Edmond, Oklahoma – Aiming to secure a "home field" advantage as the post-season begins next week, No. 20 Central Oklahoma wraps up the regular season this weekend with a three-game MIAA (Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association) series against Northwest Missouri State at Wendell Simmons Field.
Game 1 is Friday at 6 p.m. The teams are also scheduled to play Saturday at 3 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m.
"It's the last week of the season and there's a lot to play for for both teams," UCO head baseball coach John Martin said.
"We're trying to secure home field in the playoffs and they're trying to get into the playoffs. So it should be three really good games."
Central Oklahoma enters the final weekend of the season with a 34-11 record, including a 20-10 mark in the MIAA. The Bronchos are currently tied for third in the league standings.
Northwest Missouri is 20-26 on the year with an 11-19 record in the MIAA. The Bearcats from Maryville, Missouri are in a three-way tie for seventh place.
The top eight teams in the final MIAA standings after this weekend qualify for the league's postseason championship. The top four teams will host a best-of-three series on campus sites next weekend, with the four advancing teams meeting in Pittsburg, Kansas for a double-elimination tournament to determine the league champion.
UCO enters the weekend looking to clinch a top four position in the league. The Bronchos are tied for third with Pittsburg State, but do not own the tiebreaker. Central can finish third with one more win than Pitt State this weekend. PSU hosts Fort Hays State. UCO can clinch fourth and home field with just one win in any of its three games this weekend.
About the 2024 Baseball Team at UCO
Central Oklahoma enters the final week of the season still carrying the lowest earned run average among teams in the MIAA. UCO's 4.50 ERA ranks 31st nationally. The Bronchos rank 16th in the country in hits allowed per nine innings (8.29), in which they also lead the MIAA.
Brady Gilmore, Caleb Burchfield, and Brett Pense lead Central Oklahoma's pitching staff from the starting position, while Racer Felter, Austin Burda, Preston Giltner, and Valek Cisneros have been key figures out of the bullpen.
Gilmore is 3-0 with a 2.93 ERA in 40 innings pitched and he leads the team with 46 strikeouts. Burchfield is 6-2 with a 3.86 ERA in 53.2 innings. He has 39 strikeouts. Pense has a 5-4 record with a 4.61 ERA in 52.2 innings on the mound. Pense has 40 Ks on the year.
Burda (3-0) ranks second in the country in total appearances (24). He's thrown 31.2 innings and has a 3.41 ERA with 32 strikeouts.
Cisneros ranks second in the country with 13 saves on the season. The UCO closer has made 20 appearances and is 1-0 with a 3.65 ERA. Cisneros has 38 strikeouts. Felter is 3-1 with 2.75 ERA in 15 appearances this season. He has 21 strikeouts in 19.2 innings. Giltner is 4-0 with a 6.40 ERA in 18 total appearances. He has three starts and 26 strikeouts in 32.1 innings on the mound.
In the batter's box, Central Oklahoma boasts a .285 batting average, scoring 7.2 runs per game off 8.9 hits per game.
Outfielders Kaleb Glass, Carson Carpenter, and Caden Robertson have all been key in the lineup for the Bronchos this season.
Glass is hitting .359 in 35 games played. He has 46 hits, 41 runs scored, and a team-high 21 stolen bases. Carpenter leads UCO's offense in several categories. He has 49 hits, 46 RBIs, 45 runs scored, 12 home runs and three triples, leading the way in each category. He is also second on the team with 11 doubles in 44 games played. Roberston has played in 20 games and has 35 hits, 24 runs scored, a team-high 13 doubles, and seven home runs.
Infielders Garrett Long and Orlando Gonzalez are also among the leaders on offense. Long is hitting .302 in 37 games played with 32 hits, 11 doubles and four home runs. He has scored 23 runs and has 26 RBIs. Gonzalez is hitting .260 in 44 games played with 40 hits, 33 runs scored and 23 RBIs.
Shea Morrison and Ryan Strickland both have five home runs to help out the offense. Ty Hammack and Wyatt Gray are also leaders on offense with eight and six doubles respectively.
If Central Oklahoma is to clinch a home playoff series this weekend, that best-of-three first round MIAA Baseball Championship series will be played Friday, May 3 and Saturday, May 4 with the if-necessary game scheduled for Sunday, May 5 at Wendell Simmons Field in Edmond.
Northwest Missouri Stats
Northwest Missouri comes to town with a 7.24 ERA as a team.
The Bearcats allow 8.1 runs per game off 11.1 hits per game.
NWMSU has 364 total strikeouts in 46 games played.
On offense, Northwest is hitting .294 as a team, averaging 7.6 runs off 10 hits per game.
Strong UCO tradition in Athletics builds Broncho Believers
Strong baseball teams are typical at the University of Central Oklahoma, which has had 138 players earn first-, second- or third-team all-conference honors a combined 185 times since 1992. The Bronchos were members of the Lone Star Conference from 1992-2011 before joining the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association in 2013 after one year as an independent.
The Athletics program at Central Oklahoma remains a source of pride for alumni and fans around the country. This past season, the Bronchos' wresting team won the NCAA Division II National Championship for the second year in a row. Central Oklahoma finished with 110 points in the national competition, held at Hartman Arena in Wichita, Kansas.
The rest of the top five wrestling teams for Division II: Lander (located in Greenwood, South Carolina) was second with 86.5 points, followed in third by Nebraska-Kearney (77.5 points).
The Lebanon, Illinois institution McKendree University (73) was fourth and Minnesota's St. Cloud State (64) finished fifth.
( https://www.citynewsokc.com/education/university-of-central-oklahoma-in-edmond----ncaa-division-ii-national-wrestling-champs/article_3310b98c-ec3a-11ee-9627-c3c8ece85907.html )
Gabe Johnson and Shawn Streck captured individual titles for the Bronchos.
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