Sooners baseball sweeps through Lubbock
Sooners baseball heads into the final two weekends of the Big 12 regular season with a three-game lead in the conference standings after holding on for an 8-7 win on Sunday, sweeping Texas Tech for the first time since 2011. It was Oklahoma’s school-record fifth conference sweep of the season.
A week after being terrorized by the two-run home run on getaway day, it was the friend for head coach Skip Johnson and company. OU homered three times on Sunday. Michael Snyder and John Spikerman each homered in the second and third inning to build Oklahoma a 4-1 lead through four.
Texas Tech rallied for a run in the seventh and two in the ninth before Malachi Witherspoon closed the curtains on a weekend that Oklahoma baseball fans should relish.
Oklahoma held the league’s best offense in check …
More specifically, the Friday/Saturday pitching duo of Braden Davis and Kyson Witherspoon. Davis, the reigning Big 12 Pitcher of the Week, went seven shutout innings in the opener. He gave up a pair of hits and struck out eight. Witherspoon threw five scoreless innings before handing the game over to the Sooners bullpen on Saturday.
Texas Tech scored its first run of the series in the sixth inning of the second game.
John Spikerman was Oklahoma’s MVP on Sunday …
The junior centerfielder went 3-for-5 with a two-run home run off the light pole in the third inning on Sunday. He exits the weekend in Lubbock going 6-for-12 with four RBIs and four runs scored. He walked twice in Saturday’s 7-5 win.
But it was his defense on Sunday that was the difference in a one run game, gunning down Landon Stripling at home plate to end the fourth. Oklahoma led 6-1 at the time.
OU didn’t trail all weekend …
And a good reason for that was the Sooners offense who collected 34 hits. They built early leads in all three games scoring in the first inning on Saturday and Sunday. Scott Mudler got the Sooners on the board on Friday with a two-run double in the second.
After the Red Raiders cut the Oklahoma lead to 6-4 in a three run fifth, Easton Carmichael connected with the Sooners third two-run home run of the afternoon. It extended the lead back to four, 8-4.
Carmichael went 1-for-3 in the finale, driving in three runs.
Sooners found answers in the bullpen …
Malachi Witherspoon inherited a pair of runners in the ninth and navigated Oklahoma to its 10th conference road win of the season with a strikeout, RBI ground out and fly out.
Witherspoon closed out both Saturday and Sunday victories and continues to build a case for Oklahoma’s closer role going into the postseason.
Jamie Hitt, Brendan Girton, Carter Campbell, Dylan Crooks and Ryan Lambert all saw action on Sunday. Dylan Crooks (1.1 innings pitched, one hit, one run) took over for Campbell in the seventh and wiggled out of the inning. He needed just two pitches to induce a fly ball to right, stranding the tying run in scoring position. Crooks retired four batters on just eight pitches before Gavin Kash opened the ninth with a solo home run.
Carson Atwood was solid in his seventh career start. He threw 3.1 innings, allowing a run on two hits and four walks.
OU improves to 18-6 in conference play …
The 18 conference wins is the most in league play in 20 seasons (19, 2004). This sets up the Sooners holding a three-game lead over Texas, Oklahoma State and West Virginia with six games left in the regular season. OU returns to L. Dale Mitchell Ballpark for its final regular season home series of the year next weekend hosting Baylor. The Sooners have never won the Big 12 regular season conference title.
