OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. - The 12th-ranked Bellevue University baseball team suffered its first losses of the season Friday as No. 16 Oklahoma City University swept the Bruins in the doubleheader, winning 4-1 in the opener behind a strong pitching performance from Dustin Cook, before claiming an 8-5 win in the nightcap.
Oklahoma City improved to 5-2 with the sweep. Bellevue fell to 4-2 on the season.
Bellevue returns to the diamond tomorrow (Feb. 14) for a 1:00 p.m. doubleheader against Grand View University (0-0) at Jim Wade Stadium.
Game One: Oklahoma City 4, Bellevue 1
A strong pitching effort by starter Dustin Cook and some timely offense for Oklahoma City, who erupted for three runs in the bottom of the sixth, proved too much for the Bruins to overcome in game one as Bellevue dropped their first game of the season, 4-1, to the Stars.
Senior right-hander Steve Sarcone (Utica, N.Y.) got the nod in the opener for the Bruins and suffered his first loss of the year to fall to 1-1. He was solid through five but a troublesome sixth proved to be his undoing. His final line for the day was 5.2 innings, four runs (all earned), eight hits, four walks, and five strikeouts.
Bellevue threatened in the top of the second following a lead-off double by senior catcher Osvaldo Gonzalez (Miami, Fla.). A ground ball to the right side by junior center fielder Colton Nash (Bonney Lake, Wash.) moved Gonzalez to third with just one out but Cook got junior DH Gabriel De La Rosa (Miami, Fla.) and senior DH Aaron Brasher (Vallejo, Calif.) to strike out and fly out to left, respectively, to end the threat.
The Stars did some threatening of their own in the bottom half of the inning. Jared Baker led off with a single and Joe Lytle reached via an error to put two runners on base with just one out. Adam Clark's bunt single loaded the bases with two away but Sarcone got Hunter Marcum to chase strike three and escape the jam.
The Bruins scratched out the first run of the afternoon in the top of the fourth. Gonzalez reached via walk and junior pinch runner Edwin Rodriguez (Ponce, P.R.) advanced to second on a ground ball by Nash. With two out and a runner now in scoring position De La Rosa delivered a single to center field to plate Rodriguez for the 1-0 BU advantage.
Oklahoma City looked primed to level the game in the bottom half after putting runners on the corners with just one out. Sarcone, once again, worked his best Houdini impression and retired both Joe Haddox and Clark on strikes.
An inning later the Stars were able to tie the game in a less-than-conventional fashion. Marcum led off with a single, advanced to second on a wild pitch, took third on a ground out, and scored on a wild pitch after ball four to Connor Lynch.
A three spot by the Stars in the bottom of the sixth was enough to put the game away for Oklahoma City. The first three batters of the inning all reached on singles to put pressure on the Bruin defense. Sarcone induced a fielder's choice to Clark and got Marcum to ground out but a run came in on the play. A two-run single by Reggie Wilson turned a 2-1 game into a 4-1 advantage for Oklahoma City.
Despite a 2-for-3 effort at the dish, De La Rosa saw his average (which had been second in the NAIA entering the ballgame) dip to .733 on the season.
Cook's line on the afternoon saw him work seven innings allowing just one (earned) run on four hits and one walk while striking out nine.
Game Two: Oklahoma City 8, Bellevue 5
Sophomore southpaw Stephan Meyer (Tucson, Ariz.) toed the rubber trying to salvage a split in the nightcap, but Oklahoma City scored on him early and often. Meyer lasted four innings, giving up eight runs, but just one earned as his defense committed four errors behind him.
The Stars struck first in the top of the first scoring a run on an errant throw and another on a base hit to right field by Dylan Delso.
Bellevue got a run back in the top half of the second as Kevin Rodriguez scored on junior left fielder Trevor Jones' (West Richland, Wash.) ground ball double play to cut the deficit in half at 2-1. The Stars responded immediately with four more runs in the bottom half of the inning to take a 6-1 lead and seemingly put the game out of reach.
De La Rosa scored BU's second run in the top of the third after garnering a walk, before advancing to third on a pair of wild pitches and scoring on an error by starting pitcher Skylar Janisse.
The Bruins sliced the lead to 6-3 in the fourth frame on a sacrfice fly to right field by Ross Feeley that plated Elijah Dickerson, who led off the inning with a walk and advanced on a single by Connor Garrison and a Star fielding error. An RBI single by De La Rosa drove in Garrison to make in 6-4 later in the inning.
The Stars scored a pair of runs in the bottom half of the fifth highlighted by an RBI double from Connor Lynch pushing the lead back to four runs at 8-4.
Bellevue led off the top of the seventh with a double to center field by Nash, who was driven in with an RBI single from Brasher to make the final, 8-5.
Meyer fell to 1-1 on the season, striking out four in the loss.
