The Basics
Game 22
Oral Roberts (13-8) vs Wichita State (10-8)
Date: March 21
Location: J.L. Johnson Stadium (Tulsa, Okla.)
Watch: ORU Sports Network | Live Stats: Sidearm Stats

TULSA, Okla. – Riding a three-game win streak, the Oral Roberts baseball team welcomes Wichita State to J.L. Johnson Stadium for a midweek contest Tuesday at 6 p.m.

Tuesday's contest will be streamed on the ORU Sports Network and fans can also follow along with the game on ORU's Twitter, @ORUBaseball. Tuesday is $1 hot dog day at J.L. Johnson Stadium. For tickets, fans can visit www.mabeecenter.com. 

Important Links
ORU Game Notes
Summit League Notes

Inside the Series
• Tuesday's midweek marks the 75th meeting all-time and second this season between the Golden Eagles and Shockers. 

• ORU claimed the two club's first meeting this season, 6-5, back on March 7 in Wichita, Kansas. In the victory, Drew Stahl launched a three-run home run and Joshua Caravalho picked up the win.

• In the all-time series, ORU trails 33-41.

Quick Hits  
• The Golden Eagles enter the midweek after a dominating sweep of Summit League foe St. Thomas over the weekend. ORU outscored the Tommies, 39-6, in the three contests and plated a season-best 21 runs in Saturday's win.

• Outfielder Matt Hogan, who was named the Summit League Peak Performer of the Week, a Collegiate Baseball National Player of the Week and the D1 Baseball Player of the Week, put together a monster stretch at the dish as the redshirt senior went 11-for-20 (.550) with three homers and 18 RBI. The Melville, New York, native also added a double, triple and stolen base on the week.

• Hogan continues to lead the League in homers (8), sacrifice flies (4) and RBI (34). Nationally, the redshirt senior sits seventh in sac flies, eighth in RBI and 25th in homers.

• Fellow outfielder Jonah Cox also compiled a strong performance at the plate as the junior went 15-for-25 (.600) to go along with two doubles, two triples and 11 RBI. The Thornton, Colorado, native enters the week as the nation's leader in hits with 41. Cox also ranks fifth in hits per game (2.0), fifth in triples (4) and eighth in batting average (.466).

• Caravalho will get the nod on the mound for the Golden Eagles Tuesday. In his last start against the Shockers, the sophomore tossed five shutout innings en route to earning the win.

• Entering the week, the Golden Eagle offense leads the Summit League in batting average (.313), runs (148), hits (233), home runs (26), triples (8), RBI (139), on-base percentage (.390), slugging percentage (.493), stolen bases (38) and total bases (367). On the mound, ORU tops the conference in ERA (4.40), batting average against (.239), WHIP (1.30), saves (6), innings pitched (186.0), hits allowed per nine innings (7.8), runs allowed (98), earned runs allowed (91), strikeouts-to-walk ratio (2.3) and strikeouts (187). Defensively, the Golden Eagles top the League in putouts (558), assists (205), double plays (21) and fielding percentage (.986).

• Nationally, ORU ranks fifth in double plays, fifth in fielding percentage, sixth in hits, 21st in triples and 25th in stolen bases.

• On the mound, Brooks Fowler tops the League in ERA (2.49), while Harley Gollert leads the conference in wins (3).

• The Golden Eagles are coming off their 20th Summit League Tournament Championship and 29th NCAA Regional appearance after finishing with a 38-20 record in 2022. ORU returns 15 players from last year's NCAA Regional squad and welcomed 17 newcomers in the offseason.

• After an electric 2022 season out of the bullpen, junior right-hander Cade Denton received Preseason First Team All-American honors from the National Collegiate Baseball Writer's Association (NCBWA) and was tabbed the Preseason Summit League Pitcher of the Year by D1 Baseball and Perfect Game USA. The Rowlett, Texas, native was also named to the Preseason Watch List for the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Award, given to the top relief pitcher in NCAA Division I Baseball.

• In the 2023 Summit League Preseason Coaches' Poll, ORU was selected as the unanimous favorite to claim the regular season crown. The Golden Eagles received 42 points and earned all six first-place votes they could. Redshirt senior Mac McCroskey and Denton were named the Preseason Player and Pitcher to Watch for ORU as voted on by the league's seven head coaches. Senior Jake McMurray and Denton garnered Preseason All-Summit League honors from Perfect Game USA.

• Entering the 2023 season, ORU ranks sixth all-time in NCAA history with a .652 winning percentage. 

• Since 2001, ORU has made 17 NCAA Regional appearances, which rank as the most among Oklahoma schools.

• Head Coach Ryan Folmar enters his 11th season at the helm of the Golden Eagles and has compiled a 332-218 (.604) overall record.  

Scouting the Opponent
• The Shockers split their two-game set over the weekend against Creighton and enter the midweek with a 10-8 overall record. 

• RHP Grant Adler will take the mound for Wichita State on Tuesday. The junior owns a 3-1 record and a 2.59 ERA through four starts this season.

• Payton Tolle continues to lead the charge offensively for the Shockers as the sophomore holds a .395 average to go along with three homers and 19 RBIs.

For the latest information on ORU Baseball, follow the Golden Eagles on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, or go to www.ORUAthletics.com. Fans can also receive updates on the team by downloading the ORU Athletics app from the App Store or Google Play Store.