OKLAHOMA CITY - No. 17 Texas Wesleyan Baseball (16-9, 3-1 SAC) used nine strikeouts from Gabriel Sequeria, strong hitting from the bottom of the lineup and a timely defensive play to finish victorious 5-4 over No. 10 Oklahoma City (12-8, 0-1 SAC) Friday afternoon in Oklahoma.

The Rams held off the Stars late. With a 5-1 lead, OCU attempted to rally thanks in large part to a two-run, homer from Tyler Williams. That cut the defeicit to 5-4 in the seventh, but Sequeria got out of the jam with a line out and a ground out. With two batters on in the bottom of the eighth, Jesse Ramirez stepped up to the mound and got the first out on a sacrifice bunt that advanced runners to second and third. With the bases loaded, TXWES was able to execute the 6 (Dominick Padilla)-4 (Kevin Santiago Zamora)-3 (Trey Smith) double play to end a scary inning on what turned out to be the final momentum swing of the game.

"Gabe did a great job of commanding the counts early in the at-bats," said Head Coach Bobby Garza. "He threw the ball really well with great combinations. That huge double play shut down a potential rally, that was huge."

In the sixth inning, Kaden Brown took a walk after launching six balls into foul territory to stay alive.  The bases were loaded and it helped score Caleb Harmond to take a 4-1 lead, part of a five-straight runs streak after the Stars got on the board early in the first on an unearned score. The Stars only walked five batters, but three of the Rams' five runs in the game came on walks home.

The trio of infielders did not just get it done defensively. Santiago, Smith and Padilla hit in the seven-eight-nine spots of the lineup and combined for six hits and two RBI. 

Sequeria improved to 5-0. Southwestern Assemblies of God's Logan Mann is the only pitcher in the NAIA with more wins than Sequeria and Gabriel's 73 strikeouts leads the nation. 

The Stars were coming off a 12-2 thumping of No. 13 Oklahoma Wesleyan. Saturday's doubleheader will start at 1 p.m. and conclude the three-game series.