STILLWATER, Okla. -- Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn said the veteran leadership for Oral Roberts makes the Golden Eagles a difficult first-round opponent for the No. 20 Razorbacks today at the NCAA Stillwater Regional.
"Probably the biggest thing to me is that they're very experienced," Van Horn said. "They start five seniors, and one of them is a fifth-year senior. You're talking 22- and 23-year-old men who could care less what it says across the front of our jersey."
Today’s regional games
All times Central; Double elimination
STILLWATER, OKLA.
At L. Dale Mitchell Park
Oral Roberts (41-14) vs. Arkansas (35-22), noon
Oklahoma State (37-18) vs. St. John’s (39-14), 6 p.m.
TALLAHASSEE, FLA.
At Dick Howser Stadium
Auburn (35-24) vs. Coll. of Charleston (43-13), 11 a.m. Florida State (41-19) vs. Mercer (35-21), 5 p.m.
GAINESVILLE, FLA.
At Alfred A. McKethan Stadium
South Florida (33-24-1) vs. Fla. Atlantic (40-17), noon Florida (44-16) vs. Florida A&M (23-23), 6 p.m.
CORAL GABLES, FLA.
At A-Rod Park at Mark Light Field
Columbia (31-15) vs. East Carolina (40-20), noon Miami (44-14) vs. Florida International (29-29), 6 p.m.
LOUISVILLE, KY.
At Jim Patterson Stadium
Michigan (37-23) vs. Bradley (35-19), 1 p.m. Louisville (43-16) vs. Morehead State (38-20), 5 p.m.
NASHVILLE, TENN.
At Hawkins Field
Indiana (34-22) vs. Radford (43-14), 2 p.m. Vanderbilt (42-19) vs. Lipscomb (39-18), 7 p.m.
CHAMPAIGN, ILL.
At Illinois Field
Wright State (41-15) vs. Notre Dame (36-21), noon Illinois (47-8-1) vs. Ohio (36-19), 7 p.m.
SPRINGFIELD, MO.
At Hammons Field
Oregon (37-23) vs. Iowa (39-16), 1 p.m. Missouri State (45-10) vs. Canisus (34-28), 6 p.m.
BATON ROUGE
At Alex Box Stadium
LSU (48-10) vs. Lehigh (25-29), 3 p.m. Tulane (34-23) vs. UNC Wilmington (39-16), 7 p.m.
FORT WORTH
At Lupton Baseball Stadium
Stony Brook (34-14-1) vs. N.C. State (34-21), 2:30 p.m. TCU (45-11) vs. Sacred Heart (23-30-1), 6 p.m.
DALLAS
At Horner Ballpark
Texas (30-25) vs. Oregon State (38-16-1), 1:30 p.m. Dallas Baptist (43-13) vs. VCU (37-22), 6 p.m.
COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS
At Olsen Field
California (34-19) vs. Coastal Carolina (38-19), noon Texas A&M (45-11) vs. Texas Southern (31-17), 6 p.m.
HOUSTON
At Cougar Field
Louisiana-Lafayette (39-21) vs. Rice (35-20), 2:30 p.m. Houston (42-18) vs. Houston Baptist (28-25), 7 p.m.
LOS ANGELES
At Jackie Robinson Stadium
Maryland (39-21) vs. Mississippi (30-26), 6 p.m. UCLA (42-14) vs. Cal Bakersfield (36-22-1), 10 p.m.
FULLERTON, CALIF.
At Goodwin Field
Clemson (32-27) vs. Arizona State (34-21), 5 p.m. Cal Fullerton (34-22) vs. Pepperdine (30-27), 9 p.m.
LAKE ELSINORE, CALIF.
At The Diamond
Virginia (34-22) vs. Southern Cal (37-19), 5 p.m. UC Santa Barbara (40-15) vs. S. Diego S. (40-21), 9 p.m.
Oral Roberts, which swept two games from No. 1 seed Oklahoma State and went 5-1 against Big 12 teams this season, has a lineup loaded with seniors and juniors.
"We've been in these atmospheres all year long, and we've played played good clubs all year long," ORU Coach Ryan Folmar said.
Senior designated hitter Anthony Sequeira leads the Golden Eagles with a .343 batting average and 10 home runs. He also has a 1.50 earned-run average and 11 saves as ORU's closer. Sequeira was named a Collegiate Baseball All-American on Thursday.
"We have a core group of seniors that anchor the middle of our lineup, and we have plenty of guys on the mound with a lot of experience," Folmar said. "I think this is going to be a great college baseball game."
Three No. 2s
Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn told his players the Stillwater Regional looked more like a No. 1 seed in Oklahoma State and three No. 2 seeds in the Razorbacks, Oral Roberts and St. John's.
Oral Roberts plowed through the Summitt League, winning the regular season and tournament titles, and St. John's did the same in the Big East.
"This is as good a regional as you're going to find as far as balance goes," Van Horn said. "You've got a very experienced team in Oral Roberts with great numbers. Second in the country in team batting average [.321)], a couple, three good starting pitchers. You just look at the numbers and it's pretty interesting."
Rain game
Another significant rainstorm moved through central Oklahoma on Thursday morning, dumping more precipitation on an already drenched area.
Officials at Oklahoma State said members of the grounds crew have been working extra hours the past couple of days pumping water from the outfield at Allie P. Reynolds Stadium.
Oklahoma State was able to conduct its on-field workout at the stadium at 10:30 a.m., but Arkansas only took infield at the park for its 11:30 a.m. practice. The Razorbacks' outfielders worked on a separate field because the outfield grass was too soggy.
"Hopefully the weather will get better," Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn said. "The facilities are in probably as good a shape as you could ask for with what you've been through over here with the rain."
Cowboy curve
Oklahoma State Coach Josh Holliday announced Thursday that right-hander Jon Perrin (6-4, 4.29 earned-run average) will start today against No. 4 seed St. Johns, a move that the Cowboys hope will put ace Michael Freeman (10-2, 1.05 ERA) in the key winner's bracket game Saturday.
Perrin, who gave up one run in six innings in his most recent start, a 5-1 victory over Oklahoma on May 23, will be matched up against St. John's ace Ryan McCormick (10-1, 2.81 ERA), the Big East's pitcher of the year.
27 Jacksons
Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn gave high praise to Razorbacks closer Zach Jackson while sharing an interview table with him Thursday.
"In recruiting, you don't get enough time to spend with them to know what they're all about inside," Van Horn said when a reporter asked him about Jackson, a Berryhill, Okla. native. "He's good inside. He wants to get better.
"He works hard and he's dedicated, and you don't have to worry about him off the field and in the classroom. You'd love to have 27 of those guys on your roster."
Back together
Arkansas and Oral Roberts share a long history together, and the schools are looking to hook up again on their schedules soon, Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn said.
"Absolutely," Golden Eagles Coach Ryan Folmar said. "Dave's been great for us. I've been at Oral Roberts for 13 years and we've played them a bunch. ... I don't think there's any doubt at some point we'll get back on the schedule."
Arkansas leads the series 65-35.
Bernal back
Arkansas shortstop Michael Bernal began his college career at Oklahoma State but never played for the Cowboys.
Bernal redshirted as a freshman in 2013, then transferred to New Mexico Junior College after Coach Frank Anderson was fired. Bernal transferred to Arkansas last year.
"I didn't think I'd end up back there, but I'm pretty excited to go back there with this group of guys," Bernal said.
Okie Hogs
Arkansas pitchers Zach Jackson and James Teague will see familiar faces at the Stillwater regional, where the Razorbacks are playing Oral Roberts and Oklahoma State is the top seed.
Jackson is from Berryhill, Okla., about 60 miles east of Stillwater. Teague is from Bartlesville, Okla., about 100 miles to the northeast.
"Oral Roberts and Oklahoma State both have a lot of kids I grew up playing with, playing against," Jackson said. "I'm eager to see them and see how they're doing."
Teague said he knows players on both teams and has high school friends who attend Oklahoma State.
Jackson said the Cowboys showed some recruiting interest in him, but not much because he committed to Arkansas early.
"Being able to play in the SEC two hours from my house, that was probably the biggest thing," Jackson said. "Then I fell in love with it here when I got on campus."
Teague said he checked out Oklahoma and OSU.
"But over here it was so much better," Teague said.
High school days
Today's game will be the first time Oral Roberts right-hander Guillermo Trujillo has faced Arkansas, but Razorbacks shortstop Michael Bernal can provide a scouting report for his teammates.
Bernal faced Trujillo when both were school boys in El Paso, Texas.
"He was a power arm," Bernal said. "He was throwing in the 90s. He threw a few different off-speed pitches."
Going deep
St. John's 15-game winning streak is tied for the second-longest in the country with Radford behind the 16-game streak of No. 8 national seed Missouri State. It is the Red Storm's longest winning streak since 1977. Oral Roberts brings a six-game winning streak into the regional.
Sports on 05/29/2015