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Oklahoma Earns First Victory of Four-Game Series Against Visiting Santa Clara

Smooth pitching performances helped keep the Sooners ahead in a tight ball game.
Brady Trantham|
Oklahoma pitcher Cameron Johnson throws against Gonzaga.
Oklahoma pitcher Cameron Johnson throws against Gonzaga. | Carson Field, Sooners On SI

It was a pitching duel for five innings on Thursday night at Kimrey Family Stadium.

The Sooners defeated Santa Clara 2-1 in a well-played game by both squad's bullpens. Hits were hard to come by—no Sooner had more than one—and scoring opportunities often came up empty.

Oklahoma's (12-2) ace Cameron Johnson (4-0) was his usual self—seven strikeouts with only two hits and a 2.11 ERA in five innings. Considering the Sooners had a frustrating time not leaving runners stranded, Johnson's consistency was most welcome.

Santa Clara (5-7) hung tough, but had an even more difficult time than the Sooners navigating the opponent's pitching.

Oklahoma had a great chance to start the game off hot. A Brenden Brock single led to him advancing to second following a steal. Then Trey Gambil walked after battling eight pitches. After Jason Walk struck out, Deiten LaChance also walked to first, leaving bases loaded.

And that's how the inning ended—with bases loaded—following Nolan Stevens striking out.

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It was the beginning of Santa Clara ace Max Bayles (nine Ks, three hits in four innings), who started the game with six strike outs in the first 10 Sooner batters.

The Sooners again wasted another opportunity in the third when back-to-back strike outs led to Jaxon Willits single, advancing Gambil to third. LaChance grounded out four pitches later to end the inning.

A pair of steals by Dayton Tockey and Dasan Harris in the bottom of the fourth led to back-to-back strike outs by Bayles (his eighth and ninth of the game) to end the inning. Three innings with multiple runners in scoring position led to nothing.

Oklahoma Sooners, Jaxon Willits
Oklahoma infielder Jaxon Willits rounds the bases against Gonzaga. | Carson Field, Sooners On SI

Finally, the dam broke in the bottom of the fifth when relief pitcher RJ Meyn gave up a bases-loaded walk to help the Sooners take a 1-0 lead. OU's next two batters would quickly retire to end the inning—again, with bases loaded.

Santa Clara was able to get on the board in the sixth with a one-out single into center field to advance runners, allowing Ben Cleary to score and tie get game at 1-1. Sooner relief pitcher Kadyn Leon was able to keep the damage to a minimum, striking out two Bronco batters to escape the inning with runners on every base.

OU answered back quickly in the sixth when Gerardo Prado hit a lead-off single. Camden Johnson followed suit by hitting a double into center field to get the Sooners two runners in scoring position.

Brock grounded out, earning an RBI when Kyle Branch (pinch running for Prado) made it home. Even in an inning where Oklahoma scored, the home team still left runners stranded as the next two batters were retired.

Santa Clara threatened once again in the eighth inning with a runner on third and two outs. Pitcher Gavyn Jones threw three straight strikes to end the Bronco's scoring opportunity.

As Oklahoma held on to a 2-1 advantage in the ninth, Jackson Cleveland earned the save with a quick 1-2-3 clean sweep to end the game.

The Sooners and Broncos will return to Kimrey Family Stadium Friday at 6:30 p.m. for the second game of a four-game series.

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Brady Trantham
BRADY TRANTHAM

Brady Trantham covered the Oklahoma City Thunder as the lead Thunder Insider from 2018 until 2021 for 107.7 The Franchise. During that time, Trantham also helped the station as a fill-in guest personality and co-hosted Oklahoma Sooner postgame shows. Trantham also covered the Thunder for the Norman Transcript and The Oklahoman on a freelance basis. He received his BA in history from the University of Oklahoma in 2014 and a BS in Sports Casting from Full Sail University in 2023. Trantham also founded and hosts the “Through the Keyhole” podcast, covering Oklahoma Sooners football. He was born in Oklahoma and raised as an Air Force brat all over the world before returning to Norman and setting down roots there.

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