Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 OKLAHOMA CITY (April 20, 2018) – It took Oklahoma Christian's offense well into the fourth and final game of its baseball series against St. Edward's (Texas) to start rolling, but once it did, there wasn't much that stopped the Eagles.

OC scored seven runs in its final two at-bats – including three on an inside-the-park home run by Hunter Markwardt – to pull away for a 12-6 win over the Hilltoppers on Friday afternoon at Dobson Field. St. Edward's took the first game 2-1, scoring two runs in the first inning and holding off OC the rest of the way.

St. Edward's (23-18, 11-9 Heartland Conference ) took three of the four games against OC (20-21, 9-11) and now is tied for third in the league standings, while the Eagles are sixth, two games behind St. Edward's and St. Mary's, a team the Eagles took three of four games from earlier this season.

The top four teams qualify for the Heartland's postseason tournament, and OC has eight games remaining – four at league-leading Arkansas-Fort Smith next weekend, then four at home against Rogers State the week after that.

It looked for a few innings like St. Edward's might pull off a series sweep, as the Hilltoppers led 3-0 after the top of the third, but OC tied the game in the bottom of the inning, with Kyle Bottger delivering a two-run double and scoring on a single by Brice Smith.

The Hilltoppers then led 6-3 after scoring twice in the fourth and once more in the fifth. Chad Kennedy's two-run homer in the fifth pulled the Eagles within 6-5 before OC finally broke through in a big way in the seventh against St. Edward's relievers Chris Logan (0-1) and Jake Davis.

Logan walked the first two OC batters, then Davis – who had pitched 3 1/3 shutout innings in a 5-3 St. Edward's win on Thursday – walked Julien Ly to load the bases. Kolton Brown's fielder's-choice grounder tied the game, and Callen Crockett reached on a bunt single, scoring Garrett Wages with the go-ahead run.

Markwardt then sent a drive to right-center field. Center fielder William Hairston and right fielder Daniel Priwin both converged, and it looked for a moment that Priwin might snag it after a long run, but the ball instead glanced off his glove and rolled away. Markwardt motored around the bases – nearly catching Brown and Crockett – and slid under an attempted tag by catcher Troy Anderson.

The inside-the-park home run was the first by an OC player since Jake Baxter hit one in a win at Northwestern Oklahoma State on March 1, 2016. Markwardt finished the game 3-for-6 with four RBIs, while Bottger, Kennedy and Crockett each had two RBIs.

OC added a pair of insurance runs in the eighth, as the Hilltoppers used four pitchers in the inning. OC closer Jake Collins (1-0) pitched the final three innings to record his first win of the season.

The Eagles weren't so fortunate in the first game. St. Edward's scored two quick runs in the top of the first against OC starter Gabe Rodery (3-3), as Hairston and Blake Alexander both doubled. T.J. Giselbach reached on a two-out error and it appeared as if Rodery had him picked off, but the Eagles dropped the ball in the ensuing rundown, allowing Alexander to score from third base.

Rodery was masterful the rest of the way, going the distance and striking out eight, but the Eagles struggled to find traction against St. Edward's starter Tanner Lawson (8-2).

Consecutive singles in the fifth by Drew Wright, Crockett and Markwardt gave OC one run, but the Eagles stranded two runners in scoring position. Lawson, who had six strikeouts, retired the final eight OC batters to end the game.

Hunter Markwardt's inside-the-park home run: https://youtu.be/Nf3YP0nlB-A