Senior pitcher Todd Jeffress, who had a no-hitter through 5-1/3 innings, pitched a two-hit complete game shutout to lead the Pioneers to a 10-0 victory over Oklahoma Christian Saturday afternoon at Wilder Field.
Jeffress struck out a season-high ten hitters and issued just one walk to get the seventh shutout of his WBU career, an all-time high. The shutout was also a team-record eighth of the year for the Pioneer pitching staff. WBU pitchers also established a new season record in strikeouts in the three-game series against OC. The old mark of 419 was set last year. The new record is 431 and counting.
OC second baseman Cody Carpenter broke up the no-hitter with a one out single up the middle in the sixth, and Ray Long followed with a base hit to left. After a strikeout, Jeffress hit first baseman Zac Coshow for the second time in the game to load the bases, but got out of the jam with a come-backer to the mound.
The Pioneers scored in every inning except the fifth. They jumped out with three unearned runs in the first, two off the bat of Franky Busani who singled through the hole in the left side of the infield.
Brett Sheppard picked up an RBI in the second with a base hit to right that scored Brett Cook. WBU plated two more in the third on back-to-back solo home runs by Keith Martin and Josh Lucas.
Three runs on a two-run single by pinch hitter Calvin Bass and a RBI ground out by Eddie Allen in the sixth gave the Pioneers the ten-run margin they needed to end the game early after Jeffress took care of the Eagles in the seventh.
Wayland is now just one victory away from the 40-win mark at 39-11 and is 18-9 in conference play. They end the regular season next week with a three-game series against conference-rival Lubbock Christian. Game one of the series is at Wilder Field on Tuesday. The two teams move to LCU's Hays Field on Thursday, and then return to Plainview for the finale on Friday.
Following the LCU series, the Pioneers will travel to Shawnee, Okla. where they will compete in the Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament which begins Monday, May 4.
