Cherokees claim inaugural Omaha Cup
10/30/2014 7:25:00 PM | Baseball
It went down to a fifth game in the Sam Houston Omaha Cup, but the Cherokees came away with the inaugural title behind home runs by senior second baseman Shea Pierce and junior first baseman Spence Rahm.
“The Cherokees were the model of consistency, and that's what we're looking for,” head coach Matt Deggs said. “We started this thing ten weeks ago. They were slow and steady and took care of business on and off the field. That's what it takes to be a champion.”
It was a wire-to-wire win for the Cherokees who won the very first event of the fall and never trailed at any point in the competition. The team led by Pierce and Rahm even took a 2-0 lead in the final series before the Generals were able to win a game and extend the series to five games.
“I'm proud of all three teams. The Texians were a bit outmanned and played with incredible heart. The Generals were tough, scrappy and hard to put away all fall. Moving into the spring my expectation is that we embody a little bit of all three of those teams. I'm super proud for the Cherokees, our inaugural Omaha Cup Champions, and that's something they can always remember,” said Deggs.
Sam Odom and Andrew Godail were the starting pitchers for the decisive game of the Omaha Cup. Both pitchers were solid and kept the opposition off the board.
The Cherokees were able to get to Derrick Hadley to drive in the winning runs. Wyatt Powell got in base in front of Pierce before he hammered a two-run shot to right field. Rahm smashed a solo shot to the gap in left-center field.
“It had a Friday night feel to it with Godail and Odom as the starters. When you get in those battles you can't blink. The first team that flinches usually loses. Both of those guys had their A game today and then ultimately a team got to the bullpen and did what their supposed to do,” Deggs said.
Pierce, who helped lead his team to victory, is one of several veterans on the ball club experiencing a different kind of fall than they were used to.
“It was a lot of fun. It was definitely a different fall for us but it was very competitive,” Pierce said. “We really enjoyed it and all three teams really played well. We just took care of our business on and off the field and played some good baseball. It was pretty cool to get that big hit. I'm glad to do it for the team and get the win. I don't really know what to expect for the winners but we're really excited for it.”
The Bearkats play another exciting schedule in 2015 with home games against Baylor, Houston, Rice and Texas A&M. The season gets started at home with a three-game series against Wichita State Feb. 13-15.
