Stormin in Norman
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Oklahoma baseball: Sooners one win away from CWS championship series

By Connor Pasby

Jun 19, 2022; Omaha, NE, USA; Oklahoma Sooners center fielder Tanner Tredaway (10) celebrates with second baseman Jackson Nicklaus (15) after making a diving catch in the eighth inning against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Charles Schwab Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 19, 2022; Omaha, NE, USA; Oklahoma Sooners center fielder Tanner Tredaway (10) celebrates with second baseman Jackson Nicklaus (15) after making a diving catch in the eighth inning against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Charles Schwab Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Oklahoma baseball Sooners continue to shine under the bright lights and find themselves in the driver’s seat, one win away from the Men’s College World Series championship series.

After beating Texas A&M 13-8 in the CWS opener on Friday, the Sooners followed that with a 6-2 victory over Notre Dame Sunday night.

The winners’ side of the bracket featured two of the hottest teams in college baseball currently, but it was Oklahoma that stayed hot.

Redshirt freshmen Cade Horton gave the Sooner faithful a performance of the lifetime in front of 24,000-plus in attendance at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Nebraska. The Norman native finished the evening going six complete innings, allowing only two earned runs on five hits and striking out a career-high 11.

After missing his entire freshmen season at OU, Horton has come back stronger and is delivering in big moments. He has literally gotten better as the season has gone along.

“It’s no different than watching a big leaguer, how quick (Horton) can pick stuff up. And I’m not saying he’s a big leaguer, by no means, but he’ll have that opportunity one day,” OU head coach Skip Johnson said.

Once again, the best shortstop in college baseball stepped up for the Sooners.

Peyton Graham had a monster game going 4-for-4 with four singles, he also stole two bags. It was the first time since 1984 that a player recorded four hits and two stollen bags in the same game in the CWS.. The player to accomplish that? Barry Bonds, pretty good company for Peyton Graham to be compared to.

Redshirt Senior Tanner Tredaway can not be contained in the postseason. Tredaway got the Sooners on the board in the 3rd inning, with an RBI single. The center fielder also came up with a diving play in the 8th inning, to get the Sooners a three-up, three-down inning

“I really like to keep things simple,” Tanner Tredaway said. “I just try to swing at good pitches and try not to get out of my zone.”

We’ve seen Johnson’s young crew grow in front of our eyes. The freshmen have been unbothered by the big atmosphere in Omaha, and continue to come up with big plays in big-time moments. Freshmen Wallace Clark has been a vacuum over at third base, and isn’t shying away from the main goal at hand

“Winning the national championship’s always been kind of the goal,” Clark said. “And we’ve had that in mind from the very beginning and it’s not just a new idea.”

The Sooners have caught the attention of former players on the 1994 Sooner national championship team, such as Bucky Buckles and Ryan Minor. The two were a huge part of the 1994 Title run, and actually got some love from the ESPN broadcast team last night.

The Sooners have a shot to match the 1994 national championship team, with one of their own. After starting the CWS 2-0, either Texas A&M or Notre Dame has to beat Oklahoma twice, which will be a difficult task. The Sooners play the waiting game for these next two days, and will face off at 1 p.m. CT on Wednesday against the winner of Texas A&M and Notre Dame.

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