Sooners debut in polls following weekend sweep
Had you polled anyone in attendance just over a week ago if Sooners baseball would be ranked the next time they played at the Dale, there probably wouldn’t have been too many hands that were raised.
But that’s just the case for Skip Johnson’s Oklahoma Sooners baseball team, just a week removed from an ugly 14-5 loss to Oklahoma State. Debuting in all five major college baseball polls this week following a weekend sweep of TCU, Oklahoma finds itself No. 14 in Baseball America, No. 17 in D1Baseball, No. 18 in Perfect Game, No. 20 in USA Today Coaches Poll and No. 23 in the NCBWA.
A statement of a weekend sorts on the heels of a three-game sweep in Fort Worth for the first time in school history, setting up a Tuesday night midweek showdown versus No. 15 Dallas Baptist.
Friday night included a come-from behind victory highlighted with a four-run seventh and Kyson Witherspoon closing the door on Sooners skipper Skip Johnson’s 200th win as head coach at Oklahoma.
Saturday night more of the same as Carter Frederick delivered the big blow in the 9th inning, breaking open a tie game with a go-ahead pinch hit solo home run in a 7-5 victory.
Oklahoma then brought the brooms out for the second consecutive Sunday racing out to a 6-0 lead before closing the weekend with a 9-4 victory.
More of that, and Oklahoma will place itself squarely in a conference title race and regional host bid.
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MADRON EARNS BIG 12 PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS
For the second consecutive week, the Big 12 Conference Player of the Week resides in Oklahoma with outfielder Bryce Madron taking home the honors after hitting .438 last week with a home run and four RBIs. He also stole three bases, walked four times and scored five runs.
Madron has somewhat quietly put together a really nice season at the plate, ranking first in the conference in runs scored (8), third in walks (7), stolen bases (3) and RBIs (7s) while checking in at ninth in batting average (.450). He leads the team with 26 runs scored, walks (17) and on-base percentage (.483).
AWAITING WORD ON SPIKE
For all of the good on the field over the weekend, there was some bad news in Saturday night’s win as Oklahoma lost centerfielder John Spikerman to a hand injury. While we still await word on the severity of the injury that forced Spikerman to leave in the sixth inning, it’s expected he will miss an extended period of time on the field.
The junior outfielder was off to a blistering start at the plate, hitting .394 on the season ranking second on the team in hits (28), doubles (5). While continue to be a terror on the base paths with a team-leading nine stolen bases.
Good news for Oklahoma is the fact there is depth in the outfield to sustain the impact left by Spikerman’s absence. Carter Frederick broke out in Fort Worth. Bryce Madron can slide over to centerfield. And freshman Jason Walk may see an extended opportunity to play more in the coming weeks.
Regardless of depth, Spikerman’s injury would be a big loss.
