Baseball Back on Road vs. ORU

Oklahoma

Oral Roberts

April 30 / Tulsa, Okla. / J.L. Johnson Stadium

Summit League Network / Radio / Live Stats / Game Notes

FIRST PITCH

• No. 22 OU hits the road for a four-game swing, starting with a midweek matchup vs. Oral Roberts in Tulsa Tuesday night. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. CT

• The game can be watched via the Summit League Network on a subscription basis and heard locally in Oklahoma on SportsTalk 1400 AM/99.3 FM or nationwide on The Varsity app with OU's Toby Rowland on the call.

• The Sooners enter the contest with a 26-16 record and 15-6 record in conference play, sitting atop the Big 12 standings by one game.

LEADING OFF

• Nearing the end of the regular season, the Sooners hold a 26-16 record, highlighted by a top-10 win over then-No. 9 Tennessee, four ranked victories and four Big 12 sweeps for the first time in program history.

• Before the streak was snapped on Sunday, the Sooners went on a nine-game win streak, good for the longest win streak since the 2017 team won 12 straight.

• The Sooners started 6-0 in Big 12 play, good for the best start in conference play since 2018, and currently hold a 15-6 record in Big 12 play, sitting in first place in the conference standings. OU's four sweeps on the year mark the first time in program history that OU has swept four series in a season since the Big 12's inception in 1996.

• Oklahoma is in its seventh season under the direction of head coach Skip Johnson (including the 2020 season that was shortened due to the COVID-19 pandemic). Johnson, who spent the 2017 season on staff as an assistant coach, has led the Sooners to a 215-148 record, three NCAA Tournament appearances, the 2022 Big 12 tournament championship and the 2022 College World Series finals since taking over as head coach prior to the 2018 season

Lead, Carmichael Texas

THE NUMBERS

• The Sooners are batting .308 as a team, good for second in the Big 12, paced by sophomore Easton Carmichael's .367 clip (3rd in Big 12) while junior Jackson Nicklaus leads the team and Big 12 with his .487 on-base percentage.

• Graduate transfer Michael Snyder leads the team with 45 RBIs and 17 doubles (5th in B12 & 28th in the country) while senior Bryce Madron has a team-best nine home runs and 33 walks, also leads the team and Big 12 with 54 runs scored (34th in nation). Sophomore Easton Carmichael paces OU with 62 hits, good for fourth in the conference.

• 11 Sooners have homered for a total of 53 team blasts, led by Madron's nine, while eight other Sooners have three or more.

• 10 Sooners have brought in at least 10 runs, with eight plating 20 or more.

• On the mound, the Oklahoma pitching staff has a 5.46 team ERA with 412 strikeouts to 196 walks.

• Junior LHP transfer Braden Davis has been consistent in his Friday night role with nine starts as a Sooner, leading OU with 76 strikeouts in 58.0 innings pitched.

• Sophomore righty transfer Kyson Witherspoon (6 GS) paces the starting pitchers with a 4.21 ERA in 51.1 IP to go with 59 strikeouts, while grad transfer and new Sunday starter Grant Stevens has 37 strikeouts in 37.0 innings pitched.

• The graduate transfer Stevens leads OU with five wins (5-1 record), good for sixth in the conference.

• The pitching staff has recorded double-digit strikeouts in 21 of OU's 42 games with a season-high 15 four times (vs. Tennessee [2/17], vs. Wright State [2/24], vs. West Virginia [3/22], at BYU [4/18]).

• The Sooner arms have thrown three shutouts in 42 games played in 2024, already surpassing last season's total of two in 60 games. The three shutouts rank fifth in the Big 12 and 31st nationally.

• The Sooners have had 18 pitchers make appearances so far in 2024, with 13 registering 10-or-more strikeouts and 10 surpassing the 20 K mark, led by junior LHP Davis' 76 and sophomore RHP Kyson Witherspoon's 59.

• Head coach and pitching coach Skip Johnson and the Sooners have 22 pitchers on the roster in 2024.

MORE NOTES & NUGGETS

• Kendall Pettis currently sits 10th on the the program top-10 list with 55 career stolen bases. Coincidentally, Pettis has recently passed OU associate head coach Reggie Willits' career mark of 54 and OU assistant coach Todd Butler's 53 in his two seasons at OU from 1987-88 (including a program record 46 in '87).

• Senior Bryce Madron has drawn 94 career walks as a Sooner in just two seasons in Norman. His 94 BB currently ranks inside the top 20 in program history and is just 11 shy of the top 10. Madron's 61 walks drawn in 2023 ranked fourth in program single-season history.

• Redshirt senior LHP Carter Campbell is currently tied for fourth in program history with 83 career appearances. Fellow senior Carson Atwood has 79 career appearances, good for a tie of sixth in school annals.

• Junior Jackson Nicklaus has hit 25 career home runs in his three years as a Sooner to rank 17th in program history. Nicklaus is just six shy of cracking the program top-10 list.

• 6-4, 226-pound redshirt senior Michael Snyder has stolen 11 bases on 11 attempts in 2024 after not registering a stolen base in four seasons at the University of Washington, a testament to OU and associate head coach Reggie Willits' 'CHAOUS' brand of baseball, creating havoc on the base paths.

• Five Sooners hold double digit multi-hit games on the season, led by sophomore Easton Carmichael's 22 games with multiple knocks. Anthony Mackenzie is close behind with 17. Nicklaus holds OU's single-game high of four hits (vs. Lamar, 3/28). Eight Sooners have multi-RBI performances, paced by Snyder's 13. Bryce Madron holds the single-game season high with 7 RBI vs. BYU (4/20), the most by a Sooner since 2010.

LAST TIME OUT

• In a dramatic three-game set vs. Texas in Norman, the Longhorns edged the Sooners to take the conference series two games to one.

• OU won the opener Friday night 9-4 behind a gem from starting LHP Braden Davis, who hurled six innings and surrendered just one run while striking out nine. OU's Anthony Mackenzie and Jaxon Willits went yard to spark the Sooner bats.

• Texas swept both games of a Sunday doubleheader after weather pushed Saturday's Game 2 into a twin bill on Sunday. The Horns took the first game on Sunday, 8-6, before a 12-10 rubber match victory in the nightcap that was ended early due to weather in the area.

• The teams combined for 49 runs on 66 hits and 13 home runs over the weekend.

DAVIS NAMED BIG 12 PITCHER OF THE WEEK

• Oklahoma junior left-handed pitcher Braden Davis was named the Big 12 Pitcher of the Week, the conference announced the weekly honors Monday.

• Davis earned his first career Big 12 weekly award after an exceptional Friday night start vs. Texas in OU's 9-4 series-opening win. The Keller, Texas, product surrendered just one run in six innings while striking out nine, including striking out the side to finish his night in the sixth inning.

• Davis scattered seven hits and three walks, collecting his fifth win of the season and third straight start with a victory.

• The lefty has struck out eight or more batters in six of his nine starts on the year and ranks fourth in the Big 12 with 54 strikeouts in conference play. Additionally, Davis is tied for second in the conference with four wins (4-1) in Big 12 play.

• On the year, Davis has 76 strikeouts in 58 innings pitched, allowing the opposition to bat just .220.

UP NEXT

• OU continues its road swing as the team heads to Lubbock, Texas, for another pivotal three-game conference series at Texas Tech (29-17, 12-12). All three games can be seen via Big 12 NOW on ESPN+.

LED BY THE VETS

• Veteran leadership highlights the 2024 Oklahoma squad, paced by redshirt seniors Kendall Pettis and Michael Snyder, seniors Anthony Mackenzie and Bryce Madron, and juniors Jackson Nicklaus and John Spikerman.

• The six combine for 968 career games played and 908 starts. Production at the plate includes a combined 104 home runs, 182 doubles and 583 RBIs.

• After missing 20 games due to a hand injury on March 16 at TCU, Spikerman made his return to the starting lineup last Tuesday (4/23) vs. WSU. Nicklaus, after missing four games due to a hamstring injury on April 13 vs. KSU, also returned vs. the Shockers.

RANKINGS CHATTER

• The Sooners made their season debut in the polls the week of March 18, earning spots in all five major polls. OU made its return to the ranks in a big way last week (April 22), leaping back into all five polls.

• This weekends rankings have the Sooners at: No. 19 (Baseball America), No. 22 (D1 Baseball), No. 23 (USA Today Coaches), No. 24 (NCBWA)

• The Sooners are 4-1 in ranked contests this season, all four wins being against top-15 opponents.

• Oklahoma holds the No. 6 strength of schedule in the nation, having been as high as No. 1 for a number of weeks.

• OU ranks 18th in the latest NCAA RPI, having been as high as third this season.

• OU is an undefeated 5-0 in games vs. 2023 Men's College World Series participants, beating No. 9 Tennessee, a three-game sweep of No. 12 TCU and a run-rule win over Oral Roberts.

RECAPPING THE SEASON

• After dropping the season opener to Oregon, the Sooners bounced back in a big way with a pair of wins vs. No. 9 Tennessee and Nebraska in dramatic fashion at the season-opening Shriners Children's College Classic at Globe Life Field in Arlington.

• Opening the home slate vs. Wright State, the Sooners came sprinting out of the gates on offense, putting up a combined 46 runs on the weekend, highlighted by a 20-0 home-opening day win on Friday.

• The Sooners opened Big 12 play in dominant fashion, sweeping a UCF team that came to Norman at 9-1 and fresh off a win at No. 4 Florida.

• Oklahoma stayed unbeaten in conference play with an impressive three-game sweep of No. 12 TCU in Fort Worth, March 15-17. It marked OU's first sweep of TCU at Lupton Stadium and first sweep over the Horned Frogs since 2013.

• OU dropped home series' to West Virginia and Lamar and was narrowly edged by OSU in Stillwater but rebounded with a seven-game conference win streak, including back-to-back Big 12 sweeps of Kansas State in Norman and BYU in Provo.

• The Sooners are 5-3 in midweek contests in 2024, highlighted by a season sweep of Wichita State.

• Fans have tuned in and showed out for the trending Sooners, with attendance records being set at L. Dale Mitchell Park in Norman. On home-opening weekend, the fan base set records for: largest opening day attendance, largest student attendance and largest opening series attendance.

• In 2024, OU has set the top three single-game attendance marks in program history, recently breaking the all-time mark with 4,812 in attendance for OU's Friday night win over Texas on April 26. It broke a 29-year-old attendance record of 4,544 vs. Texas in 1995

• In addition, the OU-Texas series in Norman set a single-series program attendance record with 12,335 fans attending the three-game set, shattering the previous record of 7,269 vs. Texas in 2014.

THE SKIPPER SURPASSES 200 WINS AT OU

• OU head coach Skip Johnson collected his 200th career victory at Oklahoma on March 15 with OU's 7-3 win at No. 12 TCU.

• Oklahoma is in its seventh season under the direction Johnson (including the 2020 season that was shortened due to the COVID-19 pandemic). Johnson, who spent the 2017 season on staff as an assistant coach, has led the Sooners to a 215-148 record, three NCAA Tournament appearances, the 2022 Big 12 tournament championship and the 2022 College World Series finals since taking over as head coach prior to the 2018 season.

• Johnson holds 629 career wins as a head coach, earning 414 at Navarro (TX) College before making the jump to Division I baseball where he's won 215 at OU.

L. DALE MITCHELL PARK EXPANSION PROJECT

• The Oklahoma baseball facility enhancement project will transform the look of the ballpark from both the interior bowl and the exterior of the stadium. New locker rooms, training areas, coaches offices and team meeting areas combined with chairback seating, terraced berms and additional awnings and concourses will provide a first-class facility for fans and student-athletes. In addition, a new, state-of-the-art performance and player development center will be added. A new entry to the team areas will include a Champions Lobby, displaying the success and tradition of the Oklahoma baseball program.

• More than 35,000 in square-foot-space of new areas benefiting student-athlete performance and recovery including a robust medical services area, weight room and sports science to centralize student-athlete training at the baseball field.

• For more information and to donate to the L. Dale Mitchell project, visit The Sooner Club.

For updates and more information on Oklahoma baseball, follow the Sooners on Twitter and Instagram (@OU_Baseball) and like Oklahoma Baseball on Facebook.

FIRST PITCH

LEADING OFF

THE NUMBERS

MORE NOTES & NUGGETS

LAST TIME OUT

DAVIS NAMED BIG 12 PITCHER OF THE WEEK

UP NEXT

LED BY THE VETS

RANKINGS CHATTER

RECAPPING THE SEASON

THE SKIPPER SURPASSES 200 WINS AT OU

L. DALE MITCHELL PARK EXPANSION PROJECT

Players Mentioned

Carson Atwood

Carter Campbell

Easton Carmichael

Braden Davis

Anthony Mackenzie

Bryce Madron

Jackson Nicklaus

Kendall Pettis

Michael Snyder

John Spikerman

Grant Stevens

Jaxon Willits

Kyson Witherspoon

Sponsors

University of Oklahoma Athletics