Sweet Goodbyes

NORMAN, Okla. - Texas A&M-Corpus Christi improved to 9-0 when scoring in the first inning this year, run-ruling hosts Oklahoma 14-4 after eight innings this past Sundaay. The Islanders tied a season-high with 17 hits on the afternoon, as eight of the Blue and Green's nine starters earned a knock in the final contest of the series.

A pair of doubles from Drake Osborn and Thomas Jeffries IV would get the scoring started in the opening frame, with the latter extending his hitting streak to six straight appearances. With the Sooners tying things up in the bottom half of the inning on a triple and a wild pitch, the Islanders looked to be in store for another close game, but would instead respond with 10 unanswered over the following six innings of play.

Enrique Sanchez Jr. tallied his first RBI of the weekend on a single, before eventually crossing home on a Luke Marbach knock later in the fourth. With a 5-2 advantage, Osborn earned his second double of the day in the sixth, as Corpus Christi would move on to hang five on OU in the seventh. 

Loading the bases with three straight singles, starting shortstop RJ Ruiz brought in a single run on a bases loaded walk, followed by a sac fly from designated hitter Luke Marbach. Harrison DiNicola brought in the final runs of the seventh frame on a two-run bomb that just stayed fair of the right foul pole, registering his team-best fourth homer of the year, and giving the Blue and Green a 12-2 advantage heading into the bottom of the term.

The Sooners first avoided getting run-ruled after scoring a pair in the bottom half, but were unable to make it to the ninth after a groundout RBI from Dalton Stark again put the visitors ahead by a 10-spot in the eighth. In relief of starter Jackson Owens, righty Cole Carter tallied a groundout and a pair of strikeouts to shutout OU in that frame, thereby forcing Sunday's matchup to end early at a count of 14-4. 

Owens moved to 2-0 on the year after holding the Sooners to just two hits in 6.1 innings of work, on the way to striking out a pair. The right hander ended his day early in the seventh, while sitting down 19 of the 25 batters he faced and finishing the contest with four earned runs to his name. Owens sat down 10 consecutive batters during first five innnings, as the Islander pitching staff gave up a grand total of three hits on the afternoon.

• Jeffries tallied a career-high four knocks in Sunday's finale victory, while hitting 10-for-18 (.556) in four games with the Sooners. His RBI puts him in a tie with Dinicola for a team-best 16 runs driven in during the 2018 campaign
• With both of his hits going for doubles, Osborn collected multiple two-baggers in a single game for the first time in his career. The backstop drove in a career-high three runs on Sunday, and has hit in all but two games he's made a plate appearance in this year
• Marbach tied the career-high he set against Nicholls earlier this season with three runs driven in, going 2-for-4 with a run scored
• Sanchez has been hitting in bunches during his four starts this season, going 3-for-5 against the Sooners on Sunday. The junior is hitting .625 when he's been in the starting lineup, and leads the Islanders with a slashline of .550/.565/.700 on the season
• Corpus Christi recorded 11 extra-base hits against Oklahoma this weekend, coming into Friday's opener with a total of 35

COMING UP NEXT
The Islanders are slated for a five-game home stand in the coming weeks, starting with a midweek matchup against Ivy Leaguer Columbia on Tuesday at 6 PM. Coach Malone's side continues on toward their first Southland matchup of 2018, facing off with last year's Southland Conference Tournament champ Sam Houston State in a three-game series Friday through Sunday. 

The Islanders' contests against Columbia and SHSU, along with all Corpus Christi home games, can be followed via the live stream provided by the Islander Digital Network, powered by AEP Texas.

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