Davis, Hensley combine for first no-hitter since 2005
Braden Davis knew at some point in the third. Reid Hensley didn’t know until the 27th out was recorded.
It was thorough. It was loud. And the result was historic as the duo paired for the first Oklahoma combined no-hitter since 2005 Friday night opening this weekend’s West Virginia series with a 13-0 victory.
Oklahoma bats executed early and often chasing West Virginia starter Aidan Major during a five run third inning. Michael Sndyer collected RBIs in each of his first three plate appearances. Kendall Pettis cleared the bases with a double in a four run fifth.
But the night was for Davis, Hensley
A special performance as Oklahoma stayed unbeaten in conference play improving to 7-0 heading into a weather-induced double-header to close the series on Saturday.
“It was good. I was finding everything. All my pitches felt good. Everything was just kind of rolling,” said Davis after striking out a career-high 12.
“Probably about the fifth inning. Think I might’ve ended with a punchout. I was pretty fired up then. And I just tried to keep the momentum going as well as I could.”
He didn’t just keep the momentum going. He sprinted with it. Striking out Michael Perazza and Spencer Barnett to close the fifth. Davis proceeded to strike out the final eight batters he faced shutting down the sixth and seventh frames with punchouts followed by a yell and a fistpump en route to the Sooners dugout.
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“I think it was just a little more adrenaline. Punching a bunch of guys out kept me in a good mood and stay at that level,” said Davis.
As for Hensley? He didn’t even know what he stepped into when he walked in from the Sooners bullpen to start the eighth.
“Honestly I had no clue,” said laughed Hensely. “Which was really good. I was just thinking keep this going. Just go and execute pitches and at the end they were like,’we just threw a no-hitter’.
“I was like huh that’s pretty cool”.
Pretty cool, indeed.
The no-hitter was the ninth in Oklahoma baseball history and the first since Dane Acker versus LSU in the COVID shortened 2020 season.
SERIES PUSHED TO DOUBLE-HEADER SATURDAY
With severe weather forecasted on getaway day Sunday, Oklahoma and West Virginia will close the series on Saturday with a double-header starting at 3p. It’s the second time in three weeks Oklahoma will be forced to play a conference double-header in Norman after opening conference play versus Central Florida.
