First
Pitch
Oral Roberts returns to
action this weekend, traveling to Austin, Texas for a three-game
set against the Longhorns at UFCU Disch-Falk Field. The Golden
Eagles and the Longhorns meet Friday at 2:30 p.m., Saturday at 2
p.m., and conclude Sunday at 1:00 p.m. The Golden Eagles are riding
a two-game winning streak after losing five straight.
The
Coaches
Rob Walton
is in his fourth season as ORU head coach, with a record of 137-52
(.725). Not only was Walton the 2006 Mid-Con Coach of the Year for
the second time in three seasons, he also was awarded the 2006 ABCA
Mid-West Region Coach of the Year. Texas is coached by Augie
Garrido. Garrido is in his 11th season as
Texas�€™s head coach and has guided the Longhorns
to a 441-220-1 record and has a overall record of 1,592-744-8 in 39
years as a head coach. Garrido is the first NCAA Division I coach
to reach 1,500 wins.
The Series: ORU vs. Texas
ORU and Texas have met 16
times on the diamond with the Longhorns holding a 13-2-1 series
advantage. UT owns a 13-0-1 advantage at games played at UFCU
Dish-Falk Field. The last time these two teams squared off against
each other was in the NCAA Regionals in Austin in 2004. Texas won
the semifinal game, 7-5, and then played again in the regional
final with Texas eliminating ORU, 7-3.
ORU
Notes
After suffering
their first losing streak of the season (five games), the Golden
Eagles were led by lefthanded pitcher Michael
Jarman�€™s 14 strikeouts in defeating the Baylor
Bears,4-2, in the series finale. Overall, the pitching staff has
stepped it up in the last two games, only allowing a combined three
runs. ORU�€™s offense is hitting at a .250 clip
and has already hit nine home runs in just nine games. ORU is
outscoring their opponents by a 55-42 margin. Jake
Kahaulelio leads the squad with a .375 batting average
with a team-high 12 hits and 10 runs scored. Power hitters
Brian Van Kirk and Chad Rothford
have hit a team-high three home runs each.
Texas Notes
Texas is 9-6 after starting
the year 2-4. The Longhorns are ranked in the top 25 by all five
major publications. UT is ranked No. 13 in the latest Baseball
America poll and recieved a No. 6 preseason ranking by USA
Today/ESPN Coaches Poll. In the Big 12 Conference Preseason Coaches
Poll Texas was picked first and recieved seven first place votes.
Offensively, UT has been dominating with the bats, hitting at a
.319 pace as a team. Eight Longhorns are batting better .300 with
Jordan Danks leading the way at .386. Danks leads the team with
eight doubles while Bradley Suttle and Kyle Russell have a
team-high 18 RBI. Russell leads UT with five home runs.
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