No. 16 Lubbock Christian University Baseball Sweeps Northwestern Oklahoma State University

Mike Marshall hit a pair of home runs and drove in six runs and Ryan Burnaman became the seventh player in program history to hit for the cycle, as No.16 Lubbock Christian University completed a three-game sweep over Northwestern Oklahoma State University with a 20-1 win Saturday afternoon at a very windy Hays Field.

Burnaman led off the first inning completing the hardest part of the cycle… hitting a triple. He scored when Nate Peterson hit a ground ball resulting in an error and Ryan Meade followed with a two-run home run to spark a four-run inning and a 4-0 lead after the first inning of play. The Chaps offense scored in every inning and combined for a season high 20 hits leading to an average of eight batters per inning. Burnaman was able to bat six times in the game and he took advantage of nearly every at-bat, going 5-for-6 to become the 22nd player to match an LCU single-game program record in hits. David Cruz was the last player to have five hits in a game and he did it on May 10, 2010 against Rogers State at the Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament. Burnaman hit a double in the third inning and the fourth inning, a single in the fifth inning and a two-run home run in the sixth inning to complete the cycle. He is the seventh player to hit for the cycle in program history and the first since Ross Blondin completed the task on May 12, 2009 during the NAIA National Championship Opening Round at Hays Field against William Jewel. Burnaman also scored five runs to become the tenth player in program history to match the Chaps single-game runs mark. Cruz was the last to do it on April 2, 2010 against Oklahoma Baptist.

Marshall’s first home run came in the second inning and the two-run shot gave LCU a 6-0 lead. The Chaps, leading the NAIA with an average of 1.7 home runs per game, ended up with five home runs in the game. Bohlken’s team-leading 17th home run was a three-run shot in the third inning. It brought a close to the scoring in a five-run inning, which provided LCU with an 11-0 lead. NWOSU scored their lone run in the fourth inning on a wild pitch from Chaps pitcher Tyler Rogers, who was near flawless outside the wild pitch. LCU matched the run in the bottom of the inning with a sacrifice fly from Meade before the Chaps exploded for six runs in the fifth inning. Marshall hit a three-run blast in the fifth inning for his second homer for the game. Chandler Griffin also capped a 3-for-4 performance with an RBI double for an 18-1 lead. Burnaman’s two-run homer in the sixth inning closed the Chaps scoring.

With all the Chaps offense, Rogers’ pitching performance was overshadowed. He pitched five innings and allowed one run on four hits and struck out four. Of his four hits, a double from J.C. Aguayo in the first inning represented the only extra-base hit for the Rangers. Karson Robinson and Shane Ingram each pitched a hitless and scoreless inning of relief. LCU had five players with three or more hits in the game. Marshall (3-for-6), Bohlken (3-for-4), Cruz (3-for-5) and Griffin joined Burnaman with big offensive performances. Marshall also produced a game high six RBI.

The win improved LCU to 31-9 overall and 11-7 in the SAC, while NWOSU fell to 22-18 overall and 6-16 in conference play. The Chaps victory also completed a three-game sweep of the Rangers, which produced some lopsided numbers. LCU out-scored NWOSU 57-7 in the series, with the 57 runs coming in 14 innings of at-bats. They were held scoreless in an inning in only one of the fourteen innings. LCU produced 11 home runs in the series and hit .516 as a team. They out-hit the Rangers 48-16. LCU also out-played the Rangers defensively, with two errors for LCU in the series compared to 11 by the Rangers.

The Chaps remain in conference action Monday, as they head to Plainview to face Wayland Baptist University at 6:30 p.m. from Wilder Field.

From Chris Due at lcuchaps.com