Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboys Head West For Four-Game Test
March 05, 2008 | Cowboy Baseball
#20 Oklahoma State (7-1)
at the
Aztec Invitational
March 6-9 • San Diego
Oklahoma State
The Cowboys are off to a 7-1 start to open the 2008 season and head to the Aztec Invitational in San Diego for four games this week.
OSU opens play in the tournament Thursday against Loyola Marymount at 8 p.m. The Cowboys will face nationally ranked San Diego Friday at 4 p.m., Santa Clara Saturday at 5 p.m. and San Diego State Sunday at noon. OSU will play three games (Thurs., Sat. and Sun.) at SDSU's Tony Gwynn Stadium and will face San Diego on its home field at Cunningham Baseball Stadium.
The Aztec Invitational Field
The Aztec Invitational tourney field includes Loyola Marymount (3-6), San Diego (5-5), Santa Clara (7-1), San Diego State (6-4) and Oregon State (4-3).
In The Polls
OSU is ranked 20th by Collegiate Baseball, 21st by Baseball America and 22nd in the NCBWA and USA Today/ESPN coaches' polls.
San Diego is the lone ranked team OSU will face in the tournament. The Toreros are ranked No. 17 by Baseball America and No. 21 in the NCBWA and USA Today/ESPN coaches' polls.
On The Air
All OSU baseball games will be carried live by Stillwater Radio on KSPI 93.7 FM and/or 780 AM. Rex Holt, who is in his 26th season as the play-by-play voice of Cowboy baseball, will call the action, with Matt Davis providing color commentary. Radio broadcasts can also be accessed via the internet at www.okstate.com (link is available under Cowboy MVP - Live Events). Those wishing to follow this week's games via live stats can also log on to www.goaztecs.com or www.usdtoreros.com (for Friday game vs. San Diego).
About Loyola Marymount
The Lions are 3-6 and have lost three-straight games.
OSU is 5-1 all-time against the Lions. The last meeting came in 2002 at LMU, with the Cowboys winning, 13-0.
Players To Watch:
• SS Kyle Spraker (.333, HR, 2 RBI, 5 SB)
• RHP Mike Kenney (2-0, 3.18 ERA in 2 starts)
About San Diego
The Toreros have dropped their last two games and are 5-5 on the season.
OSU is 0-1 all time against San Diego, dropping a 13-9 game at the Shreveport Classic in 2002.
Players To Watch:
• OF Josh Romanski (.343, 3 HR, 10 RBI)
• LHP Brian Matusz (1-1, 6.17 ERA)
About Santa Clara
The Broncos have won back-to-back games and are 7-1 entering the tourney.
OSU is 1-1 all time against Santa Clara, splitting a two-game set vs. the Broncos in Stillwater in April of 2001.
Players To Watch:
• OF Evan LeBlanc (.500, 2 HR, 11 RBI)
• RHP Alex Rivers (1-0, 2 saves, 0.00 ERA)
About San Diego State
The Aztecs snapped a three-game losing streak Tuesday and are 6-4 on the season.
OSU is 7-2 all time against San Diego State, with the last meeting coming in Stillwater in 2006 when the Cowboys won a pair of contests in March.
Players To Watch:
• INF Garett Green (.389, 2 HR, 11 RBI)
• RHP Addison Reed (1-0, 2 saves, 0.00 ERA)
Lots Of New Faces
The Cowboys' 2008 roster includes a large and talented group of newcomers, with a recruiting class that counts 18 players.
Eight of the newcomers are junior college transfers, while the class also includes six freshmen and four Division I transfers. Seven of OSU's recruits have been selected in the Major League Baseball Draft.
Among the more notable newcomers are transfers third baseman Matt Hague and catcher Luis Flores, both of whom have earned spots in the starting lineup.
Freshman Thomas Belza hit .556 as a senior at Cincinnati's Moeller High School to break Ken Griffey Jr.'s school record, while fellow frosh Rafael Thomas has blazing speed and was a high school All-American and MLB Draft pick. Another freshman, Dean Green, is seeing time as the Cowboys' designated hitter.
The group of junior college newcomers includes JUCO All-Americans Michael Dabbs, Neil Medchill and Tyrone Hambly.
Strong Start
Oklahoma State's 6-0 start to open the season was its best since 1995 when the Cowboys won their first 11 games.
After just over two weeks of play, OSU is tied for the best record in the Big 12 Conference at 7-1.
The Cowboys have outscored their three opponents 77-29 — an average of 9.7 to 3.6 — and outhit them by a 92-61 margin (11.5-to-7.6).
OSU leads the Big 12 in hitting with a .326 batting average and is tied for the league lead with a 2.96 team ERA.
Aluminum Assault
Over the last two seasons, the Cowboys have established themselves among the top hitting teams not only in the Big 12 Conference but nationally — and it appears that trend could continue.
OSU's lineup includes three of the Big 12's top five hitters, and the Cowboys lead the league in batting average (.326), home runs (9) and RBIs (72). They rank second in runs (77) and slugging percentage (.521)
In '06, OSU led the Big 12 in homers, triples and slugging percentage, and in 2007 the Cowboys led the Big 12 in six offensive categories and ranked second in two more.
