No. 22 Baseball Set to Host SAGU in Three-Game Series

OKLAHOMA CITY – The No. 22 MACU baseball team will be looking to continue riding its momentum entering the month of April as the Evangels host Southwestern Assemblies of God in a pivotal three-game Sooner Athletic Conference series this weekend.

MACU will open the slate with a doubleheader on Friday starting at 1 p.m. at the MACU Baseball Field before closing out the series with a noon contest on Saturday.

SEASON REPORT

Record: 24-8 (13-2 SAC)
Last Game: Won vs. Wayland Baptist (Texas) – 8-5 – Mar. 30, 2024 – MACU Baseball Field
Top Players:
- Noel McGarry-Doyle – JR – OF
  - .446 BA (45-101), 7 2B, 3 3B, 8 HR, 46 RBI, 37 R, 19 BB, 5 HBP, 6 SB, .543 OB%, .812 SLG%
- Kyle Williams – JR – 1B
  - .443 BA (47-106), 15 2B, 6 HR, 42 RBI, 24 R, 16 BB, 1 HBP, 5 SB, .512 OB%, .755 SLG%
- D'Andre Gaines – SO – OF
  - .390 BA (41-105), 10 2B, 3 3B, 5 HR, 27 RBI, 45 R, 18 BB, 2 HBP, 9 SB, .488 OB%, .686 SLG%
Top Pitchers:
- Zane Robeaux – SR – RHP
  - 5-0 W-L, 2.16 ERA, 9 APP, 3 GS, 33.1 IP, 26 H, 9 R, 8 ER, 6 BB, 35 SO, .211 OBA
- Isaac Baez – SR – RHP
  - 7-1 W-L, 3.10 ERA, 9 APP, 9 GS, 49.1 IP, 38 H, 17 R, 17 ER, 13 BB, 65 SO, .203 OBA
- Devon Quesada – SR – RHP
  - 4-1 W-L, 3.50 ERA, 9 APP, 9 GS, 1 CG, 1 SHO, 36.0 IP, 22 H, 15 R, 14 ER, 17 BB, 36 SO, .173 OBA
Team Notes:
- Mid-America Christian is coming off a stellar series on the mound against Wayland Baptist last weekend as the Evangels cruised to 4-0, 6-1 and 8-5 victories over the Pioneers to stretch their win streak to 12 games while winning its fifth-straight SAC series to start the year.
- The Evangels got a pair of stellar pitching performances from senior starters Devon Quesada and Zane Robeaux in the doubleheader sweep on Friday. Quesada tossed MACU's first complete game shutout of the season, narrowly missing a no-hitter as he allowed just three walks with seven strikeouts with just one base knock allowed in seven innings of work. Robeaux also twirled one of his best gems of the season, allowing only one unearned run on three hits with two walks and tied a season-high nine strikeouts.
- Despite having one of his roughest starts of the season and seeing his six-game win streak come to an end, senior starter Isaac Baez was a strikeout machine in MACU's 8-5 win over the Pioneers. Baez tossed his third double-digit punchout game of the season, striking out 10 batters while walking just two while giving up four earned runs on four hits over 6.1 innings of work in the no-decision.
- As a result of its highly successful week, the Evangels had a pair of weekly award recipients as junior first baseman Kyle Williams was selected as the Sooner Athletic Conference Player of the Week after going 5-for-12 (.417) with a double and a homer for six RBIs while leading MACU to its three-game sweep over the Pioneers as well as a 10-1 win over No. 17 Oklahoma Wesleyan. Quesada was also named NCCAA Pitcher of the Week for his performance against the Pioneers.

SCOUTING REPORT
Southwestern Assemblies of God (Texas)

Record: 20-18 (7-8 SAC)
Last Game: Lost vs. No. 2 LSU-Shreveport – 11-10 – Apr. 2, 2024 – Waxahachie, Texas
Series vs MACU (2005-): MACU leads 24-16
Last Game vs MACU: MACU won 14-4 – Apr. 15, 2023 – Waxahachie, Texas
Series Streak: MACU won 3
Players to Watch:
- Andrew Ortiz – SO – OF
  - .426 BA (52-122), 8 2B, 1 3B, 11 HR, 53 RBI, 41 R, 21 BB, 2 HBP, 16 SB, .517 OB%, .779 SLG%
- Xavien Thompson – JR – UTL
  - .347 BA (41-118), 11 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 24 RBI, 30 R, 15 BB, 11 HBP, 14 SB, .459 OB%, .508 SLG%
- Dominick Padilla – SO – INF
  - .336 BA (43-128), 9 2B, 1 3B, 8 HR, 36 RBI, 28 R, 13 BB, 3 HBP, 4 SB, .407 OB%, .609 SLG%
Pitchers to Watch:
- Ethan Nors – SR – P
  - 7-1 W-L, 3.02 ERA, 9 APP, 9 GS, 1 CG, 1 SHO, 41.2 IP, 32 H, 20 R, 14 ER, 10 BB, 43 SO, .213 OBA
- Matthew Hickey – GR – P
  - 3-8 W-L, 12 APP, 10 GS, 1 CG, 54.2 IP, 54 H, 44 R, 36 ER, 38 BB, 64 SO, .254 OBA
- Kaden Kneip – SR – P
  - 1-0 W-L, 17 APP, 22.2 IP, 19 H, 11 R, 6 ER, 14 BB, 33 SO, .207 OBA
Team Notes:
- Southwestern Assemblies of God is entering the weekend playing some very strong baseball as of late as the Lions were able to take two out of three games in a home series against No. 24 Oklahoma City last weekend before falling 11-10 to No. 2 LSU-Shreveport in a non-conference midweek matchup on Tuesday.
- Hitting has been the Lions biggest challenge thus far in the 2024 season as SAGU ranks sixth in the SAC in team batting average (.285) and seventh in on-base percentage (.393) to go with the sixth-best slugging percentage (.449). However, SAGU has been one of the best pitching teams in the conference, ranking third in the league in team ERA (5.40) while also posting the third-best K/9 rate (9.44) and WHIP (1.55). However, the Lions have been a bit challenged on the defensive end, ranking second-to-last in team fielding percentage at .939.
- Despite the offensive struggles, SAGU features one of the best bats in the SAC in Andrew Ortiz. The sophomore outfielder ranks in the top five in the conference in multiple statistical categories, including leading the league in RBIs (53) to go with the third-most home runs (11), third-most stolen bases (16), third-best on-base percentage (.517), fourth-best batting average (.426) and the fourth-best slugging percentage (.779).
- Headlining the Lions pitching staff is long-time senior starter Ethan Nors. So far during the 2024 campaign, Nors has been one of the top pitchers in the SAC, sitting in a four-way tie for the league-lead in wins with a 7-1 record while posting the fourth-lowest ERA in the conference at 3.02. Matthew Hickey has also been a solid starter for SAGU, ranking second in the SAC in strikeouts (64), but is boasting a 5.94 ERA.
- Even though the Evangels swept the three-game series at Southwestern Assemblies of God last season, MACU will be seeking some improved success against the Lions at the MACU Baseball Field. While MACU holds a 24-16 lead in the series since 2005, the Evangels are just 5-12 at the MACU Baseball Field against the Lions while owning a 19-4 record at SAGU. In their last meeting, the Evangels rallied from an early 4-1 deficit by smashing five homers, two of which coming off the bat of Caden Harris to run away with a 14-4 victory on Apr. 15, 2023.