June 14, 2023

By Matt Betts

Canadian Baseball Network

Don’t call the Oral Roberts Golden Eagles run to the College World Series a Cinderella story.

Not in front of left-handed pitcher Harley Gollert (Toronto, Ont.), anyway.

“I think we’re exactly where we expected to be come this time of year,” Gollert said.

“We’re a very balanced and deep team with a bunch of individuals who understand their roles. Mix in a little bit of star power with an All-American closer and centre fielder and you have a team that is very tough to beat.”

But just how did a mid-major march their way past the college baseball powers en route to Omaha?

It started with the Golden Eagles rolling through the Summit League with a 23-1 record before sweeping their way to the conference tournament crown.

Riding an 18-game winning streak into the Stillwater Regional, they were tabbed the No. 4 seed and pitted against the Oklahoma State Cowboys in Game 1.

Having beaten the Cowboys twice already during the regular season, they held off the hosts for a 6-4 win. Victories over Washington and Dallas Baptist followed, sending them to the Super Regionals.

For those counting at home, the regional trifecta made for 21 straight wins.

Next up was a cross-country trip and a date with the Oregon Ducks.

Things began well as they jumped out to an 8-0 lead in the third inning of Game 1 but nine unanswered runs, including one in the bottom of the ninth, saw the Ducks fly to a comeback walk-off win.

A heartbreaking defeat in front of a sold out crowd, it was the first time they’d fallen into the loss column since April 22 against North Dakota State.

Needing a win to keep their season alive, Gollert took the ball in Game 2.

He would exit after 4 2/3 innings and the Golden Eagles found themselves trailing 7-4 in the seventh. The Golden Eagles proceeded to plated one in the seventh, one in the eighth and two in the ninth for a walk-off win of their own, forcing a winner-take-all Game 3 with a trip to Omaha on the line.

With an 11-6 win in the deciding game, the Golden Eagles became just the third No. 4 seed in Division I baseball history to make their way to Omaha, following national champion Fresno State in 2008 and Stony Brook in 2012.

That Stony Brook Seawolves team was loaded with Canadians in outfielder Tanner Nivins (Kitchener, Ont.), infielder Maxx Tissenbaum (Toronto, Ont.), infielder Cole Peragine (Belle Ewart, Ont.) and right-handed pitcher Jas Rakkar (Brampton, Ont.).

“It still doesn’t feel real,” Gollert said about heading to the College World Series.

“When I committed to Oral Roberts, one of the main reasons I chose the program is because I felt they gave me the best chance to play in a regional. Well, it turns out I’ve got my money’s worth on the whole ‘get to experience the postseason’ goal.”

To truly appreciate Gollert’s dream of playing in the postseason, one must first understand how he ended up here in the first place.

His path to Tulsa, Okla. began in Clarksville Tenn.

Initially he committed to Austin Peay University out of the Ontario Blue Jays program. As a Governor, he put together a 9-19 record to go along with a 5.95 ERA over 221 innings in five seasons.

After using his redshirt in 2019 when his season ended due to injury and with the cancellation of the 2020 season at the hands of the COVID-19 pandemic, Gollert found himself with one year of eligibility remaining and looking for a fresh start.

With his mind made up, he entered the transfer portal. It was a process he describes as “hectic.”

“Once in the transfer portal, I was originally a little overwhelmed with the opportunities that presented themselves to me,” he said.

“I had to prioritize what mattered the most to me. Specifically, I wanted to be a major contributor to a winning program that really wanted me. It’s easy to get caught up in the name brand of schools that show interest.”

Gollert knew without opportunity, success was unattainable.

When he heard from Golden Eagles assistant coach Wes Davis, it didn’t take long for him to realize it was the place he was meant to be.

They checked all the boxes, including a track record of dominating their conference, developing high quality arms, picking up major contributors from the transfer portal and getting the opportunity to compete in the NCAA postseason.

The transfer portal itself has changed the college game and Oral Roberts is a perfect example as they’re a combination of older college players who are ready to win, he says.

Made up primarily of junior college transfers and upper classmen, the team has one true freshman on their roster.

Arriving on campus last fall, Gollert quickly realized he had the opportunity he was looking for.

“I knew pretty early on in the fall that we should be a very good club,” he said.

“We’re old, experienced and most of us came to ORU with varying amounts of scattered success. It was all about bringing our skill sets to a new environment and thriving under one common goal. We’re a very balanced team and can win games in many ways. People know their roles and understand that simply executing your job will help the team win.”

Gollert established his role as the team’s No. 2 starter early on and thrived.

He currently owns a 10-1 record and a 4.30 ERA. Upon the regular season’s end he was named to the All-Summit League Second Team and more recently to the Central All-Region Second Team.

Celebrating those personal accolades will come at another time though. For now, all the focus remains on the task at hand.

That’s Game 1 of the College World Series against TCU on Friday at 2 p.m. EDT.

“I expect an incredible atmosphere,” Gollert said.

“Our head coach has been preaching it all year long and I don’t think anything changes now that we’re going to Omaha. He always says ‘play well and we win’ and I think that’s the motto I'll choose to ride all the way to the end of this season.”