OU Baseball: Oklahoma Shocked by UConn in Norman Regional
NORMAN — With their top pitcher on the mound, Oklahoma’s offense went silent Saturday night, leading to a significant setback in their postseason.
OU was stunned by a 4-1 defeat to Connecticut at L. Dale Mitchell Park, pushing the top-seeded Sooners (38-20) into the loser’s bracket and giving No. 3-seed UConn (34-21) a clear path to the next round.
On Friday, OU had easily scored 14 runs in a first-round victory over Oral Roberts, but against UConn, runs were much harder to come by.
Huskies senior Stephen Quigley outperformed OU ace Braden Davis, allowing seven hits and nearly completing the game, leaving after a walk in the ninth inning.
Quigley noted he used a changeup he hadn’t relied on all season and targeted the inside part of the plate with his fastball, contrary to his usual approach of fastballs away.
“They probably weren’t expecting that,” Quigley said. “They were likely sharing information like, ‘This isn’t what we were told in the hitters’ meeting.’ … I think that’s what threw off their timing.”
A No. 3-seed pulling off two upsets might seem surprising, but the Huskies and coach Jim Penders are not shocked, especially with a lineup featuring four graduate students, two seniors, and two juniors.
Penders pointed to home run hero Luke Broadhurst to explain.
“This guy’s gonna be 26 in October,” Penders said. “At 25, I was married and thinking about getting a house — and he’s still playing college baseball. So he’s my hero. I have a bunch of guys who can rent cars without their parents’ signatures. It’s great because you’re coaching men.
“When we go back to the hotel, I don’t have to tell them to go to bed. They know they need to. … They’re a low-maintenance group with no nonsense. You’re dealing with men, not boys.”
OU coach Skip Johnson noted that this maturity shows when the Huskies are on the field, possibly explaining his team’s struggles.
“Maybe we were pressing a bit,” Johnson said, “but that’s part of the game and growing. That’s an older team with many graduate seniors. They’ve played a lot of baseball. I think that guy (Quigley) has been in college baseball since 2019. His composure in front of a great crowd really showed.”
UConn advances to Saturday’s regional final, awaiting the winner of Sunday’s early game between OU and 2-seed Duke (39-19). The Blue Devils lost to the Huskies 4-1 on Friday. The game is set for 8 p.m., and if Connecticut wins, they move to next week’s super regional round against the Tallahassee Regional winner.
The Sooners, meanwhile, will face Duke at 2 p.m. Sunday at Mitchell Park. OU and Duke have never played each other in baseball.
Earlier on Saturday, Duke eliminated Oral Roberts 6-2. OU had beaten ORU 14-0 on Friday night.
If Sunday night’s game necessitates a seventh game, it will take place on Monday at a yet-to-be-decided time.
Saturday began as a pitchers’ duel between Davis and Quigley.
