OU Baseball: Oklahoma Falls Flat Again, Cowboys Dominate Rubber Match

The Sooners' game two spark was short lived, as the Cowboys took care of business in blowout fashion Saturday afternoon.

NORMAN — After the Sooners stole game two, Oklahoma State took the Saturday rubber match personally. 

The Cowboys laid on the hurt in what looked like a Thursday night re-run, embarrassing Oklahoma 11-1 in front of a massive home crowd.

“Our offense didn’t show up, we didn’t play good offense,” head coach Skip Johnson said after the loss. “We gave them a couple runs. When you’re playing a championship caliber team like they are, you gotta make plays.”

OU fans did their part, packing 3,371 into L. Dale Mitchell Park, the 5th-largest crowd in the ballpark's history and the most since 2014. It was also the largest gathering ever for a Bedlam game in Norman.

"That’s exciting," Johnson said about the crowd. "I envisioned that when I first took the job here. To bring folks and to bring baseball like it used to be. To get excited about baseball because baseball is an unbelievable sport.”

 But OU fell flat.

"It’s a game where you can love it and you can hate it,” Johnson said. “One day you feel great, like last night we felt really good about ourselves. Today, we feel really bad. If you focus on just the process, we’ll get better."

OU had bounced back Friday from a series-opening blowout loss, responding in emphatic fashion with a 5-0 shutout. The momentum win gave the Sooners (30-24, 11-13) hope heading into round three, but that hope was quickly crushed by the Cowboys' bats and an elite showcase of pitching.

Ben Abram threw a gem against his former team, keeping the Sooners quiet on the scoreboard and off the base path. In five total innings, Abram registered four strikeouts and gave up just four hits, as the Sooners couldn’t find any momentum offensively. He allowed a single run on the afternoon.

James Hitt wasn’t able to carry over Braden Carmichael’s complete game momentum, making it through just over two innings. He allowed six hits and four runs before the Sooners changed things up.

Oklahoma State (37-16, 15-9 Big 12) was led by Chase Adkinson and Nolan Schubart who each knocked a home-run during Saturday's demolition. Adkinson finished 3-for-5 with three RBIs, while Schubart was 3-for-4 with five runs batted in.

The Sooners, on the other hand, recorded just six runs as a team. Two of those belonged to Bryce Madron, who finished the afternoon 2-for-4.

Dreams of a second straight shutout were quickly squashed, as the Cowboys hung two runs on the board early. Adkinson singled to centerfield, bringing Roc Riggio home to score — and after an overthrow to third, the Sooners were lucky to only surrender one run. On the next play, Schubart’s ground out to third brought another run across the plate, pitting Oklahoma down two runs early.

The Sooners found an answer in the second. After Hitt found his way out of the top of the inning, Oklahoma’s bats came to life. With John Spikerman on second, Easton Carmichael blasted a shot to right field — nearly traveling over the fence — and scored a run for Oklahoma. That brought the L. Dale Mitchell crowd to its feet and gave the dugout life after going down early.

After two innings, Oklahoma State led 2-1.

With two outs on the board in the top of the third, Oklahoma looked destined to get out of a second straight scoreless inning. The Cowboys had other plans, though. With back-to-back right field shots, the second coming from Schubart, Oklahoma State sent two more runs across the plate and extended its lead to 4-1.

Following the double, Oklahoma opted for the first pitching change of the day, inserting Carter Campbell. He was able to take care of the final out, bailing the Sooners out of the inning and bringing the bats back around.

Oklahoma’s offense couldn’t seem to get anything going after Campbell entered the game, however. Abram’s pitching masterclass was in full swing after allowing the lone run in the second, putting three straight scoreless innings on the board and keeping the Sooners off the base path.

The roar after Carmichael’s double in the second inning was nonexistent for the following three frames, as Oklahoma State held onto the same 4-1 lead heading into the sixth.

The Cowboys added insult to injury in the top of the sixth bringing two more runs across home plate. After a sacrifice fly, David Mendham’s double to right field scored another runner, giving Oklahoma State its third two-score inning of the afternoon. OSU then switched gears, opting for a pitching change heading to the bottom of the sixth leading 6-1.

From there, matters only worsened. Oklahoma's bats stayed cold and the Cowboys offense continued to pour it on.

The Sooners netted a double play in the seventh inning as the Cowboys put another run on the board. In the next at-bat, Schubart continued his tear, blasting a two-run homer down the right field line and burying Oklahoma for good. Heading to the eighth, Oklahoma State held a commanding 9-1 lead.

In the top of the ninth, Adkinson's big day continued. His two-run homer to left field put a ribbon on a dominating all-around performance by Oklahoma State. The Cowboys led 11-1.

After Saturday's rubber match, the Big 12 Tournament seeding is set. Because the Sooners lost, they'll have to square off against Oklahoma State once again on Wednesday at 4 p.m. in Arlington, TX.

“That season’s over with, and a new season starts,” Johnson said. “You gotta win it one pitch at a time but you have to be present to do that. You gotta be ready to play.”