Senior Day didn't go as hoped for as Wayland Baptist closed the regular-season by suffering a 15-1, seven-inning loss to No. 9 Oklahoma City on Saturday afternoon at Wilder Field.
The loss matched the most lopsided of the season for the Pioneers, who also went down 15-1 to No. 8 USAO a couple of weeks ago in Chickasha, Okla. Wayland and OCU split Friday's doubleheader, with the Stars winning the opener, 15-4, before the Pioneers took game 2, 11-6.
Wayland (24-19, 13-11 Sooner Athletic Conference) was held to three hits by OCU starter Justin Berry (3-1), who struck out 10 in five innings, and Tyler Milligan. The Pioneers' lone run came on a homer by senior Nick Rucker in the fourth, but by then OCU had already built a 15-0 lead, with seven runs coming in the top of the fourth.
While the Stars managed 15 hits against five WBU pitchers, the Pioneers were also hurt by four errors, leading to four unearned runs. OCU batters struck out twice.
Besides Rucker's third home run of the season, Wayland's other hits were an infield single by Yaniel Vargas with two out in the third and a pinch-hit single by Paxton Covel with two gone in the seventh.
Wayland will be the No. 5 seed in the SAC Tournament to be held May 3-6 at OCU and at USAO. Tournament brackets are expected to be announced this weekend.
