ORU Makes Final Trip to Allie P. Reynolds Stadium Tuesday
Oral Roberts (19-18, 10-8 Summit League) at Oklahoma State (25-13, 10-5 Big 12)
Location: Stillwater, Okla. (Allie P. Reynolds Stadium)
Game Date/Time: Tuesday, Apr. 23 / 6 p.m.
Game Links: Video (Fox Sports Oklahoma) | Audio | Live Stats
ORU Notes | OSU Notes | GoldenStandard
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TULSA, Okla. – The Oral Roberts baseball team makes its final trip to Allie P. Reynolds Stadium Tuesday night for a matchup with the streaking Cowboys of Oklahoma State before its new stadium is built for 2020. Catch first pitch at 6 p.m. live on Fox Sports Oklahoma with live audio on the ORU Sports Network.
Fans can also follow along all season on social media and with two mobile apps, ORU Golden Eagles Live and ORU Front Row, available on the App Store and Google Play.
THE STORYLINE: The Golden Eagles picked up a series win at North Dakota State over the weekend taking the first two games and have now earned wins in five of their last seven games.
FACING THE COWBOYS: OSU has won four-straight and coming off an emphatic sweep of nationally-ranked Texas out-scoring the Longhorns 36-12 moving to #16 in the nation. Led by Trevor Boone's 13 home runs, the Cowboys rank eighth in the NCAA averaging 1.45 home runs per game totaling 55.
SERIES HISTORY: ORU owns a winning record of 38-35 in the all-time series with Oklahoma State winning five-straight and nine of the last 10 meetings.
POWER FIVE TILTS: Coach Folmar and the Golden Eagles have taken on the NCAA's top conferences. Since the start of the 2015 season, ORU has posted a 30-21 mark against the Power Five, going 18-8 when facing a team from the Big 12. ORU is 34-32 against teams in Power Five conferences during his tenure, including an 18-5 mark in home games.
SWIFT GOING: Hunter Swift picked up his first Summit League Player of the Week honor after a 7-for-11 effort April 15-21, including multiple hits in all three starts. He also tallied four runs scored, two walks and two stolen bases for a .778 on-base percentage and a 1.000 slugging percentage.
THAT'S HALL FOLKS: Blake Hall used a career day April 14 going 5-for-5 with two home runs, four runs scored and six RBI versus Omaha to garner Summit League Player of the Week honors.
UP THE RANKS: Senior Josh McMinn continues his upward climb in the ORU record books as he jumped to seventh all-time with 266 career strikeouts. He also is in the top 10 for wins (26), innings pitched (294) and starts (43).
TWICE FOR McMINN: McMinn was named Pitcher of the Week for the second time in a three-week stretch after tossing eight shutout innings in a 1-0 win over South Dakota State March 22.
WILSON'S SURGE EARNS LEAGUE HONOR: After going 9-for-12 in the sweep of Purdue Fort Wayne, lead-off hitter Hunter Wilson saw his average jump 88 points. For his effort, he was rewarded with Summit League Player of the Week honors.
UPHILL CLIMB: Starting with its matchup against Ohio State Feb. 24, ORU capped a difficult stretch where seven-consecutive games were versus teams that reached a NCAA Regional in 2018. The Golden Eagles went 3-4 during that period.
SECOND WEEK AWARD: McMinn earned the fifth pitcher of the week award in his ORU career March 4 after striking out six in 8.2 innings without issuing a walk against Purdue giving up one run.
FIRST WEEK, FIRST HONOR: ORU outfielder Andrew Pace earned the first Summit League Player of the Week honor of his career in week one. He posted a .615 batting average and a .846 slugging percentage thanks to three multi-hit efforts, including a career-high four hits Feb. 16.
POWER START: ORU connected for 35 runs on 41 hits, including 15 that went for extra bases, and 17 walks opening weekend. The Golden Eagles capped the series with seven doubles and three home runs Sunday against Murray State.
REIGNING CROWN: For just the fourth time in Summit League history, a player finished the season as the Triple Crown winner (league leader in batting average, home runs and RBI) when Spencer Henson accomplished the feat in 2018. The junior hit .364 with 10 round trippers and 58 RBI joining Steve Holm (2000) and Brian Van Kirk (2008) as Golden Eagles to achieve the milestone.
DRAMATIC FACE LIFT: Fans entering the complex at J.L. Johnson Stadium in 2019 immediately will notice a new LED video board located in right-center field. Measuring 33 feet high and 19 feet wide totaling roughly 625 square feet.
SUMMIT LEAGUE HONOREES RETURN: Spencer Henson and Riley Keizor return to the Golden Eagles lineup after earning First Team All-Summit League honors in 2018, while Josh McMinn is back following a second team selection. McMinn also earned first team honors in 2017. Keizor was named last year's Summit League Newcomer of the Year in his first season at ORU.
NOT SHYING AWAY: ORU put together one of its most difficult schedules to date for 2019. The Golden Eagles face seven teams that advanced to a NCAA Regional a season ago accounting for nearly a third of its 56-game slate. Five of ORU's first eight opponents advanced to the postseason in 2018 providing an early test.
LOCAL TALENT ON DISPLAY: More than half of the ORU roster in 2019 was raised in the state of Oklahoma as 18 players hail from within 120 miles of campus. The freshman recruiting class is heavy with local talent as four of its eight members joined the Golden Eagles from Green Country.
EXTENDED HOME COOKIN': With 21 of its first 28 games all coming at J.L. Johnson Stadium to open the season, the Golden Eagles have a chance to get off to a great start and build momentum for a challenging finish away from home.
MARCHING HOME: ORU will serve as the host team for 17 of its 20 games during the month of March. With Coach Folmar at the helm, ORU has tallied a 124-50 (.713) record in home games and won 20 or more contests in each of the last four seasons, including a mark of 54-6 (.900) at home against teams from The Summit League.
KEEP THE STREAK: The Golden Eagles are making a push for their 19th-straight Summit League regular season and 20th-consecutive tournament titles as members of the conference in 2019. ORU has reached 28 NCAA Regionals in program history, including four in a row, including the 1978 College World Series and the 2006 Super Regionals.
MILESTONE WIN: Head Coach Ryan Folmar picked up the 200th win of his career against South Dakota State April 20, 2018. He is the fifth coach in program history to reach the milestone and did so in just his sixth season leading the team.
SEE US NATIONALLY: Nine ORU baseball home games will be available nationally on ESPN+ in 2019. Scott Higgins will have the live play-by-play call, while Scott Slarks and Erik Hansen will provide color commentary and sideline reporting from J.L. Johnson Stadium.
HOSTING THE BEST: The top four teams in The Summit League's regular season standings will qualify for the 2019 Summit League Baseball Championship hosted in Tulsa, Oklahoma, for the fourth-straight season. ORU will host the double-elimination event at J.L. Johnson Stadium May 22-25 to determine the league's automatic bid into the NCAA Championships.
STAYING CONNECTED: Follow the Golden Eagles all season long across social media platforms and two mobile apps (ORU Golden Eagles Live and ORU Front Row) available on Google Play and the App State. Use the hashtag #ORUBase and #GoldenStandard to stay connected with fans across the nation on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
WHERE TO CATCH US: Listen live to every ORU baseball game in 2019 on the ORU Sports Network. All 30 home games also will feature free video and stats with links at www.ORUAthletics.com.