ADA – The East Central University baseball team picked up two wins in the first of three Great American Conference games against Northwestern Oklahoma State University at Ken Turner Field.  The Tigers (6-12, 6-5 GAC) first claimed a 6-0 shutout and then added a 4-3 win in the second game of the day.

ECU finished the day hitting .310, while holding the Rangers (7-15, 2-9 GAC) to a .196 average.  A total of four players for the Tiger hit over .400, with senior Jake MeKeel leading the way with a .625 mark.  MeKeel recorded five hits, three runs and an RBI.  Junior Connor Stevenson added a.571 average, four hits, two runs and two RBIs.

Senior Jake Wellington picked up the win and shared a shutout in the opening game, allowing five hits and striking out nine.  Junior Shae Edmonds split the shutout in the final game and finished the second game to pick up the victory.  Edmonds threw a total of 4.2 innings, allowed three hits and zero runs and struck out two.

The teams will wrap up the series, with a single game slated to start at 11 a.m. at Ken Turner Field, Saturday, March 11.

ECU 6, NWOSU 0
The Tigers took an early 1-0 lead after the first inning.  After the first two outs, senior Kaleb Matthews was walked and then advanced to second on a pass ball.  That put him in scoring position when senior JT Stevenson reached due to an error.

The teams held each other scoreless for the next two innings, before ECU pushed the lead out to 6-0, with a five-run fourth inning.

After an out, junior Dalton Etheredge singled through the left side, LoBue reached on a fielder's choice and an error left both runners on base.  Senior Kodiak O'Ravez then loaded the bases by drawing a walk.  That set up MeKeel to earn an RBI with a single through the left side.

Connor Stevenson then earned two RBIs with a double down the right field line.  Matthews added a run with a groundout and the final run came across the plate on a wild pitch.

The Rangers had several chances to score through the rest of the game, but were unable to get a runner past third for the 6-0 final.

ECU 4, NWOSU 3
The Tigers took an early 1-0 lead again after the first inning.  MeKeel started the game with a single and was sent to third on a double from Connor Stevenson.  That allowed redshirt junior Josh Reeves to earn an RBI with a sacrifice fly to center.

ECU added to more runs to the board in the third for a 3-0 advantage.  It was again MeKeel who started things off, this time with a single up the middle.  Connor Stevenson was walked and it looked like a run would score on a double from Reeves, but MeKeel was thrown out at home. That set up junior Kade Hayes to earn to RBIs with a single.

However, NWOSU did not go away quietly, knotting the game at three with three runs in the fourth.  Both teams then stepped up the defense and went into the bottom of the seventh tied at three.

MeKeel and Connor Stevenson again produced for ECU, with singles.  However, the next two batters were sent back to the dugout before Hayes was able to load the bases with a single to center.  While the next batter was at the plate he was not the decision maker, as the go-ahead run was scored on a passed ball.