LUBBOCK, Texas (March 24, 2018) – Lubbock Christian University starting pitchers
Ryan Johnson and
Callan Johnson combined to allow three hits and did not allow an earned run in 14 innings, while the No.14 Chaparrals offense produced 27 hits en route to a 14-2 and 9-2 win Saturday to complete a four-game Heartland Conference series sweep of Oklahoma Christian at Hays Field.
Ryan Johnson went the distance for his second complete game of the season. He struck out five batters and did not allow a walk over his seven innings pitched. The lefty faced four batters over the minimum and went a stretch of retiring 14 straight batters after allowing his first hit in the second inning. The win improved his mark to 4-1 on the season.
The Chaps offense scored the game's first 14 runs with eight coming in the first inning off Skyler Martin, who entered the game 3-0. LCU, with their first seven batters reaching base safely, sent 11 batters to the plate in the first inning and their eight runs came off four hits and a pair of Eagles errors.
Andres Negron and
Logan Nethercot each had doubles in the inning for LCU.
Keaton Greenwalt hit a triple to left centerfield to score
Scotland Church and extend the Chaps lead to 9-0 in the third inning. Dylan Drury followed in the fourth inning with a two-run home run to extend the chaps lead to 11-0. The surge of 14 runs was complete in the fifth inning, as
Ryan Rogers slugged a three-run home run for his eighth home run of the season.
OC chipped a couple runs across home plate in the top of the sixth inning, taking advantage of two Chap errors in the inning. Callen Crockett and Jake Collins had OC's lone hits. Pitcher Skyler Martin (3-1) allowed nine runs (three earned) off six hits in 2.2 innings.
Ten different Chaps produced at least a hit in the game, with four players having a multi-hit game. Rogers completed the game 2-for-3 with three runs and three RBI. Nethercot was 2-of-2 with three runs and two RBI. The Chaps were 6-of-10 with runners in scoring position.
Callan Johnson took the bump in the second game and went seven innings holding the Eagles to one hit. He faced one batter over the minimum and did not allow a hit to the first 13 batters he faced. Jake Collins produced OC's first hit of the game with one out in the fifth inning. He struck out a season high 11 batters with seven punched out in his first four innings of work.
Greenwalt went 4-for-4 in the game with two doubles and two RBI, and each RBI led to LCU's first two runs. He had a RBI-single in the second inning and a RBI-triple in the fourth inning.
Dillon Drury powered his second home run of the season in the fifth inning, extending the Chaps lead to 4-0 with a two-run home run. Rogers had a double to lead off the seventh inning, and he would eventually score on a double by Drury.
James Hardberger completed a two-run seventh inning with an RBI-single for a 6-0 LCU lead.
Andrew Pratt highlighted a three-run eighth inning with an insurance-filled two-run home run for a 9-0 LCU lead.
LCU struck out 12 batters to match a season high.
Callan Johnson improved to 4-1 with his victory on the mound. OC starting pitcher Robbie Suhr allowed four runs off seven hits in 5.0 innings for OC. He suffered the loss and moved to 2-2 on the season.
Drury completed the game 2-for-4 with three RBI. The Chaps were able to get the leadoff batter aboard base in six of their eight innings of at-bats.
OC was 1-for-8 with runners on base and 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position during the game. LCU had 13 hits in the game, with nine coming with runners on base.
LCU is the only Heartland Conference squad that made it through the opening weekend of conference games unscathed this season, and the win puts LCU with a 4-0 start to conference action. The Chaps, 19-7 overall, completed their first four-game conference series sweep since sweeping No.15 Rogers State in April of 2013 (at Hays Field). LCU's sweep of OC is their first over the Eagles since the 2012 season at Hays Field. OC fell to 0-4 in conference and they have lost six straight games, placing their overall record at 9-14. The Chaps now embark on an eight-game road trip, which begins Thursday in Wichita, Kan. facing Newman.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
.429 | LCU hit .429 in the series and out-hit the Eagles 60-30 in the series (outscored OC 50-19).
.600 |
Keaton Greenwalt, 5-for-7 at the plate Saturday, led LCU in the series with a .600 batting average, going 9-for-15 at the plate with four doubles.
9 | The Chaps hit nine home runs in the series, with
Andrew Pratt leading LCU with three home runs.
10 |
Ryan Rogers hit .588 in the series with 10 hits, eight runs and eight RBI.
11 |
Callan Johnson's 11 strikeouts Saturday marked the most by a Chaps individual this season and the most since
Ricky Contreras struck out 11 Tarleton State batters on Mar. 17, 2017. The 11 Ks were the most by a Chaps pitcher at Hays Field since Sam Fry struck out 11 against Texas A&M International on Feb. 21, 2014.
12-0 | LCU had a 12-0 advantage Saturday in extra-base hits. OC was held to four hits Saturday and all were singles.
12 | Teams in the series combined for 12 hit batters, with 10 players plunked Saturday (five by each team). Seven Eagles were beaned overall in the series, with Chad Kennedy hit four times at the plate.
16 | LCU had 16 two-out RBI in the series and produced a 16-3 advantage over OC in the category.
Andrew Pratt had five two-out RBI for the Chaps.
39-17 | LCU hit .464 (39/84) with runners on base in the series and had a 39-17 advantage in the series in hits with runners aboard. They also had a 26-10 advantage in hits with runners in scoring position, as LCU was .491 in the series in the category (26/53).
