The Basics (Game One)
Score: Oral Roberts 8 – Northern Illinois 2
Records: ORU (2-0), Northern Illinois (0-2)
Location: Tulsa, Okla. (J.L. Johnson Stadium)
Win: Harley Gollert (1-0) | Loss: Jacob Wilde (0-1) | Save: Dalton Patten (1)
 
TULSA, Okla. – Behind homers from Matt Hogan and Jonah Cox, the Oral Roberts baseball team defeated Northern Illinois, 8-2, in game one of Saturday's doubleheader at J.L. Johnson Stadium. 

Harley Gollert picked up the win in his Golden Eagle debut after allowing two runs, one earned, over five strong innings of work. The senior also struck out five on the afternoon. Out of the bullpen, Dalton Patten picked up the save after throwing four shutout innings and striking out three.

Hogan drove in a game-high three runs, two of which came via the home run ball. Jake McMurray followed with two RBIs after finishing the afternoon 2-for-5 at the dish. At the plate, seven different Golden Eagles registered a hit as the team totaled 12 on the day. 

For the second straight game, the Huskies struck first as Colin Summerhill registered an RBI single to right-center. 

ORU got the run back in the second as Blaze Brothers plated Holden Breeze on an RBI single through the left side. An inning later, McMurray put the Golden Eagles in front, 2-1, with an RBI triple to right-center.

In the fifth, Cox led off the frame with his first homer of the 2023 campaign to increase the ORU lead to 3-1. After Justin Quinn reached on a single through the right side and stole second, McMurray brought the senior home with an RBI single up the middle as the Golden Eagles took a 4-1 advantage.

NIU cut the ORU lead in half, 4-2, in the sixth courtesy of a sacrifice fly by Andrew Smart. 

Hogan broke the game open in the seventh with a two-run blast down the right-field line, pushing the Golden Eagles' advantage to 6-2. The homer was the senior's second of the season. Later in the frame, Mac McCroskey brought home Jacob Godman on an infield single for ORU's seventh run of the afternoon.

In the eighth, Hogan plated the final run of the day for the Golden Eagles as the senior brought home Breeze on a sacrifice fly to make the final 8-2 in favor of ORU. 

Inside the Box Score
- Four different Golden Eagles logged a multi-hit game.
- ORU swiped six bases on the afternoon, led by two apiece from Brothers and McCroskey.
- Cox registered his third double of the season in the seventh.
- Breeze led all players with three runs in the win.
- The redshirt junior also registered a game-best three walks.

The Basics (Game Two)
Score: Oral Roberts 3 – Northern Illinois 2
Records: ORU (3-0), Northern Illinois (0-3)
Location: Tulsa, Okla. (J.L. Johnson Stadium)
Win: Conner Floyd (1-0) | Loss: Reagan Klawiter (0-1) 
 
TULSA, Okla. – The Oral Roberts baseball team walked off Northern Illinois, 3-2, in the 10th inning Saturday night at J.L. Johnson Stadium, sweeping the doubleheader.

Justin Quinn led off the 10th with a single down the right field line and later advanced to second on a wild pitch. The next batter, Jake McMurray, placed a sacrifice bunt down the third base line and forced an errant throw by the NIU third baseman, which allowed Quinn to score the winning run.

On the mound, Conner Floyd picked up his first win as a Golden Eagle after throwing two scoreless frames and striking out five. Jacob Widener earned his first career start for ORU and allowed two runs, one earned, over 4.1 innings, while striking out seven. Preseason First Team All-American Cade Denton made his 2023 debut, allowing no runs and striking out four over 3.2 innings on the bump.

After a scoreless first four frames, the Huskies struck first for the third straight contest as two runs came around to score in the fifth. With the bases loaded and two outs, Andrew Smart hit a slow chopper down the third base line causing an errant throw by ORU, which allowed the two runs to cross the plate.

The Golden Eagles threatened in the top of the seventh as they loaded the bases with no outs but failed to push across a run as the deficit remained 2-0.

In the eighth, ORU broke through on the scoreboard as Holden Breeze plated Quinn on a sacrifice fly to cut the deficit to 2-1. Off the bench, Jonah Cox stepped to the plate for the ensuing at-bat and ripped an RBI double down the left field line to even the score, 2-2.

NIU loaded the bases in the top half of the ninth with only one out but Floyd worked out of the jam with back-to-back strikeouts to keep the score tied, 2-2.

Inside the Box Score
- Five different Golden Eagles logged a hit on the afternoon.
- As a staff, ORU punched out 16 NIU batters.
- Quinn scored two of the Golden Eagles' three runs on the day.
- McMurray drew a game-best two walks.
- Blaze Brothers notched his third steal of the season.
- Cox picked up his fourth double of the year.

Notes
- With the win, ORU is off to a 3-0 start for the first time since 2019.
- McCroskey extended his on-base streak to 25 straight games, dating back to last season.

Up Next
The Golden Eagles will go for the series sweep tomorrow at noon.

For the latest information on ORU Baseball, follow the Golden Eagles on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, or go to www.ORUAthletics.com. Fans can also receive updates on the team by downloading the ORU Athletics app from the App Store or Google Play Store.