OU Baseball: How Oklahoma 'Finally' Made UConn 'Pay' to Stay Alive in NCAA Regional

After losing to the Huskies on Saturday night, the Sooners won the rematch on Sunday to keep their season alive.

Jun 2, 2024; Norman, OK, USA; Oklahoma Sooners infielder Michael Snyder (5) / Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports

NORMAN — With Oklahoma's loss to Connecticut on Saturday night, the Sooners had their back against the wall on Sunday.

Skip Johnson's team defeated Duke in an elimination game to start the day before facing the Huskies in a rematch that could have ended OU's season.

In the Sooners' first matchup against UConn, Oklahoma had trouble scoring, as the team put the ball in play but couldn't get anything to drop. OU also squandered multiple scoring opportunities in Saturday night's meeting, leaving seven runners on base.

After falling behind 3-1 on Sunday night, however, Johnson's team managed to put it all together and find a rhythm on offense.

“They did a great job of cashing in, finally, on all we gave them,’ Huskies head coach Jim Penders said after the game. “It’s a ferocious lineup and we were dodging bullets, it was like Keanu Reeves in The Matrix, inning after inning after inning. Finally they made us pay. (Bryce) Madron, I hope I’m pronouncing his name right, I better know his name. He’s a hell of a player. He finally got us in the (opposite) gap.” 

Sophomore Easton Carmichael doubled in the first inning to put a runner in scoring position, but the Sooners were unable to advance their three hole hitter and went into the bottom of the inning scoreless.

Connecticut got off to a hot start, scoring two runs in the first and loading the bases before a strikeout ended what could have been an even bigger output for UConn. The Sooners managed to score in the top of the second, but had two runners on base with just one out and were unable to add another run.

After the Huskies scored again to push their lead to 3-1, redshirt senior infielder Michael Snyder tied the game in the top of the third inning with a two-run homer over the left field fence. Snyder's shot changed the momentum of the game, as Oklahoma never trailed again and was able to get back into rhythm on offense after struggling against the Huskies on Saturday.

“Took a good swing on an elevated pitch, that was something we were kind of something we were hunting the whole game,” Snyder said. “See the ball up, the guy’s got a good changeup so, (he) made a mistake, made him pay for it. Outcome was pretty good. … You know, you’re down 3-1, you tie it 3-3, I think that’s a really big momentum shifter. Just, confidence, getting the crowd back in the game. Having things kind of align with themselves, it was huge, it was great.” 

Following the two-run homer, however, both teams were held scoreless for the next four innings. OU had the bases loaded in the sixth inning with just one out, but was unable to capitalize and had to head back to the dugout without a run.

Carmichael recorded his second hit of the game in the seventh inning, but Snyder lined into a double play as the Sooners stranded another baserunner. In the eighth inning, however, Oklahoma's finally managed to find consistency in the batter's box.

With the game knotted at three, junior catcher Scott Mudler singled through the infield to score Jaxon Willits and give Johnson's team its first lead of the game. A few at-bats later, Madron doubled into left centerfield to score Mudler and Jackson Nicklaus.

“Jackson Willits hit a ball and it was right off the glove, he smoked it, second baseman almost made a play and it got through,” Johnson said. “Seemed like all of a sudden, we finally broke through, because we hit a lot of balls hard last night. We hit a lot of balls hard early in that game today and it was like one of those deals finally broke through.”

After a three-run inning, the Sooners would not look back, going on to win 6-4 in their rematch agains the Huskies. With the victory, Oklahoma will take on Connecticut for a third time at 8 p.m. on Monday night with a trip to the NCAA Super Regionals on the line.

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