Baseball Defends Conference Crown

After a (37-28) 2018 campaign, a Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association Regular Season Championship and a NCAA Central Regional appearance, the Bronchos head into the 2019 season looking to do more.

Head coach John Martin has coached the Bronchos to a 104-64-1 record in the three years he has taken over, as he has won back-to-back 37-win seasons. Under Martin, the Bronchos also won their first MIAA Regular Season Championship since they joined the league six years ago.

After winning the MIAA Regular Season Championship Martin said that it doesn’t add any more motivation for the current season.

“I think it might add a little more target on our back to other people, but I think that’s what you want, so it’s just a matter of us going about our business the right way everyday and working hard,” Martin said. “We’ll see what happens.”

Martin said his expectations for every new season “don’t change.”

“We go into every game trying to win every one and get better everyday,” Martin said. “We’re worried about, just on a daily basis, what we can do to get better. All our guys want to go win a championship every year, they want to go to the Regional and go to the World Series, so I think that’s the same expectation every year.”

The Bronchos will play 50 games in the 2019 season with 26 road games and 23 home games at Simmons Field. However, under Martin, the Bronchos have not had a losing record on the road. In the 2018 season the Bronchos went 17-7 home, 15-8 away. In 2017, 16-6 home, 14-11-1 away and in 2016 13-8 home, 15-11 away.

“I think it’s just about how we go about our business,” Martin said. “I don’t think it changes whether on the road or at home how hard we go.”

Martin said that traveling can be good because you start to come together as a team and as a family a little bit.

“This years the year we travel more to the Missouri schools so hopefully we can handle that, get there, and play well,” Martin said.

In the 2018 season, the Bronchos were second in Home Runs in the MIAA with 72 behind Nebraska Kearney, who posted 93. The Bronchos also placed second in the MIAA in stolen bases with 93 just behind Central Missouri, who had 98.

The Bronchos will begin their 2019 season at Wendall Simmons Baseball Field in the Edmond First Pitch Classic. They will host the Southeastern Oklahoma State University Storm Feb. 1 at 1.p.m, the Lubbock Christian University Eagles Saturday at 4 p.m. and Oklahoma Christian University Eagles Sunday at 7 p.m. 

“We have pretty good depth,” Martin said. “I think we’re athletic and I think that’s a strength. We have a lot of new guys, so now it’s a matter of them going out there performing and figuring out who we are. Hopefully those roads trips will help us do so.”