3 takeaways from OU's 14-5 loss to East Carolina in the Charlottesville Regional

Oklahoma (31-27, 11-13 Big 12) fell to East Carolina (47-17, 18-6 AAC) 14-5 in the opening round of the Charlottesville Regional on Friday. 

The Sooners allowed the Pirates to score in every inning except the first, and ECU went 6 for 6 on stolen bases. 

Here are three takeaways from the Sooners’ loss: 

OU pitchers struggle 

Redshirt senior Braden Carmichael has been OU’s most reliable pitcher this season, with a team-best 3.39 ERA. However, his showing on Friday fell short. 

In 2.2 innings the left-hander allowed four hits and four runs. Carmichael also recorded an uncharacteristic five walks. Before the game against the Pirates, he hadn’t walked more than two batters in a game. He also allowed the least amount of walks in the Big 12.

After 81 pitches, coach Skip Johnson turned to his bullpen in search of an answer to combat ECU’s dominant offense. 

Despite Johnson’s hopes, the Sooners’ five pitchers out of the bullpen followed in similar suit as the team’s Friday night starter. Not a single OU pitcher notched a 1-2-3 inning, and juniors Carter Campbell, Carson Atwood and Gray Harrison, sophomore Aaron Calhoun and freshman Carson Turnquist collectively surrendered 11 hits, 10 runs and three walks.  

Sooners’ batting lineup is a bust 

Six batters in OU’s lineup recorded a hit against ECU, but only three recorded more than one knock. 

Juniors Anthony Mackenzie and Dakota Harris along with freshman Easton Carmichael each went 2 for 4. 

Carmichael brought junior Bryce Madron home during the sixth inning to give the Sooners their first run of the matchup. 

Easton singles home Madron here in the sixth.📺 ESPN2 pic.twitter.com/2luqUtLRUY

— Oklahoma Baseball (@OU_Baseball) June 3, 2023

Madron also proved to be a bright spot for OU in the ninth. He scored redshirt junior Kendall Pettis in the final inning and posted two runs and one RBI after going 1 for 4.

What’s next

After the Sooners’ loss on Friday, the team prepares for a quick turnaround against Army West Point. 

Army is coming off of a 15-1 loss against the regional host, No. 7 Virginia. The game is set for 11:00 a.m. on Saturday. 

With the loss, @OU_Baseball falls into the losers' bracket where it will face an elimination game against @ArmyWP_Baseball at noon ET. https://t.co/Pdd82HpaHx

— Shotgun Spratling (@ShotgunSprD1) June 3, 2023

The matchup serves as an elimination game, and OU’s postseason hopes are on the line. 

This story was edited by Louis Raser.