Diamond time: OKWU Eagles take aim on campaign of promise with Jan. 28 opener
Since 2011, Oklahoma Wesleyan University baseball has been synonymous with powerful.
The Eagles have qualified three times for the NAIA World Series (2014, 2017, 2021).
The Eagles have averaged more than 40 wins per year during that stretch and regularly populated the NAIA Top 25 national rankings.
Set against this glowing backdrop, there’s much anticipated excitement for this upcoming season.
Last year’s Eagles’ squad won 49 games and finished up its season on the mammoth stage of the World Series in Lewiston, Idaho.
Veteran OKWU head coach Kirk Kelley welcomes back several key components from the blockbuster squad.
He’s also added some major new assets to the team to bolster the quest for another run to the World Series — and hopefully a deep push toward the title.
And, it all starts very, very soon.
The Eagles’ season opener is just 13 days away, when Ecclesia College invades Bill Doenges Memorial Stadium for a noon showdown on Jan. 28.
The teams are set to play a doubleheader on Jan. 29.
The Eagles eye a busy February at Doenges Stadium.
Their home games are: Feb. 4 (Lyon), Feb. 5 (Lyon, DH), Feb. 12 (Bellevue)
Feb. 18 (Peru State), Feb. 19 (Peru State, DH), Feb. 22 (MidAmerica Nazarene), Feb. 25 (Bacone, DH), and Feb. 26 (Bacone, DH).
The regular schedule is set for 53 games, including 33 in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference.
OKWU was ranked No. 9 in the NAIA preseason poll.
Returning Eagle slugger Cody Muncy has been selected for the 2021-22 NAIA Preseason Baseball All-America Team.
Muncy put together an astronomical season last spring — a .465 batting average, 23 doubles, 27 homers, 94 homers, a .945 slugging percentage, 42 walks, and a .565 on-base percentage.
This article originally appeared on Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise: Oklahoma Wesleyan University baseball eyes season opener
