Note: This is one of a series of articles about the top stories in OC athletics during the 2021 calendar year.
OKLAHOMA CITY (Dec. 23, 2021) – Oklahoma Christian had one of the top offensive squads in NCAA Division II baseball in 2021 and the Eagles put themselves on the national radar and earned a slew of awards as a result.
The rise of OC baseball to Lone Star Conference – and possibly South Central Region – contender because of that offensive firepower is the No. 9 story in OC athletics for 2021.
OC was an afterthought in the LSC preseason poll, finishing ninth. But the Eagles soon began rising in the league standings and eventually finished fourth, thanks to their blistering offense. In NCAA Division II, OC finished the season 15th in scoring (8.9 runs per game), 19th in home runs (70) and slugging percentage (.532) and 30th in runs scored (356 in 40 games).
The Eagles finished 24-16 overall, hosting a first-round LSC tournament series, and in a normal season – when the South Central Regional would include six teams, not four as in 2021, due to the pandemic – they might well have earned a spot in the NCAA tournament. For the first time in seven years, OC received votes in the Division II national poll produced by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, rising as high as No. 28 in the weekly balloting.
OC's lineup featured talented hitters from top to bottom, but five stood out – freshman first baseman
Michael DiFiore of Lucas, Texas, sophomore outfielder
Blake Empkey of Bedford, Texas, freshman designated hitter
Chance Westervelt of Moore, catcher
Coleton Hinkle of Grapevine, Texas, and junior outfielder
Tanner White of El Dorado, Kan.
DiFiore, the LSC freshman of the year and a first-team All-LSC selection, hit .348 with 19 homers and 58 RBIs. He led the LSC in both homers and slugging percentage, finishing well ahead of the coaches' pick for LSC player of the year, Josh Elvir of Angelo State (Texas), in both categories. In Division II, DiFiore ranked ninth in homers, 16th in RBIs and 31st in slugging percentage.
DiFiore's 19 homers tied for second on OC's single-season list and with 25 in his career, he already ranks fourth on the program's all-time list. He's only 19 away from Elvir's LSC career record of 44.
Westervelt led the LSC and was sixth in Division II in hitting at .440 to go with seven home runs and 35 RBIs. The first-team All-LSC pick was fourth in the conference in slugging percentage (.712) and seventh in on-base percentage (.497). Westervelt was a one-time recipient of the LSC and South Central Region hitter of the week honors.
Empkey was a first-team All-LSC selection after hitting .359 with 12 home runs and 53 RBIs (fifth-best in the league). He ranked third in the LSC in homers and ninth in hits (61) while posting a .665 slugging percentage and a .426 on-base percentage. He also made four pitching appearances, recording a save while posting a 4.50 ERA and eight strikeouts in four innings.
Hinkle hit .354 with seven home runs and 36 RBIs while posting a .591 slugging percentage, ranking 14th in the LSC in homers, 17th in slugging percentage and 23rd in RBIs. He received honorable mention on the All-LSC list. White hit .290 with eight homers and 36 RBIs, ranking 12th in the LSC in homers and 23rd in RBIs.
In Division II baseball, there are three widely recognized All-South Central Region lists, produced by the American Baseball Coaches Association, the Division II Conference Commissioners Association and the NCBWA. Empkey made the first-team NCBWA and second-team ABCA lists. Westervelt was a second-team All-Region pick on all three lists while DiFiore made the second-team ABCA and NCBWA lists. OC relief pitcher
Noah Bates was a first-team ABCA and D2CCA All-Region pick.
