EDMOND, Okla. (April 9, 2026) – Coming into the weekend needing to win each of its three remaining series to make a run at the postseason, the UT Permian Basin Falcons were not successful and fell in two run-one games, 13-12 and 5-4, at Oklahoma Christian University.
 
Game 1 (UTPB 12, OC 13):

• Both teams hit three home runs in game one.
• It was a high-scoring first inning with a combined eight runs between the two teams, including a five-run top of the first for the Falcons, who started the game with back-to-back doubles by Daylon Jefcoats and Gael Bernal (RBI-double). With the bases load, UTPB added RBI's on a hit by pitch by Andrew Prado and a suicide-squeeze bunt by Braeden Dyck, and then Demetrius Deramus brought in the final two runners with a two-out RBI-single up the middle.
• In OC's half of the first inning, two lefties gave the ball a ride to the opposite field. First, OC's No. 2-hitter, Trey Migl, hit a solo home run down the left field line. Then with two outs and Damian Robles one pitch away from limiting the Eagles to one run, Justin Spencer sent the 2-2 pitch off the wall in left field, just inches away from being the Eagles' second home run of the inning, instead resulting in a two-run double.
• Prado made a sliding catch coming in from left field to finally end the first inning.
• Robles responded with a 1-2-3 second inning featuring three straight groundouts to the middle infield, and then got a strikeout and a flyout to strand two runners in scoring position in the third inning.
• Carlos Chavez absolutely crushed a two-run home run to left field to make it 7-3 in the top of the third, and then Marcos Castro sent the very first pitch from the Eagles' top relief pitcher, Brandon Cardenas, well over the fence in left center field for a leadoff home run in the top of the fourth.
• A pair of RBI-singles to right center field cut OC's deficit to two (8-6) in the bottom of the fourth to chase Robles, and then with one swing of the bat, a huge two-out, three-run bomb to left field by Ruben Castro put the Eagles in front (9-8) for the first time in the game. It was a six-run fourth inning for OC, surpassing UTPB's five-run first inning.
• The home run party continued as a three-run home run to left center field by Deramus put the Falcons ahead again (11-9) in the top of the fifth inning.
• After giving up the three-run home run in the bottom of the fourth, Solomon James bounced back to record three straight swinging strikeouts and made it four outs in a row with a 1-2-3 bottom of the fifth inning.
• However, OC started off the bottom of the sixth with a solo homer down the right field line. With the bases loaded and still nobody out, a bloop single down the right field line somehow landed fair, scoring a run to cut it to a one-run game, and then back-to-back sacrifice flies put the Eagles back in front (13-12).
• Down one run in the top of the seventh, Dyck led off with a hard-hit single past the diving shortstop. It was the sixth time the leadoff hitter reached for the Falcons, but a 4-6-3 double put the Eagles just out away from the victory, and then a groundout to shortstop was all she wrote.
• UTPB had 12 runs on 13 hits and four walks while OC had 13 runs on 12 hits and five walks.
• UTPB scored in five of its seven offensive innings while OC's runs were limited to three innings, but they were big innings as the Eagles scored at least three runs each time.
• Bernal was 3-for-3 for UTPB and led five Falcons with at least two hits and four Falcons with two runs scored.
• Deramus had five RBI's, but his double play in the final inning was a back breaker.
• UTPB hit into two double plays in the contest, had two runners caught stealing to end an inning, and had just three runners left on base for the game.

 
Game 2 (UTPB 4, OC 5):

• Game two did not feature the same fireworks as game one.
• After a leadoff walk in the bottom of the first, Isaac Rodriguez got three straight outs bookended by strikeouts to end the inning.
• A persistent effort by Rodriguez on a pickoff at first base after a leadoff single helped him face the minimum in the second inning.
• In his first at bat of game two, Deramus nearly kept his great day going with a leadoff hit deep to center field in the third inning, but a leaping catch by the fielder robbed him of extra bases.
• Rodriguez allowed one hit and two walks while striking out four through three scoreless innings, and OC's starting pitcher, Jason Rickert, faced the minimum and held UTPB to zero hits and one walk through the first three innings.
• UTPB's first hit was a single looped into shallow center field by Jefcoats to lead off the top of the fourth inning. After advancing to second base on a wild pitch, Jefcoats showcased opportunistic base running, reading the center fielder on a ball hit to left center field, tagging up and advancing to third base on a flyout.
• The aggressive base running by Jefcoats paid off as Joshua Estrada grounded out to shortstop to score Jefcoats for the first run of the game. It was Estrada's second RBI of the day.
• OC dropped in a double in front of the wall in right center field to lead off the bottom of the fourth and would tie the game (1-1) as UTPB traded the run for two outs on a 4-6-3 double play.
• Prado ripped a leadoff home run to right field to lead off the top of the fifth inning and put UTPB right back in front (2-1).
• However, the double play ball continued to haunt the Falcons' offense as OC turned two groundball double plays in the first five innings of game two, making it a combined four doubles plays on the day by the Eagles' defense.
• The teams continued to go back-and-forth. With two outs and nobody on in the bottom of the fifth, Rodriguez was unable to hold onto the lead as a single lined down the right field line was followed by an RBI-triple to right center field to again tie the game (2-2). That was followed by a homer hit over 400 feet to straightaway center field to put the Eagles ahead (4-2). It was the second home run of the day by Migl, a 2025 Second-Team All-Lone Star Conference player who tied the OC LSC era record with 61 hits a season ago and added 13 home runs.
• UTPB cut its deficit in half (4-3) with a two-out, RBI-single just past the diving third baseman by Chavez in the top of the sixth inning. That brought Prado to the plate, but with both the tying run and the go-ahead run in scoring position following a wild pitch, a groundout to shortstop resulted in the first two runners left on base in the game for UTPB.
• Both starting pitchers pitched into the sixth inning, but three straight singles by OC to start off the bottom of the sixth, including an infield single and a bunt single, ended the day for Rodriguez.
• Fortunately for the Falcons, the new pitcher, Sebastian Cabral, got three straight outs on a fielder's choice, a swinging strikeout and a flyout to left field to leave the bases loaded and spoil the golden opportunity for the Eagles.
• Rickerts allowed four hits, three runs, three walks and two strikeouts in six innings while Rodriguez allowed nine hits, four runs, two walks and six strikeouts in five innings.
• UTPB tied the game (4-4) in the top of the seventh as Dyck led off with a single through the left side, went to second base on a sacrifice bunt by Deramus, and later scored on a squeeze bunt by Castro.
• Cabral stranded the go-ahead run on third base with a flyout to center to end the bottom of the seventh, and then was not fazed by a two-out hit by pitch in the bottom of the eighth.
• Cabral successfully held the Eagles at bay, not allowing a hit in his first three innings.
• However, after giving up the tying run in the seventh, OC's relief pitcher, Kaden Mitchell, retired seven straight Falcons and tossed back-to-back 1-2-3 innings in the eighth and ninth innings.
• UTPB had scored a run in four consecutive innings before being shut down by Mitchell.
• Then in the bottom of the ninth, the Eagles finally got a hit against Cabral with a leadoff single through the left side by the No. 9-hitter, Jarett Liebbe, and then a sacrifice bunt moved the winning run to second base.
• With a 2-2 count at the plate, a wild pitch moved the runner to third base, setting up two batters later, the walk-off single with two outs to center field by Reed Thomas, his third single of the game.
• Mitchell (2-0) picked up the win after allowing two hits, one run, zero walks and five strikeouts in three innings, and Cabral (0-2) took the loss after giving up two hits, one run and one walk in 3.2 innings.
• UTPB left three runners on base for the second game in a row.

 
Team Records:

• UTPB drops to 12-28 overall and in the Lone Star Conference while Oklahoma Christian takes a one-game lead over the Falcons in the standings at 13-27.
• OC has previously lost three of four games in each of its last five series.

Next Up: The final two games of the series at Oklahoma Christian will be at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., respectively, on Friday, April 10.