OU baseball: No. 18 Sooners earn series victory against Pepperdine

Astrud Reed, The Oklahoma Daily

Junior first baseman Matt Oberste hits a sixth-inning single against Pepperdine in Norman. Oberste went 3-for-4 with a triple and home run in the losing effort.

The No. 18 Oklahoma baseball team picked up its third weekend series victories in as many tries following an 8-1 victory against Pepperdine on Sunday at L. Dale Mitchell Park.

Key Stat: 5 — The Sooners (11-1) scored five runs in the bottom of the fourth thanks to a homer by senior third baseman Garrett Carey — a solo shot — and a two-run homer by senior right fielder Max White. Senior shortstop Jack Mayfield added a two-run double following a two-out error.

Key Player: Adam Choplick — When the Sooners needed a good start, Choplick answered the call. He allowed one run in 5 1/3 innings against Pepperdine before turning the ball over to junior pitcher Billy Waltrip, who shut out the Waves in his 3 2/3 innings of work.

What it means: This series victory should give OU’s RPI a boost, and the selection committee at the end of the year will look at this three-game set very positively. Also, it sends a message to the rest of the nation and the Big 12 right now that OU will be a team that can beat more than just the underling teams.

What’s next for the Sooners: The Sooners head back out on the road for a midweek game against Texas-Arlington at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday in Arlington, Texas, before flying to Los Angeles for three games against USC, UCLA and Norte Dame over the weekend.

Jono Greco

Jono Greco, journalism graduate student, is the assistant sports editor for the Spring 2013 semester. This is his seventh semester on staff, previously working on the sports desk as the football and baseball beat reporter, as well as multiple other sports beats. He served as copy chief during the Fall 2012 semester.

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