Oklahoma's baseball team saw their 9-3 lead dissapear in the 7th inning Friday afternoon but rallied to score three runs in the 8th and then hold Valparaiso scoreless through the final two frames to secure their 5th win of the season.
The Sooners actually trailed 2-0 after the first but then scored five runs in the bottom of the second and eventually built their lead to 9-3. Starter Zach Neal began to wear down in the 6th and the call to the bullpen was for Michael Rocha but before the Sooners could get out of the inning the damage had been done and the score was tied.
"This game is about overcoming challenges and picking each other up," said OU Head Coach Sunny Golloway. "Things did not go exactly as planned or by design today but our guys did a good job, and you have to tip your cap to Valparaiso for battling like they did."
Oklahoma then looked to Jeremy Erben who gave them 1 2/3 perfect innings before making way for Ryan Duke to get his 3rd save of the season. Erben's performance earned him his 3nd win of the season.
With the score tied at 9 Oklahoma was able to get three runs in the 8th inning thanks to the bats of Ross Hubbard and Kaleb Herren who each drove in a run while another was scored off a wild pitch.