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| Oklahoma (25-16) vs. Texas Arlington (17-23 | |
| Location: | Norman, Okla. - L. Dale Mitchell Park (3,180) |
| Radio: | KREF Sports Talk 1400 AM / 98.5 FM Toby Rowland Chris Plank |
| TV: | FOX College Sports-Central Chad McKee Jay Payton |
| Live Stats: | SoonerSports.com |
| Pitching Match-Ups | |
| 6:00 PM Thursday: | RHP-Robert Tasin (RJr., 3-3, 4.08) RHP-Jess Amedee (Jr., 1-4, 6.75) |
Although the offense began churning out hits as well as runs, the Oklahoma Sooners dropped a home series this past weekend. Coach Pete Hughes and his ball club will be looking to rebound against a familiar 17-23 UT-Arlington team. In their first meeting on March 11th, UTA forced extra innings with a run in the ninth. However, it was Taylor Alspaugh to the rescue with a game winning homerun on the first pitch of the 10th.
Heading to Norman, the Mavericks have some wind in their sails. Confidence is at an all time high after recording a series win over then No.2 Louisiana-Lafayette this past weekend and sweeping the weekly awards. Taking the mound for UT-Arlington is Jess Amedee who sports a 6.75 ERA (second highest on the roster). In 41 innings, Amedee has surrendered 44 hits to go along with 34 runs and 39 strikeouts.
He will be staring down an Oklahoma lineup that features three batting averages over the .300 mark. Leading the way is Mac James with a .374 but a real concern for any pitching staff should be Hunter Haley. After falling into an 0-for-18 drought, Haley stepped up to the plate and made a statement. The dry spell ended on Saturday with a homerun lifting Haley's average to .306 on the season.
The Sooners will go with their usual mid-week starter in Robert Tasin who pitched 4.2 innings of the marathon Bedlam game in Stillwater. Tasin currently touts a 4.08 ERA through 31 innings. In that time, he has fanned 32 batters but given up 32 hits and 17 runs.
UT-Arlington brings with them six hitters over the .300 mark. Leading the way is Ryan Bottger who finds himself with a .364 average, a number well above the .291 team average. Bottger has recorded a hit 47 times while bringing in 21 other runners. Behind him, Matt Shortall brings power to the plate. With a .358 average, Shortall leads the team in hits at 64 as well as RBIs with 35. The duo could be tough to stop if there is no support from opposing relief pitchers.