The Basics
Games 49-51
No. 16 Oral Roberts (37-11) vs Southern Indiana (15-32)
Dates: May 12-14
Location: J.L. Johnson Stadium (Tulsa, Okla.)
Watch: ORU Sports Network | Live Stats: Sidearm Stats

TULSA, Okla. – The No. 16 Oral Roberts baseball team concludes its 2023 home slate with a three-game set against Southern Indiana starting Friday night at 6 p.m. from J.L. Johnson Stadium. Game two of the series is scheduled for Saturday at 2 p.m. followed by the finale on Sunday at 1 p.m.

All three contests will be streamed on the ORU Sports Network and fans can also follow along with the game on ORU's Twitter, @ORUBaseball. For tickets, fans can visit www.mabeecenter.com.

Promo Schedule
Friday - $1 Hot Dogs/Pack J.L. Johnson Stadium (Click here for 4 FREE tickets)
Saturday - Bark in the Park (Bring your dog, receive 4 FREE tickets)/Graduation Day
Sunday - Senior Day/Mother's Day/Kids Run the Bases

Important Links
ORU Notes
Southern Indiana Notes
Summit League Notes

Inside the Series
• Friday's series opener marks the first meeting all-time between the two clubs. 

• Against first-time opponents this season, the Golden Eagles are 8-1. 

Quick Hits  
• ORU enters the weekend with the nation's second-longest active win streak at nine in a row and is 27-3 in its last 30 contests.

• The Golden Eagles are coming off a 4-1 midweek victory at Wichita State on Tuesday. The win completed ORU's first season sweep of Wichita State since 2009.

• As a staff, ORU struck out 10 Shockers and allowed only three hits. Closer Cade Denton, who's on the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Midseason Watch List, logged his League-leading 11th save of the season, while Dalton Patten earned his second win of the campaign.

• Jacob Widener continued his dominant stretch on the mound after tossing 2.2 scoreless frames and striking out three. Over his last 22.2 innings of work. the redshirt sophomore has struck out 36 batters and allowed only three runs.

• Mac McCroskey, a Brooks Wallace Award Watch List member, went 2-for-3 in the win and plated a game-best two RBI. On the year, the redshirt senior is hitting .289 with 13 homers, 48 RBI and 12 stolen bases. In addition to his offense, McCroskey anchors one of the top defenses in the nation.

• Center fielder Jonah Cox extended his hit streak to 32 games in the win and has recorded a hit in 47 of the 48 contests this season. The junior currently leads the nation in hits (86) and also ranks second in hits per game (1.8), third in triples (7), seventh in batting average (.437) and 29th in stolen bases (24). Cox was also a midseason addition to the Bobby Bragan National Collegiate Slugger Award Watch List. 

• The Golden Eagles clinched their 20th Summit League regular season title and second in the last three seasons with a sweep of St. Thomas a weekend ago. Since joining the Summit League in 1998, ORU has won 20 of the 23 regular season titles. (ORU was a member of the Southland Conference from 2013-14) 

• In this week's Collegiate Baseball poll, ORU rose to No. 16 in the rankings. This marks the fourth consecutive week the Golden Eagles have appeared in the poll.

• First baseman Jake McMurray earned his second consecutive TicketSmarter Summit League Peak Performer of the Week honor on Monday after hitting two go-ahead home runs and driving in six RBI in another 4-0 week for ORU. The senior, who has started in 130 consecutive games has now homered six times in his last eight contests after not homering all season.

• The Golden Eagles will send the trio of RHP Jakob Hall, LHP Harley Gollert and RHP Brooks Fowler to the mound in the series. The trio holds a combined 19-5 record and a 3.43 ERA on the season.

• Entering the weekend, the Golden Eagle offense leads the Summit League in batting average (.312), runs (386), hits (525), home runs (81), RBI (352), on-base percentage (.402), stolen bases (79), slugging percentage (.534), triples (16), total bases (898) and walks (224). On the mound, ORU tops the conference in ERA (3.97), batting average against (.240), WHIP (1.26), saves (18), innings pitched (422.0), hits allowed per nine innings (7.9), strikeouts-to-walk ratio (2.7), walks allowed per nine innings (3.43) and strikeouts (432). Defensively, the Golden Eagles top the League in putouts (1266), assists (442), double plays (41) and fielding percentage (.983).

• Nationally, ORU ranks third in fielding percentage,  sixth in WL percentage (.771), seventh in WHIP (1.26), 12th in hits (525), 13th in ERA, 16th in hits allowed per nine innings, 17th in batting average, 18th in slugging percentage, 18th in walks allowed per nine innings, 19th in strikeout-to-walk ratio, 21st in triples, 25th in home runs and 29th in double plays. 

• Matt Hogan remains the League leader in RBI (55) and sac flies (6). At the national level, Hogan ranks 20th in sac flies. 

• On the mound, Gollert leads the League in wins with seven. Nationally, Hall ranks eighth in walks allowed per nine innings (1.15) and 22nd in WHIP (1.02).

• Midweek starter Joshua Caravalho was named to the College Baseball Foundation National Pitcher of the Year Watch List back on April 19.

• 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 returned 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, 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. Through 23 appearances this season, Denton has recorded a 1.67 ERA and 11 saves, which ranks fifth nationally.

• Among active players in Division I, Denton ranks third in career ERA with a 1.81 mark.

• 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. McCroskey and Denton were named the Preseason Player and Pitcher to Watch for ORU as voted on by the league's seven head coaches. 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 is in his 11th season at the helm of the Golden Eagles and has compiled a 356-221 (.617) overall record.  

Scouting the Opponent
• Southern Indiana enters the weekend on a five-game losing streak and is 15-32 overall.

• Tucker Ebest leads the Screaming Eagle offense as the junior holds a .329 average to go along with 11 homers and 49 RBI.

• Southern Indiana will send RHP Trent Robinson to the mound in the series opener followed by LHP Blake Ciuffetelli on Saturday. Sunday's starter is TBA.

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.