burda: P; 5' 10"; Junior; */R

#9 Carson Carpenter: OF; 6' 2"; Junior; L/L

#22 Preston Giltner: P; 6' 4"; Junior; */R

#29 Aaron Hosack: P; 6' 5"; Junior; */R

#8 Garrett Long: IF; 5' 11"; Junior; L/R

Players Mentioned

#32 Caleb Burchfield
: 6' 3"; Senior; */R
: P

#39 Valek Cisneros
: 6' 5"; Senior; */R
: P

#1 Kaleb Glass
: 6' 0"; Senior; R/R
: OF

#27 Orlando Gonzalez
: 6' 0"; Junior; R/R
: IF

#12 Brett Pense
: 6' 4"; Redshirt Freshman; */R
: P

#16 Austin Burda
: 5' 10"; Junior; */R
: P

#9 Carson Carpenter
: 6' 2"; Junior; L/L
: OF

#22 Preston Giltner
: 6' 4"; Junior; */R
: P

#29 Aaron Hosack
: 6' 5"; Junior; */R
: P

#8 Garrett Long
: 5' 11"; Junior; L/R
: IF