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oklasooners
7/21/2006, 07:34 PM
NORMAN, Okla. -- As part of continuing coverage of Oklahoma baseball throughout the summer, SoonerSports.com will bring fans weekly updates of current Sooners competing in the numerous summer baseball leagues around the country, including former Sooners playing in Major League Baseball and its minor league affiliates.

Update No. 4
In the Cape Cod League, Joe Dunigan hit his first home run of the summer in a 5-4 loss to the Chatham A抯. The Chicago native抯 three-run homer in the third inning gave the Cardinals an early lead but the A抯 battled back with two runs in the bottom of the fourth and three more in the bottom of the fifth and held on for the victory. Fellow Sooner Kody Kaiser scored in the sixth to cut the deficit in half, but that was as close as Orleans would get as it has lost nine of the last 13 games. The streak has bumped the Cards?down to third place in the Eastern Division standings.

Jackson Williams had one of his best games of the summer, leading the Hyannis Mets to a 7-2 victory over the Harwich Mariners on July 11th. The Broken Arrow native went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a walk, pushing his average to .242. The Mets, with a record of 12-14, sit in third place in the Western Division after losing 6 of their last 10.

Also playing in the Cape Cod League is junior shortstop Aaron Reza. Playing in his second season with the Chatham A抯, he leads the team with a .358 batting average. The A抯 sit in fourth place in the Eastern Division.

In the Texas Collegiate League, Sooner first baseman Jarrod Freeman and fellow Sooner Brad Burns took home player of the week honors. Freeman, playing for the Graham Roughnecks, hit .462 over the last week with seven doubles, eight RBI, five walks, one homer, and a .538 on-base percentage. Freeman picked up four of his seven doubles in an 8-2 victory over the Weatherford Wranglers on July 16th.

Burns, of the Weatherford Wranglers, pitched perhaps the Texas Collegiate League game of the year in a 4-0 victory over the top ranked Coppell Copperheads. The Lookeba-Sickles product struck out seven while scattering five hits and a walk over seven innings for the win. Burns pushed his record to 2-1 on the summer with 21 strikeouts in just 24 innings with an ERA of 2.61.

The awards come on the heels of Brandon Moss taking home player of the week honors just a week earlier. The Euless LoneStars' catcher/first baseman hit .421 for the week with eight hits, five runs, six RBI, and one walk.


Other Sooners playing in the Texas Collegiate League are: seniors Joseph Hughes (Coppell Copperheads), Matt Lovelady (Weatherford Wranglers) and Jimmy Rollins (Coppell Copperheads) and sophomore Nich Conaway (Weatherford Wranglers).

In the Alaska League, junior utility man Ryan Mottern has his ERA down to .082 in seven appearances for the Kenai Peninsula Oilers. The Palestine, Texas, native currently holds a record of 1-1, while leading the team in ERA.

Moving to the California League, Sooner hurler Kevin Duke continues his solid play for the S. California Fire. The Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., product is 4-1 with an ERA of 2.33, leading the Fire in wins and innings pitched. Duke and the Fire clinched the League Division title in a 10-1 victory over the San Diego Mustangs on Tuesday and will be headed to the National Baseball Congress' World Series, which runs from July 28 thru August 12 in Wichita, Kansas.

Also pitching in the California League is senior Chris Henry. The Oakdale, Calif., native is 3-2 in seven appearances for the Salinas Valley Packers, with an ERA of 3.98. The Packers are 26-22 on the season.

Senior outfielder Aaron Ivey (Kanuai Menehunes - Hawaii Collegiate League) is the remaining current Sooner playing in a league this summer.

Seven Sooners from last year's squad continue their run towards the Major Leagues. Will Savage has moved up to the Class A Lakewood BlueClaws where he has yet to earn a decision. The West Hills, Calif., native has four strikeouts and has yet to give up a hit in his two appearances.

Russell Raley continues his hot hitting on the season for the Staten Island Yankees. The Uvalde, Texas product is batting .375, placing him second on the team in that category.

Former Sooners Reggie Willits and Greg Dobbs were called up to Major League teams over the past week. Willits, a Fort Cobb native and outfielder for the Sooners in 2002, was called up by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on Tuesday. Dobbs was called up by the Seattle Mariners on July 14th, in time for a three-game series with Toronto over the weekend. In the minor league ranks, Rocky Cherry was promoted to the Triple-A Iowa Cubs on July 17th. The Coppell, Texas native was 4-1 with a 2.22 ERA in 31 appearances for the West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx. Will Savage and Ole Sheldon were also promoted to new clubs in the past week