Box score

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (April 15, 2009) – The Oklahoma Christian University baseball team outscored Mid-America Christian University (Okla.) 12-4 in the final six innings of a 16-11 Sooner Athletic Conference win on Wednesday.

The Eagles went up 8-7 with a four-run fourth inning to take the lead for good.

Ray Long had a career-high five hits that included two home runs and four RBIs. Chance Nichols had two home runs in a three-hit game, and Zac Coshow added a homer and three RBIs with another three-hit game.

Oklahoma Christian improved to 17-19 and 9-12 in conference play with the win. The Eagles now prepare to host No. 1 Lubbock Christian University (Texas) for three games this weekend.

OC and Mid-America Christian (16-23, 6-17 SAC) traded two-run innings in the first two frames to leave the score tied at 4-4. Quaid Johns drove in two with a first-inning single, and Long cranked his first bomb of the day in the second for OC.

The Evangels scored three times in third to snatch a brief 7-4 lead, but OC kept the offense pumping and held MACU to only four runs the rest of the way to avenge MACU's two wins at Dobson Field on March 26.

Tyler Gipson started the game-changing rally in the fourth when he doubled home Justin Ebert. Nichols smashed a two-run shot out to right field to tie the score at 7-7, then Coshow plated Long with a two-out single for the go-ahead run.

The Eagles scored three more times in the fifth when Nichols cracked an RBI double, and Long smacked a two-run bomb to up OC's lead to 11-7.

MACU got one back in the bottom of the fifth, then OC scored twice in the top of the sixth with a Coshow two-run homer.

The Eagles scored in the seventh on a Cody Carpenter RBI single before Nichols ripped another two-run homer in the ninth to complete the 16-11 win.

Long went 5-for-6 with two homers, a double, four RBIs and three runs scored. Nichols was 3-for-4 with two bombs, a double, five RBIs and four runs. Coshow was 3-for-5 with a dinger and three RBIs. Ebert and Johns each went 2-for-4.

Bret Rodgers (2-1) picked up the win after pitching an inning of scoreless action. Riley Jones worked 4.2 innings and gave up four runs on eight hits while striking out four, and Ryan Kirk pitched a scoreless ninth.

-OC-