No. 18 Baseball Travels to Texas Wesleyan for Pivotal SAC Series

OKLAHOMA CITY – The No. 18 MACU Baseball team will return to both Sooner Athletic Conference play and the road as the Evangels head to Fort Worth, Texas for a crucial three-game series against Texas Wesleyan at Sycamore Park on Thursday and Friday.

The Evangels will open the series with a doubleheader slated for a noon first pitch on Thursday before closing out the slate at 1 p.m. on Friday.

SEASON REPORT

Record: 30-9 (15-3 SAC)
Last Game: Won vs. McPherson (Kan.) – 9-8 – Apr. 16, 2024 – MACU Baseball Field
Top Players:
- Kyle Williams – JR – 1B
  - .455 BA (55-121), 16 2B, 6 HR, 45 RBI, 29 R, 20 BB, 1 HBP, 5 SB, .528 OB%, .736 SLG%
- Noel McGarry-Doyle – JR – OF
  - .389 BA (49-126), 8 2B, 3 3B, 8 HR, 53 RBI, 41 R, 22 BB, 6 HBP, 8 SB, .494 OB%, .690 SLG%
- D'Andre Gaines – SO – OF
  - .373 BA (47-126), 11 2B, 3 3B, 7 HR, 31 RBI, 52 R, 25 BB, 3 HBP, 9 SB, .487 OB%, .675 SLG%
Top Pitchers:
- Isaac Baez – SR – RHP
  - 8-1 W-L, 3.23 ERA,, 11 APP, 11 GS, 1 CG, 61.1 IP, 48 H, 22 R, 22 ER, 15 BB, 74 SO, .207 OBA
- Zane Robeaux – SR – RHP
  - 7-0 W-L, 2.18 ERA, 11 APP, 5 GS, 1 CG, 45.1 IP, 35 H, 12 R, 11 ER, 10 BB, 48 SO, .213 OBA
- Breyllin Suriel – JR – RHP
  - 5-2 W-L, 2.83 ERA, 14 APP, 3 GS, 1 CG, 1 SV, 28.2 IP, 25 H, 12 R, 9 ER, 11 BB, 31 SO, .229 OBA
Team Notes:
- Mid-America Christian wrapped up its 11-game home stand with a dramatic come-from-behind 9-8 victory over McPherson on Tuesday. In the win, the Evangels battled back from an 8-5 deficit in the bottom of the ninth as Noel McGarry-Doyle hit a bases-clearing 3-RBI double to tie the game before Marcus Burton hit the walk-off RBI single up the middle with the bases loaded and two outs.
- After completing the comeback, the Evangels wrapped up the sensational home stand with a 10-1 record, finishing with a 17-3 record at the MACU Baseball Field in 2024. The .850 home mark is the highest winning percentage the Evangels have recorded on its home turf since joining the NAIA in 2008.
- Heading into its final two weekends of regular season play, MACU ranks in the top five in the NAIA in both earned run average and WHIP (walks + hits per innings pitched), possessing the fifth-best the ERA (3.85) and the fourth-best WHIP (1.28) while also holding the 30^th-best fielding percentage (.967). The Evangels have also been one of the best hitting teams in the NAIA, possessing the 19^th-best batting average (.334), the 27^th-best slugging percentage (.528) and the 30^th-best on-base percentage (.430).
- Approaching the end of SAC play, the next two series will be vital as MACU holds a three-game lead over Oklahoma City and Texas Wesleyan at the top of the league standings.

SCOUTING REPORT
Texas Wesleyan

Record: 26-15 (14-7 SAC)
Last Game: Won vs Wayland Baptist (Texas) – 3-2 – Apr. 13, 2024 – Fort Worth, Texas
Series vs MACU (2013-): TWU leads 30-5
Last Game vs MACU: TWU won 12-8 – Apr. 30, 2023 – MACU Baseball Field
Series Streak: TWU won 14
Players to Watch:
- Ryan Flores – JR – INF
  - .364 BA (48-132), 15 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR, 35 RBI, 34 R, 11 BB, 9 HBP, 4 SB, .430 OB%, .561 SLG%
- Hayden Hutchens – SR – 1B
  - .348 BA (39-112), 13 2B, 1 3B, 12 HR, 48 RBI, 31 R, 22 BB, 8 HBP, 5 SB, .479 OB%, .804 SLG%
- TJ Tomlinson – JR – INF
  - .342 BA (40-117), 6 2B, 20 RBI, 38 R, 26 BB, 1 HBP, 8 SB, .453 OB%, .393 SLG%
Pitchers to Watch:
- Sutton Tidwell – SR – LHP
  - 6-1 W-L, 3.27 ERA, 9 APP, 9 GS, 44.0 IP, 38 H, 20 R, 16 ER, 19 BB, 53 SO, .228 OBA
- Garrett Bodine – JR – RHP
  - 1-1 W-L, 3.81 ERA, 15 APP, 1 SV, 26.0 IP, 20 H, 12 R, 11 ER, 16 BB, 30 SO, .213 OBA
- Jorge Carvajal – JR – RHP
  - 1-1 W-L, 3.99 ERA, 18 APP, 2 GS, 7 SV, 29.1 IP, 30 H, 16 R, 13 ER, 15 BB, 40 SO, .263 OBA
Team Notes:
- Texas Wesleyan enters the series on a hot streak as winners of 10 of its last 11 games, pulling out a tightly-contested three-game sweep over Wayland Baptist 3-2, 4-3 and 3-2.
- The Rams are one of the better hitting and pitching teams in the SAC, ranking third in the league in team ERA (5.54) while leading the conference in strikeouts per nine innings (10.01). From the plate, TexWes ranks fourth in team batting average (.294) as well as on-base percentage (.402) as well as fifth in slugging percentage (.463).
- The Evangels will need to contend with one of the best power bats in the SAC in senior first baseman Hayden Hutchens, who enters the slate with the second-most homers (12) to go with the fourth-most RBIs (48) and the sixth-most doubles (13).
- The TWU pitching staff has been active as a whole as just one pitcher in Sutton Tidwell has thrown more than 40 innings. However, the Rams ace has been one of the toughest pitchers in the league in 2024, holding a 6-1 record on a 3.27 ERA, the fourth-lowest in the SAC. Meanwhile, closer Jorge Carvajal is one of league-leaders in saves, tallying the second-most with seven in his 18 appearances while throwing a 3.99 ERA.
- Mid-America Christian will be looking to snap a cold spell to Texas Wesleyan as the Rams have won the last 14 games. The last time the Evangels picked up a victory over the Rams came in the SAC Tournament at Jim Wade Stadium in Oklahoma City on Apr. 28, 2019. In the victory, Reid Wall tossed a stellar complete game win, allowing just one earned run on six hits with a pair of walks and seven strikeouts while Junior Aracena led the batting efforts, going 1-for-3 with a pair of RBIs.