EDMOND, Okla. – Baseball is a game with a plethora of situations. A cold, windy day in the Sooner state made for another contest filled with unique situations. Eastern New Mexico ended up securing their third-straight win in a 9-7 affair with Oklahoma Christian.

"After a rough first inning we settled in," remarked head coach Riley Price after the game.

The first inning was rough for both ball clubs. Eastern put up four runs against the home side and OC returned the favor with four in the bottom half of the inning.

ENMU's first run of the game came on a popup single to left field that showcased the affect of an inward wind. With the bases loaded, Isaiah Figueroa sent a ball to left field with what would be a typical popout, however, the ball rapidly changed direction and went to a typical shortstop spot and fell for a base hit. Eastern would continue the scoring frenzy on a wild pitch and soon after would capitalize on a second OC error of the inning. Lastly, ENMU's third sac-bunt of the inning would score the Hounds fourth run of the contest.

As previously mentioned, the Eagles managed to score four runs in the bottom half of the inning. They did so through the company of two hits, two walks, and a hit batter. When all was said and done, both teams went to the second frame with the score knotted, 4-4.

OC settled down defensively in the second and got their first lead of the game in the bottom half of the inning. They got their leadoff batter on base via an error from Adrien Martin. Similar to the Hounds single in the first, Martin had an opportunity to catch a popfly at third base, but was unable to complete the catch when the ball came down to the ground. ENMU was able to get the next two Eagles out, but the base runner was able to advance to third. From there, a base hit gave OC their first lead of the game and soon after a double gave them a 6-4 edge going into the third.

Both teams were stalled offensively in the third, but ENMU took full advantage offensively in the fourth. Back-to-back singles from Logan Martin and Gaston Galvan ignited the start to the attack. Ryan Weaver loaded the bases by reaching on a fielder's choice that could not be converted for an out. Eiji Sawamura unfortunately was ruled out for coming in contact with the ball on the base paths while he tried to advance runners via a bunt. ENMU would score two runs on a fielder's choice that got one out, but a throwing error at second would advance that extra run to tie the game. From there, ENMU would put two runs on via a Gabriel Watson base hit and OC would go to their bullpen for the second of three pitchers to see the mound. Immediately, Adrien Martin would come up clutch and drive in two runs with his team-best seventh double of the season. Another four-run inning for ENMU would give them the 8-6 advantage going into the bottom of the frame.

It wasn't easy for OC as Demetrius DiMatteo had one of the best outings of his Greyhound career. He went 8.1 innings in total, but one of the more remarkable aspects came from his response of giving up six runs in the first two innings. From the close of that second frame to the first out of the sixth, he sat down 11 consecutive batters. The only close call came in the fourth when OC's Trey Migl had a double, but a strong relay featuring Gabriel Watson-to-Isaiah-Figueroa-to-Adrien Martin helped the strong outing remain clean.

ENMU would add some insurance in the sixth inning thanks to another error from Oklahoma Christian. That would end up being the Hounds ninth and final run of the contest. Eastern New Mexico responded well to Oklahoma Christian's most errors (7) since a road win against Newman (9-8) back on Apr. 12, 2019 when they committed nine total errors.

It wasn't a pretty game for either side as ENMU committed three errors in the win. It's the sixth time the Hounds have recorded three or more in a game this season and the first time they have came out victorious with that many in 2026.

Eastern stayed consistent on the mound behind DiMatteo and the Hounds kept OC off the scoreboard until the ninth. As ENMU was on the cuff of earning the win, Oklahoma Christian got their seventh run of the game off an RBI-triple from Migl. Once DiMatteo threw a four-pitch walk and put runners on the corners, Eastern went to Zach Raichel in the bullpen. The Greyhound closer made light work of the outing by getting a quick strikeout and flyout to earn the Greyhounds 11th win of the season and to increase their advance over Oklahoma Christian by two games in league standings.

"It came down to the team with the least amount of errors and the fact that they gave up one more big inning than us," said Price after the win. "We executed small ball."

Despite being at the tail end of the game recap, it is notable to say that ENMU had six sacrifice bunts, which helped the program close out the contest.

Eastern New Mexico will now have doubleheader Saturday against OC tomorrow in Edmond. Follow www.goeasternathletics.com for more information.