Oklahoma Baseball: Sooners Get Back on Track Against Michigan

ARLINGTON, TX – After splitting the first two games of the State Farm College Baseball Showdown, Oklahoma entered Sunday set for a pivotal matchup with the Michigan Wolverines to try and make it a winning weekend.

The Sooners would get just what the doctor ordered coming through with a 6-1 victory over the Wolverines to get back above .500.

Just like the day prior, getting the start on the mound for the Sooners was a junior college transfer in left-hander Chazz Martinez.

Martinez looked very sharp in his Oklahoma debut, pitching into the fifth allowing just four hits and a single unearned run while also striking out five.

The Sooners got the scoring started in the second inning with right fielder Trent Brown connecting on a two-run double into the left center gap to give OU the quick 2-0 edge.

.@trentbrown5 sent it to the gap!

💻 https://t.co/ZA9Pn6C6Ui @FloBaseball pic.twitter.com/LtYMyEaNWf
— Oklahoma Baseball (@OU_Baseball) February 21, 2022

This marked the second consecutive day in which Brown drove in two runs with one swing, as he did the same in Oklahoma’s 14-4 loss to Arizona on Saturday.

The score stayed there until the fourth when Michigan got onto the board when catcher Jimmy Obertop ripped a double down the left field line to bring a runner around from first.

The score now 2-1, a point of high leverage came the following inning with the Wolverines having runners on first and third with two outs.

Skip Johnson turned to right-hander Carson Atwood out of the bullpen in the key spot and he delivered in a big way, striking out Michigan third baseman Ted Burton looking on a 3-2 fastball.

𝙁𝙞𝙧𝙚𝙙 𝙪𝙥 @carson_atwood11

💻 https://t.co/ZA9Pn6C6Ui @FloBaseball pic.twitter.com/lUVc0f58BM
— Oklahoma Baseball (@OU_Baseball) February 21, 2022

"When you have no walks and let your defense play, you don't get selfish," Skip Johnson said about his team's pitching on Sunday night. "I think Chazz got in a little bit of trouble there and he backed off the stuff that we talk about, but he got back on it and got refocused. It was really huge to see that."

The missed opportunity for Michigan stung further the following half-inning as the Sooners tacked a run onto their lead with a sacrifice fly from center fielder Tanner Tredaway that brought home Kendall Pettis from third.

Oklahoma took that 3-1 edge into the eighth inning at which point they blew the game open thanks in part to some sloppy defense by the Wolverines.

With the bases loaded and one out, Pettis hit a dribbler back to the Michigan pitcher Noah Rennard, who committed two errors on the play bobbling the initial grounder and then throwing it away when trying to get a runner at third base.

In the end, three runs scored and the Sooners' lead ran up to 6-1 - which would go on to be the final score after Jaret Godman locked things down in the ninth.

Not to be overlooked also were the exploits of right-handed reliever Griffin Miller, who tossed 2 2/3 scoreless innings in relief to help keep OU in front.

"He (Miller) was outstanding," Johnson said. "I thought he was himself. I thought he got into a real rhythm, that's why I left him out there for the eighth because he got into a rhythm."

The win improves Oklahoma to 2-1 on the young season and gives them a welcomed jolt of momentum to begin the campaign.

"Yesterday was a big day because we had to learn from that loss (to Arizona)," Johnson said. "There's winning and there's learning. Losing, you learn a lot if you can just make sure you have the details in it.

"When we got the momentum, when Brown got the big hit, we kept the momentum. We almost it a little bit, but we made some quality pitches to get out of that inning (the fifth) which was huge."

Next up for the Sooners is a return to Norman for the home opener against Wichita State on Tuesday Night at L. Dale Mitchell Park.