Baseball Aims its Counterpunch

No. 10 Oklahoma (28-10, 8-4 Big 12) vs. New Orleans (6-33)
Game 1	Friday, April 19, 6:30 p.m. CT
Game 2	Saturday, April 20, 2 p.m. CT
Game 3	Sunday, April 21, 1 p.m. CT
Location	Norman, Okla. \| L. Dale Mitchell Park
Television	All Games: FCS Central Game 2: FS Oklahoma Game 3: FS Southwest Plus
Radio	KREF Sportstalk 1400
Live Stats	SoonerSports.com
Promotions	Weekend Promotions and Giveaways
Additional Info	Twitter \| Instagram \| Media Guide \| Game Notes (PDF)


	Kolbey Carpenter

Carpenter Coping with Tragedy
Freshman infielder Kolbey Carpenter is on an indefinite leave of absence following the devastating fertilizer explosion in his hometown of West, Texas.

Said OU coach Sunny Golloway: "As far as Kolbey goes, he's talked to his immediate family and they're safe. His best friend lost his father and there's some other people that he's very close to.

"Because it affects Kolbey, it affects us. We just need to keep him in our thoughts and our prayers and I'm sure our fans understand that if he's not back this weekend, he's where he needs to be.

"When he does come back, I'm sure our fans are going to give him tremendous support just like band of brothers that are sitting behind me.

"I wish we were closer just to do something as a team to help out ... just to let West, Texas, know that the Oklahoma Sooners are thinking about them."

"With the events of this week, it's put into perspective. We're not asked to go into a laboratory and find a cure for cancer. It's baseball. It's a game."

NORMAN, Okla. -- Buster Douglas and Evander Holyfield. That's who flattened the Oklahoma Sooners Tuesday night.

Douglas shocked the boxing world 1 minute, 22 seconds into the 10th round of a bout in Tokyo in 1990 while an aging Holyfield won a championship belt after pummeling the same opponent for 11 rounds in 1996.

And in just one night earlier this week, OU's baseball team twice played the role of Mike Tyson. At least, that's how it felt.

"I'm a big analogy guy," OU head coach Sunny Golloway said. "We got in the ring and got knocked down, and we got up and got knocked down again. We got knocked down so many times we never really threw a punch."

Solidly ranked in the top 10 with a path to hosting through the Super Regional round of the NCAA Championship, Oklahoma's bell was rung twice as Arkansas-Little Rock swept a doubleheader to send the Sooners tumbling down the RPI mat.

"Our RPI on Tuesday dropped from 22 to 34. We did detrimental damage to our RPI. It was absolutely crushing, at this point of the season, to our RPI. We didn't do the league any favors either. We didn't regroup (after the first loss).

"We've got to learn how to get off the canvas and we've got to learn to make an adjustment. You can't just get up as say, `I'm ready to go again,' and not make an adjustment because you're going to get hit with the same whatever-it-is -- haymaker, uppercut, whatever -- and you'll get knocked down again.

"It seemed like Tuesday we kept trying to do the same things and get knocked down again."

While those losses didn't hurt the Sooners title shot -- Oklahoma leads the Big 12 Conference standings by one game -- they did send a message.

"It's not like we didn't understand what those games meant," OU senior right fielder Max White said. "We hadn't had a couple mid-weeks in a couple weeks and our approach was a bit off. After that, I think we know where we stand, know what we need to do.

"Just get our legs back under us. Keep the leadership coming, and the experience. It's a long season, a long haul. We just have to keep our focus on, have a good weekend and stay on track."

For five of OU's starting position players, it's the first time through the gauntlet of a Division I season. However, the veterans have an eye on the bigger prize.

"I basically just tell them that it's behind us and there's nothing they can do about it," OU's Friday ace Jonathan Gray said. "It's only going to help us in the long run. It's all about what's in front of you. We're just going to have to go out there and play our best ball.

"If both offense and defense are playing well, this team is really dangerous. It's just something you have to work on together."

With a non-conference weekend series against New Orleans beginning Friday at 6:30 p.m., the Sooners aim their counterpunch at fighting back to up the RPI ladder.

"We're going to try to not do wholesale changes," Golloway said, "but we're going to be smart and not get up and fight the same way we've been fighting."

This time, hoping to be on the right side of the 10-count.