OU baseball edges Virginia Tech in Game 1 of NCAA super regionals, closes in on CWS berth
When Kendall Pettis methods up to the plate, he is not on the lookout to strike a household operate.
The 5-11, 187-pound redshirt sophomore, who bats ninth in OU’s lineup, has never been identified to swing for the fences. Alternatively, he has a distinct target in thoughts.
“I know I am not a dwelling run hitter or everything,” Pettis explained. “I’m just wanting for a pitch to generate up the middle. I am really making an attempt to choose the pitcher’s head off. That’s my mentality.”
Pettis stayed forward of the competitiveness on Friday. He recorded a pair of RBIs on 2-for-4 hitting all through OU’s 5-4 victory at Virginia Tech in Activity 1 of the Blacksburg Tremendous Regional.
The Sooners are now a person acquire absent from reserving their ticket to the Faculty Earth Collection. OU can guide its ticket to the University Earth Series with a get on Saturday at 11 a.m.
“It can be just a single extra,” Pettis reported. “We’re not truly attempting to concentration on Omaha or whatsoever… We just have to just take it pitch by pitch, action by action.”
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After getting named the Most Outstanding Participant of the Gainesville Regional, Pettis ongoing his warm streak in the top of the 2nd inning.
The Sooners held a 1- direct when he despatched a line push into remaining discipline for an RBI one, and John Spikerman delivered an RBI solitary of his very own on the subsequent at-bat to make it a 3- contest.
Virginia Tech tried out to respond in the base of the body, but Jake Bennett had other designs.
The Hokies put runners on the corners with two outs when Carson DeMartini sent a floor ball toward very first foundation. Robertson scooped the ball up and tossed it to Bennett, who broke into an all-out sprint to the bag.
He toe-tapped it proper just before a diving DeMartini could get his hand on it, saving a run and obtaining the Sooners out of a jam.
Bennett faced a related circumstance in the next body when Virginia Tech positioned runners on the corners with two outs after yet again. This time Cade Hunter stepped up to the plate and battled to a 2-2 depend.
Bennett took a deep breath right before sending a fastball in the way of Hunter, who did not swing as it landed in the strike zone for the last out.
“I imagined Jake was actually good,” OU head coach Skip Johnson explained. “Our offense variety of took more than, which allow him variety of settle in and make some excellent pitches.”
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OU extra to its guide in the prime of the sixth inning when Brett Squires despatched a line push into proper area for an RBI single.
Pettis then struck once more on the following at-bat. Even though he didn’t get the head off Virginia Tech’s pitcher, he even now drove a ball up the coronary heart of the team’s defense for an RBI single that pushed the lead to 5-.
But the Hokies mounted a late comeback.
Carson Jones sent a two-operate home run in the base of the sixth to trim the deficit to 5-2, and the dwelling group stored chipping away in the seventh.
Virginia Tech had two outs when a throwing mistake by Peyton Graham authorized Tanner Schobel to arrive at first base. Johnson then walked out to the mound to converse to Bennett and opted to maintain the star pitcher in the video game.
On Bennett’s really up coming pitch, Jack Hurley crushed a two-run homer to make it a 5-4 contest.
Bennett struck out the pursuing batter to finish each the inning and his day. He completed with 8 strikeouts and one earned operate.
Trevin Michael then took around from there. The graduate nearer struck out 4 of the purple-very hot Hokies’ closing six batters to place all hopes of a comeback to an finish.
“He retained (Virginia Tech) off equilibrium,” Johnson said of Michael. “That is the biggest thing that he does is preserve them off balance. I believed he did perfectly… They have a really excellent offense. We have to proceed to get it a person pitch at a time.”
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Michael obtained some assistance from Spikerman on the final out of the contest.
Gavin Cross, Virginia Tech’s star player and a projected top rated select in the upcoming MLB Draft, stepped up to the plate as his crew trailed 5-4 with two outs in the base of the ninth inning. He swung on the third pitch he noticed and despatched a shallow shot into right subject.
In came Spikerman, who dove confront-first into the grass at Atlantic Union Financial institution. The freshman collided with the ground, getting rid of his sun shades in the system, but he managed to snag the ball for the ultimate out of the match.
Spikerman immediately rose to his toes and pounded his chest as a silent Virginia Tech crowd viewed on.
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NCAA Blacksburg Super Regional
OU vs. Virginia Tech (finest-of-3 collection):
Match 1: Oklahoma 5, Virginia Tech 4
Match 2: 11 a.m. Saturday (ESPNU)
x-Video game 3: TBD (if important)
This short article at first appeared on Oklahoman: OU Sooners beat Virginia Tech in NCAA baseball super regional Recreation 1