CHICKASHA, Okla. – Senior starting pitcher Devan Quesada struck out a career-high 13 batters and allowed only one earned run over eight innings of work as top-seeded and nationally No. 14 MACU Baseball cruised to a 7-2 win over Oklahoma Panhandle State in its Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament opener at Bill Smith Ballpark on Friday afternoon.
 
SCORE

• Mid-America Christian 7, Oklahoma Panhandle State
  • Mid-America Christian (37-10)
  • Oklahoma Panhandle State

PITCHING DECISIONS

• Win: Devan Quesada (5-2)
• Loss: Josh Doerr (4-9)

TOP PERFORMERS

• Devan Quesada – W, 8.0 IP, 1 R, 1 ER, 7 H, 3 BB, 13 SO
• Noel McGarry-Doyle – 3-4, 2B, RBI
• Carlos Medina – 1-4, HR, 2 RBI, R
• D'Andre Gaines – 2-4, RBI, R, SB

SCORING SUMMARY

• BTM 1^st – MACU – D'Andre Gaines singled to left, RBI; Taiga Sakuma scored – MACU 1, OPSU 0
• BTM 1^st – MACU – Noel McGarry-Doyle singled to right, RBI; D'Andre Gaines scored – MACU 2, OPSU 0
• BTM 2^nd – MACU – Jason Thurman doubled to center, RBI; Marcus Burton scored – MACU 3, OPSU 0
• BTM 2^nd – MACU – Taiga Sakuma grounded into double play, 2b-ss-1b; Jason Thurman scored – MACU 4, OPSU 0
• TOP 3^rd – OPSU – Jeremy Dibartolomeo hit a sac fly to rf, RBI; Isaac Halton scored – MACU 4, OPSU 1
• BTM 6^th – MACU – Carlos Medina homered to left, 2 RBI; Anthony Hampton scored – MACU 6, OPSU 1
• BTM 6^th – MACU – Jacob Police singled to short, RBI; Joel Nieves scored – MACU 7, OPSU 1
• TOP 9^th – OPSU – Jeremy Dibartolomeo singled up the middle, RBI; Isaac Halton scored – MACU 7, OPSU 2

GAME SUMMARY

• It didn't take long for Mid-America Christian to break into the scoring column as a leadoff double to left by Taiga Sakuma in the team's very first at-bat set up D'Andre Gaines for the go-ahead RBI single to left for the first run of the game. After getting down to second on a balk, the SAC's RBI leader Noel McGarry-Doyle added to it by slipping a ground ball single through the right side to set the score to 2-0.
• The Evangels took advantage of a miscue to start the second as Marcus Burton reached on a three-base throwing error by OPSU starting pitcher Josh Doerr before Jason Thurman hammered a deep double off the left-center field wall to make it a three-run lead. MACU stretched it to a 4-0 advantage after putting runners at the corners on a Zachary Stark single to left before Taiga Sakuma grounded into a 4-6-3 double play to bring in Thurman.
• The Aggies threatened to get back into the game in a big way in the top of the third after Isaac Halton and Jose Arrieta reached on back-to-back singles to center and a fielding error at third loaded the bases with no outs. However, MACU starting pitcher Devan Quesada managed to navigate the jam by allowing only one run on Jeremy Dibartolomeo's sacrifice fly to right as tallied a strikeout and a flyout to follow to keep it to a 4-1 game.
• Mid-America Christian put together a major threat of its own in the bottom of the third as well as Gaines led off the frame with an infield single and stole second. However, the Evangels came up empty as McGarry-Doyle beat out an infield single to center, but the Aggies managed to throw out Gaines trying to score from second on the play.
• After both teams' bats went quiet over the next few innings, the Evangels gained some big-time insurance in the sixth. After Anthony Hampton utilized his speed to leg out a double to left, Carlos Medina hammered the only homer of the day over the left field wall to set the score to 6-1.
• Following back-to-back groundouts to second, the Evangels put together a two-out rally in the frame. A Zachary Stark single and a Sakuma walk to go along with a stolen base each for courtesy runner Joel Nieves and Sakuma set Jacob Police up for an RBI infield single to short, wrapping up MACU's scoring at 7-1.
• Oklahoma Panhandle State once again tried threaten in the top of the seventh by loading the bases on back-to-back Halton and Arrieta one-out singles and a Dibartolomeo two-out walk. However, Quesada once again quelled the OPSU bats by getting Aggies pinch-hitter Israel Gandara to fly out to center to end the threat.
• The Aggies were only able to muster one more run in the top of the ninth. After Halton reached on a leadoff single, it looked as though MACU reliever Jordan Smith was going to strand him after inducing a strikeout and a flyout to center. However, Halton's theft of second set up Dibartolomeo with an RBI single up the middle to ultimately close out the 7-2 final in the very next at-bat.

GAME NOTES

• Mid-America Christian scored its seven runs on 13 hits and committed two errors while OPSU notched its two runs on nine hits and also made a pair of errors.
• After struggling in his last four starts, Devan Quesada was able to right the ship in a huge way for the Evangels to start the SAC Tournament as the senior righty put together his longest start of the season, going eight innings and finishing with a career-best 13 strikeouts. All seven hits Quesada allowed were just singled and finished with three walks.
• MACU's batting order was relatively even on the day as all but one of the Evangels' starters came up with a hit in the contest, four of which with multiple hits as Noel McGarry-Doyle tallied a team-best 3-for-4 with a double and an RBI.
• The outing for McGarry-Doyle allowed the junior outfielder to continue to climb MACU's record ranks as his 63^rd RBI of the season moved him into a tie with Jerry McNew (2017) for the program's NAIA Era (2008-present) single season record while his 125^th career hit propelled him past Luis Martinez (124, 2011-12) for third on the list.
• The home run for Carlos Medina was the 10^th of his two-year MACU career while also recording his 66^th career RBI on the play to move into MACU's career top 10 list.
• With the victory, the Evangels picked up their first SAC Tournament win since 2022, which also came in a win over Oklahoma Panhandle State inside Jim Wade Stadium at Oklahoma City University on May 7. That contest was a slugfest between the two teams as the Evangels ran away with a 25-14 victory on May 7, 2022.

UP NEXT

• Mid-America Christian advances in the winner's bracket to take on Science & Arts on Saturday as the Evangels will face-off against the third-seeded Drovers at 12:10 p.m. inside Bill Smith Ballpark.