Folks, there is less than a month until postseason play begins across all levels of college and high school baseball besides D1. The biggest series in the state came and went this week with Bedlam, and once again the Cowboys were the group holding the state outline trophy when all was said and done. The race to secure a hosting spot in regionals is heating up fast at the high school level, and one of those races is coming to a boiling point with a matchup between Choctaw and Edmond Memorial at the top of District 2 in 6A. For a closer look at everything that happened last week, click here. With that, let’s jump into the best of week 11. 

Matchup of the week (College) – NWOSU vs Arkansas Monticello

It doesn’t get much bigger than a matchup between two squads that are tied for first place in their conference. That’s exactly what we’ve been blessed with in this week’s battle between NWOSU and Arkansas Monticello. Neither of these squads were projected to be in this position before the season, with UAM being projected at 6th in the conference and NWOSU sitting all the way down in 10th in the preseason GAC poll. Both squads will finish the year with conference series against Southern Arkansas and SWOSU, so with neither squad having an advantage in strength of schedule to end the year, this matchup could be what decides the regular season GAC championship.

Top Sooner State Showdown (College) – Western OK State vs Carl Albert State

Western OK State finds themselves only one game out of the first-place spot in Region 2 after taking two of three from Murray State last week, and with NOC Enid, the team the Pioneers are chasing, facing off with a Redlands squad that’s at the bottom of the standings, this series becomes a must-win for the Pioneers to maintain their chances of taking the Region 2 regular season crown in 2024.

For Carl Albert, the Vikings are still in the thick of things in the crowded middle of the pack in the standings. An even 9-9 in-region record is likely too far back of the top of the region for a real chance at making a run at first, however, there is still plenty of time to build momentum going into the end of the year, and a series win over a top team like Western would but the Vikings well on their way to doing just that. 

Where I’ll be this week – Yukon vs Enid

One of the best matchups of the week isn’t even a district game, it’s a Saturday matchup between two of the top squads in 6A, Yukon and Enid. Both of these two took part in the yearly Gladys Winter Festival in Enid but never saw each other over the weekend. The Millers, who are off to a scorching hot 8-0 start in district play that sees them tied atop the standings, are one of five teams left in 6A that haven’t dropped a district game yet. However, four of those squads are facing off against another unbeaten foe today and tomorrow, so Yukon looks to be coming into this weekend’s matchup with potentially a ton of momentum. The road team in this matchup, the Enid Plainsmen have at times looked like the state championship threat we predicted them to be at the beginning of the season, namely in two run-rule wins over Stillwater and wins over really solid Edmond North and Sapulpa teams. However, the Plainsmen have dropped a couple of games that you wouldn’t expect them to, such as losing games against a struggling Bartlesville and being blown out by an improved Moore team that you’d still have to expect the Plainsmen to be able to handle. This 2023 state tournament rematch could easily be a preview of the 2024 state tournament, so this should be a fun one to watch. 

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