UCA Clinches First Berth in Southland Tournament Title Game
Southland Conference
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SUGAR LAND, Texas – Central Arkansas is heading to the championship game of the Southland Conference Baseball Tournament for the first time after beating Oral Roberts 11-3 Saturday morning at Constellation Field.
The No. 7 seed Bears will face either No. 5 seed Lamar or No. 4 seed Southeastern Louisiana in the championship game. Those teams play at 1 p.m. The championship game will be played at 5 p.m. and be broadcast exclusively on ESPN3.
The Bears (38-20) jumped out to an 11-2 lead in the first three innings and made it stand up the rest of the way. Ethan Harris and Michael Marietta drove in runs for UCA in the top of the first inning. Oral Roberts, the No. 3 seed in the tournament, got one of the runs back on a double by Logan Domenico.
The Bears responded with five more runs in the second. Garret Brown led off with a double and was bunted to third by Justin Treece before scoring on a single to right by Chris Townsend. Forrestt Allday’s sacrifice bunt was fielded by third baseman Brandon Healy but first baseman Chris Williams could not handle the throw, letting him reach base and Treece to score. Townsend scored on a ground out by Jonathan Davis and then Harris doubled to right field to score Allday. Marietta drove in his second run of the game, scoring Harris on his single to center.
The Golden Eagles managed a run in the bottom of the inning, but the UCA onslaught continued in the third. Brown started the frame with a lead-off single before ORU misplayed another sacrifice bunt. A wild pitch advanced both runners and then Allday was intentionally walked to load the bases. Another wild pitch yielded the first run of the inning before Davis drove in two more runs with a double down the left field line. Blake Marchal singled up the middle to plate the final run of the inning.
Caleb McClanahan took the hill for the Bears on only two days of rest. He gave up two runs in his first two innings and didn’t allow the third until the sixth inning, a sacrifice fly by Williams. Only two of the runs were earned though he didn’t walk a batter and struck out five while allowing nine hits to win his 10th game of the season (10-5). Jon Rand pitched three scoreless innings in relief, picking up his first save of the year.
ORU starter Kurt Giller was saddled with the loss (0-3) after allowing seven runs (four earned) on five hits and a walk. ORU had three errors in the game compared to just one for UCA.
The Bears, who have won four in a row after losing their tournament opener, also totaled 11 hits in the game, getting two hits apiece from Harris, Marietta, Brown and Townsend. Davis drove in three runs and has nine RBI for the tournament. Harris and Marietta also drove in a pair of runs against ORU. Domenico led Oral Roberts at the plate in going 3-for-4. Jose Trevino was 2 for 4. The first seven players in the lineup account for all 11 ORU hits.
UCA finds itself just one win away from clinching the Southland’s automatic bid into the NCAA tournament, which would mark the first national postseason appearance for the Bears since playing in the 1959 NAIA tournament.
ORU ended its season with a 26-31 record and saw its streak of 15 consecutive conference tournament titles come to an end with the loss. The Golden Eagles concluded their first season in the Southland Conference.
Postgame Quotes…
Central Arkansas Head Coach Allen Gum
On keeping momentum from yesterday’s win
“We did. We had the momentum on our hand from yesterday and we carried it on and didn’t give it back to them. We just jumped on them early and found a couple of lines again. That’s big, we got timely hits. Blake Marchal stealing bases and making things happen and being really aggressive. We came out and it looked like we were having fun playing baseball.”
On Caleb McClanhan
“Coming out on two days of rest and giving us everything he had. He did an outstanding job for us.”
On seventh game in four days
“Our guys are pretty strong. I could tell we were getting a little tired late, but we get to go back and get something to eat and change clothes. I think at this point that everyone is a little bit tired and everybody’s legs are a little bit down, but when you grab that heart and that soul, we’ll see what happens.”
On playing for conference title
“It’s great. It’s great to see the guys that work so hard throughout the year and good things come to those who work hard. Our guys work extremely hard. Good guys have good chemistry and camaraderie, they like each other and they play hard.”
Central Arkansas catcher Michael Marietta
On playing six games in four days
“I feel great. When you win you feel good, but when you lose is when you start feeling it. We’re winning and it feels like I haven’t caught a game since.”
On aggressive play
“In the first game of the tournament, we didn’t start off too hot with our bats, but in the second game we came out swinging and we just got hot at the right time and our bats have carried over at the right time. If we keep our focus and have the same at bats in this first game, we’ll feel good about the next game.”
On team’s character
“Our team (pause) we fight. Our coaches told us to fight and finish and we struggled in the second half of the season, but it shows how bad we want it. “
Oral Roberts Head Coach Ryan Folmar
On seniors
“Those guys have been through a bunch. Drew Bowen, Alex Smith and Chris Williams those guys have meant a ton to our program and they’ve had a lot of success throughout their tenure at our program. They are invaluable to what we have. It didn’t end the way we wanted it to end, obviously, but really grateful with the attitude and effort those guys gave us.”
On first year in Southland and tournament"
“We knew coming in it was an outstanding league. As we got into it, it was even better than we thought. It’s good top to bottom. On those days you don’t play well, you’re going to get beat and doesn’t matter who you’re playing inside the league. It’s great to be a part of.”