Baseball Drops Finale in Wilmington

WILMINGTON, N.C. -- A day after its best offensive performance of the young season, the Oklahoma baseball team (2-4) struggled on Sunday in an 11-5 loss to Western Kentucky (2-1) in the Hughes Bros. Challenge at Brooks Field. The Sooners were held scoreless until the ninth inning.

Despite connecting for 12 hits, the Sooners only scored five runs to the Hilltoppers' 11, which were plated on 12 hits as well. Both teams left nine runners on base. Overall, six of the Hilltoppers' runs in the contest were unearned, including two that scored in the sixth frame off two costly Sooner errors.

"We are extremely disappointed in our bullpen and we will continue to look for the right guys to help us in that role," said OU head coach Sunny Golloway. "We also made costly errors which are uncharacteristic of Oklahoma baseball.

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"This team has a lot of things to correct before our next game and we look forward to the return of Vinny Biancamano and Aaron Reza to the left side of our infield."

In his second start of the season, junior captain Ryan Mottern (0-2) pitched strong for the first five innings with seven strikeouts. In the sixth, the Hilltoppers finally got to Mottern with a two-run homer to right-center field by Casey Hamilton. The right hander was pulled after he allowed his sixth hit.

Nich Conaway was summoned from the Sooner bullpen in the sixth with runners on the corners and one out. After the first batter, Matt Hightower, fouled out to catcher Brandon Moss on a potential squeeze bunt, it appeared that Conaway's appearance was going to be a successful one.

Unfortunately the success stopped there for Conaway and the Sooners as Western Kentucky crossed the plate five more times in the inning, starting with Troy Frazier's double to right-center field. On Frazier's hit, a shot to deep right-center field, OU centerfielder Joseph Hughes made an early bid for the defensive play of the year as he used a full-extension dive to try and end the inning. However, the ball bounced in and out of his glove and three runs crossed the plate on the hit and two more would come home on the second two-out double of the inning from Terrance Dayleg.

The Sooners' relievers allowed seven runs (three earned) on six hits over the 3 2/3 innings. Offensively, Aljay Davis, Brandon Moss and Joseph Newman (two RBIs) each collected two hits. In addition, freshman Aaron Baker extended his hitting streak with his only hit in the game, a RBI single in the ninth inning.

The Sooners (2-4) will wait 11 days before their next game on Friday, Feb. 23. The contest is the home opener for OU and the start of a three game series against Western Illinois. The three-game set is also the start of the longest home stand of the season for the Sooners. The nine-game slate will also feature games against Wichita State (Feb. 27), UC Riverside (March 2-4) and Creighton (March 6-7).

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