The Basics
Score: Game One: Oral Roberts 3 - Little Rock 2 | Game Two: Little Rock 9 - Oral Roberts 8
Records: ORU (5-5) - LR (5-6)
Location: J.L. Johnson Stadium - Tulsa, Okla.

TULSA, Okla. - It was a Saturday packed with baseball at J.L. Johnson Stadium as the Golden Eagles and Little Rock battled to an afternoon split with ORU taking game one, 3-2, and the Trojans coming out victorious in the nightcap, 9-8. 

Game One Recap

Three runs in the first four innings were all the Golden Eagles would need in the opener as the team fought its way to a 3-2 win. 

Nick Wood would pick up his first victory of the season after tossing five shutout innings, picking up three strikeouts while allowing just five hits. 

Senior infielder Chase Stafford put the Golden Eagles on top in the seocnd inning after drawing a two-out bases loaded walk. The team would add another run in the third after Michael Hungate ripped a double down the left field line to score Nick Roark who reached base on a leadoff single. 

Matt Whatley would drive in the final run of the game for ORU in the fourth with another two-out at bat. The Claremore, Oklahoma native sent a ball right back up the middle, scoring Trevin Sonnier. 

The Trojans made some noise in the eighth though, fighting back for two runs in the frame. Junior Brady Womacks entered the game in the eighth to quiet the comeback and earn his third save of the year. 

Will Hazen would take the loss for Little Rock, falling to 0-1 on the season. 

Game Two Recap

The Golden Eagles rallied from a 9-2 deficit at the seventh inning stretch, scoring five runs in their final nine at bats, but came up just short. 

A polar oppisite of the opening game of the day, game two was filled with offense from start to finish, but the Golden Eagles would come up one swing too short of sending the contest into extras, falling to Little Rock, 9-8. 

The Trojans opened the game with three runs after a pair of singles and a walk loaded the bases in the first. Little Rock's Matt McDowell drew a bases loaded walk for the first run of the game and Ty Gunter drove in a pair with a double down the right field line. 

LR added one more run in the second before the Golden Eagles were able to respond with two runs of their own in the third and fourth. 

The Trojans broke the game open in the seventh, going for five runs in the inning on five hits and the help of two ORU errors. 

The Golden Eagles did not give up, scoring three runs in the seventh as Noah Cummings picked up a pinch hit single followed by a double in the next at bat by Stafford. Cummings would score on a wild pitch before Roark singled home Stafford to make it a 9-4 contest. Whatley would cut the lead even more with his first hit of the ballgame out to left, scoring Roark from second. 

Cummings would pick up his second key base hit in the eighth as he doubled for the second time this season, scoring two in the at bat, cutting the LR lead to just two. 

It looked as though the Golden Eagles had the momentum in the ninth after Brent Williams singled home the eighth run of the game, putting runners on first and second with two outs, but Little Rock closer Cody McGill would finish off the ORU order, securing the first win of the weekend for the Trojans. 

Notables

• Cummings finished the day 2-for-4 with a double and two RBI. 
• Sonnier, Roark and Nick Rotola each finished with a .375 average on the day. Roark drove in two RBI while Rotola finished with a double. 
• Williams made his first start at catcher of the season in game two as Whatley was assigned as the designated hitter. 
• Both ORU starters went five-plus innings on the day. 
• Right-hander Logan Michaels struck out six in his first start of the year. 
• The Golden Eagles combined to leave 18 runners on base in the two games. 

Up Next
The teams will wrap up the series Sunday at 1 p.m. at J.L. Johnson Stadium. Lefty Taylor Varnell will get the start for the Golden Eagles. 

For the latest information on ORU baseball, follow @ORUBaseball on Twitter or go to www.ORUAthletics.com. Fans can also receive updates on the team by downloading the Golden Eagles Front Row App at ORUAthletics.com/frontrow or in the App Store.

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