The Wildcats take their perfect 4-0 record to the road on Wednesday to face off against one of the premier programs in the nation. ACU will travel to Norman to face no. 25 Oklahoma, who was ranked as high as 21st in the preseason polls.
First pitch is scheduled for 4 p.m.
The game, which originally was meant to be played Tuesday, was pushed back a day due to heavy rain.
The last time these two teams played, ACU was able to keep things close against the powerhouse. The Wildcats dropped game one, 4-1, and game two, 3-1, on March 5-6, 2014.
The Wildcats outscored the University of Texas – Rio Grande 21-10 over the season opening four-game series. Junior third baseman Aaron Draper paced ACU by going 5-16 (.313) with an RBI, a double and two stolen bases out of the leadoff spot. Junior second baseman Russell Crippen was consistent as well, hitting .266 over the series (4-15) while scoring twice and driving in a run and stealing a bag.
Several freshmen received plenty of playing time over the four-game series. Freshman outfielder Willie Harris went 4-11 (.364) and drove in two runners while playing in three of the four games. Freshman shortstop Mark Pearson added a 5-12 (.417) line with an RBI, a double and a steal.
ACU skipper Britt Bonneau returns to Oklahoma where he stared as a player. Bonneau lettered at Oklahoma in 1992 as an outfielder, where he hit .285 and slugged .527 with nine home runs and 36 RBI in his one season in Norman.
Oklahoma is still looking to fill holes in their roster after losing 11 players to the MLB draft, including their top four hitters and 110 relief appearances out of the bullpen. The Sooners split a four-game series with Northeastern in Norman. After dropping their first two, 3-2 and 5-3, the Sooners found their offense and outscored the Huskies 23-8 in the last two games.
The pitching for the Wildcats has been solid for Bonneau and something that he will continue to rely on this season. All four starters earned wins, went six innings, never gave up more than four hits and walked just two batters in the series. Senior Kyle Carroll made his first career start for the Wildcats on the mound and gave up three scattered hits while striking out four batters. Sophomore Drew Hanson allowed three hits as well while striking out six and walking none.
Bonneau has not yet announced who will start against the Sooners, but he is leaning towards giving senior Nate Cole the start. Cole, who has not pitched since Opening Day on Friday, contributed 2.0 innings of work out of the bullpen while giving up two hits, two strikeouts, an earned run and a free pass in his only game of the year so far.
The Wildcats showed over last weekend that once they get on base, they can make things happen quickly. ACU stole 13 bases, including six in game one, and were thrown out just once over the four-game series. Freshman outfielder Hunter Markwardt led the team with four steals, followed by two swipes each from Crippen, Draper and Harris.
