OKLAHOMA CITY – After closing out the regular season against Science & Arts last weekend, the second-seeded No. 19 MACU Baseball team will be immediately rematched against the seventh-seed Drovers in the opening round of the Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament Presented by Netting Pros/STADIONIC at the MACU Baseball Field this weekend.
The two teams will square off in a pair of nine-inning games on Friday starting at 2 p.m. If the two teams split the opening day, they will play in a winner-take-all game on Saturday slated for a 1 p.m. first pitch. The winner of the series will advance to the double elimination round where the final four teams will square off at Joe Becker Ballpark in Joplin, Missouri from May 1-3.
SEASON REPORT
- Record: 33-11 (20-7 SAC)
- Last Game: Won vs. Science & Arts (Okla.) – 15-5 – Apr. 18, 2026 – MACU Baseball Field
- Stat Leaders (Hitting):
- Nick Hill – JR – 3B
- .362 BA (55-152), 15 2B, 18 HR, 60 RBI, 47 R, 23 BB, 3 HBP, 11 SB, .443 OB%, .816 SLG, 1.259 OPS, 44 GP, 44 GS
- Jalen King – JR – OF
- .386 BA (59-153), 14 2B, 1 HR, 31 RBI, 51 R, 29 BB, 4 HBP, 26 SB, .495 OB%, .497 SLG%, .992 OPS
- Sammy Hallada – JR – OF
- .365 BA (57-156), 6 2B, 3 3B, 6 HR, 25 RBI, 49 R, 20 BB, 13 HBP, 19 SB, .474 OB%, .558 SLG%, 1.032 OPS
- Stat Leaders (Pitching):
- Ibrahim Gonzalez – JR – LHP
- 8-2 W-L, 1.41 ERA, 11 APP, 10 GS, 5 CG, 1 SHO, 63.2 IP, 49 H, 19 R, 10 ER, 19 BB, 65 SO, .213 OBA, 1.07 WHIP
- Fabian Hernandez – SR – LHP
- 3-2 W-L, 4.40 ERA, 11 APP, 11 GS, 2 CG, 1 SHO, 57.1 IP, 50 H, 31 R, 28 ER, 19 BB, 73 SO, .235 OBA, 1.20 WHIP
- Liam Taft – JR – RHP
- 0-2 W-L, 2.50 ERA, 17 APP, 12 SV, 18.0 IP, 14 H, 6 R, 5 ER, 5 BB, 17 SO, .206 OBA, 1.06 WHIP
- Team Notes:
- Mid-America Christian wrapped up another highly successful 2026 season with a 33-11 overall record and finished second in the SAC standings with a 20-7 league mark, making it the third-straight year the Evangels have won at least 20 conference games.
- From the plate, the Evangels rank 26th in the NAIA in team batting average (.324) to go along with the 28th-best on-base percentage (.436) and the 24th-rated slugging percentage (.525).
- Junior third baseman Nick Hill has been putting together a season for the ages from the dish, as his 18 home runs entering postseason play not only leads the SAC and ranks eighth in the NAIA, but also ranks as the most hit in a single season in the NAIA Era (2007-present) at MACU. He also owns multiple other spots in MACU's single season record book, including: slugging percentage (.816, 2nd), OPS (1.259, 5th), RBIs (60, 5th), and total bases (124, 6th).
- On the mound, the Evangels are putting together one of their best seasons in program history, as they own the fifth-lowest ERA in the NAIA (3.78) while ranking 13th in WHIP (1.36) and 24th in strikeouts per nine innings (9.35).
- One of the big pieces to that success has been the production of one of the NAIA's most prolific pitchers in Ibrahim Gonzalez. Owning the lowest qualifying ERA in the NAIA, Gonzalez's 1.41 clip has paced the Evangels while his eight wins ranks as the second-most in the SAC and the 13th-most in the country.
- On-top of Fabian Hernandez putting together another strong year as a starter, the Evangels have gotten some massive bullpen production from Liam Taft, Gabriel Dixon, and Andrws Acosta, who have all played a massive role in MACU's success in closing out multiple close games this season.
SCOUTING REPORT
Science & Arts (Okla.)
- Record: 20-22 (13-14 SAC)
- Last Game: Won at Oklahoma Baptist – 7-6 – Apr. 21, 2026 – Shawnee, Okla.
- Series vs MACU (2005-): USAO leads 53-22
- Last Game vs MACU: MACU won 15-5 – Apr. 18, 2026 – MACU Baseball Field
- Series Streak: MACU won 1
- Players to Watch (Hitting):
- Henry Garcia – JR – OF
- .349 BA (51-146), 10 2B, 3 3B, 12 HR, 45 RBI, 42 R, 20 BB, 7 HBP, 18 SB, .441 OB%, .705 SLG%, 1.146 OPS
- Alfonso Camacho – JR – UTL
- .353 BA (42-119), 9 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR, 36 RBI, 37 R, 22 BB, 14 HBP, 21 SB, .500 OB%, .521 SLG%, 1.021 OPS
- Corey Morro – SR – INF
- .336 BA (43-128), 5 2B, 1 3B, 7 HR, 34 RBI, 45 R, 39 BB, 7 HBP, 8 SB, .509 OB%, .555 SLG%, 1.064 OPS
- Players to Watch (Pitching):
- Brian Ereu – JR – RHP
- 3-6 W-L, 4.27 ERA, 11 APP, 11 GS, 3 CG, 1 SHO, 52.2 IP, 61 H, 46 R, 25 ER, 14 BB, 63 SO, .280 OBA, 1.42 WHIP
- Tyson Noel – SR – LHP
- 4-5 W-L, 6.41 ERA, 9 APP, 9 GS, 2 CG, 1 SHO, 46.1 IP, 52 H, 36 R, 33 ER, 16 BB, 45 SO, .291 OBA, 1.47 WHIP
- Kason Johnson – SO – LHP
- 4-2 W-L, 6.75 ERA, 10 APP, 10 GS, 1 CG, 1 SHO, 42.2 IP, 58 H, 35 R, 32 ER, 18 BB, 41 SO, .331 OBA, 1.78 WHIP
- Team Notes:
- Science & Arts wrapped up its 2026 regular season with a 20-22 overall record, dropping two out of the three games in the final SAC series to the Evangels before closing out with a 7-6 non-conference win at NCAA D-II Oklahoma Baptist on Tuesday.
- Despite finishing under .500 for the year, the Drovers are one of the most dangerous hitting teams in the league as they enter SAC Tournament play as the third-most proficient hitting team in the conference at .313 while owning the league's best on-base percentage (.445) and third-highest slugging percentage (.491).
- The most lethal bat in USAO's lineup this season has been senior outfielder Henry Garcia, who is hitting for a solid .349 batting average with the fifth-best slugging percentage in the SAC (.705) to go along with the sixth-most RBIs (45).
- The biggest struggle for the Drovers this season has come from their pitching, as USAO ranks sixth in the SAC in team ERA (6.23) and seventh in WHIP (1.72). Science & Arts has been relatively solid on the defensive end this season, ranking fourth in the conference in team fielding percentage (.963).
- In his third season at USAO, junior righty Brian Ereu has once again led the staff, owning the lowest qualifying ERA on the team at 4.27 with a team-high 63 strikeouts over 52.2 innings of work. Ereu put together a strong start in his last outing against the Evangels, holding MACU to three runs, just one earned with eight strikeouts over six innings of work.
- Even though the Drovers lead the all-time series, the Evangels have fared pretty well against USAO over the last three years as MACU has won the regular season series in each of the last three years. The two teams have also faced off twice in the SAC Tournament in that time frame with the Evangels coming away with a 15-8 win on May 6, 2024 before the Drovers snatched an 11-5 victory in Chickasha on May 3, 2025. This weekend's slate will mark the first time MACU and USAO will face off in the SAC Quarterfinal since the league changed the tournament format last season.
