Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboys Head To East Carolina For Keith LeClair Classic
February 24, 2009 | Cowboy Baseball
#11 Oklahoma State at East Carolina/Keith LeClair Classic
Feb. 26-March 1 • Thur. vs. #23 East Carolina (4 p.m.)
Fri. vs. College of Charleston (Noon)
Sat. vs. #23 East Carolina (2 p.m.)
Sun. vs. St. John's (9 a.m.)
Greenville, N.C. • Clark-LeClair Stadium (5,000)
Oklahoma State
The Cowboys are coming off a 4-0 season-opening weekend in which they won a pair of games against BYU and Manhattan in Stillwater. OSU hit .313 in the four wins and outscored its opponents by a 46-26 margin. In their last two games, the Cowboys allowed just four earned runs.
Up next, the Cowboys travel to Greenville, N.C., for a Thursday game against East Carolina and an appearance in this weekend's Keith LeClair Classic hosted by ECU.
East Carolina/Keith LeClair Classic
Joining OSU in the LeClair Classic field are host East Carolina (3-0), St. John's (2-1) and College of Charleston (3-0). Both ECU and SJU were NCAA Regional teams in 2008, while CofC just missed the tournament with a 39-20 record.
In The Polls
Oklahoma State's highest ranking is No. 11 by Collegiate Baseball. The Cowboys are also ranked 12th by the NCBWA, 13th in the USA Today/ESPN coaches' poll and 25th by Baseball America.
East Carolina is the only team in the LeClair Classic that is ranked. The Pirates are 23rd in the NCBWA poll.
On The Air & The Web
All OSU baseball games are carried live by Stillwater Radio on KSPI 93.7 FM and/or 780 AM. Rex Holt, who is in his 27th 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 www.okstate.com (link is available under Audio/Video - Live Events). Those wishing to follow OSU's games via live stats can log on to www.ecupirates.cstv.com (click on the Keith LeClair Classic link for weekend games).
About East Carolina
The Pirates are 3-0 on the season. OSU has never faced ECU on the diamond.
Players To Watch
• LF Stephen Batts (.643, 3 RBI, 3-3 SB)
• DH Kyle Roller (.500, HR, 6 RBI)
Probable Starting Pitchers vs. OSU
Thursday: RHP Sthil Sowers
1-0, 0.00 ERA, 1.2 IP
Saturday: RHP Chris Heston
1-0, 1.29 ERA, 7.0 IP, 6 K
About College of Charleston
The Cougars were 3-0 on the season-opening weekend and played at UNC-Wilmington on Tuesday. OSU has never faced CofC in baseball.
Players To Watch
• 1B Joash Brodin (.545, 2 HR, 7 RBI)
• RF Matt Mansilla (.500, 2 HR, 5 RBI)
Probable Starting Pitcher vs. OSU
TBA
About St. John's
The Red Storm is 2-1 on the season. OSU is 2-0 all-time against SJU.
Players To Watch
• 3B Greg Hopkins (.538, 2 RBI)
• 1B Tim Morris (.462, 6 RBI)
Probable Starting Pitcher vs. OSU
LHP Nick Luisi
0-1, 4.50 ERA, 4.0 IP, 4 BB, 5 K
Home Sweet Home
Allie P. Reynolds Stadium has been home to Oklahoma State baseball since 1981, and in those 28-plus seasons the Cowboys have been nearly unbeatable on their home field.
OSU was 28-6 at home last season and is 725-150 (.829) all-time at Reynolds Stadium. The Cowboys have lost more than two consecutive games on their home turf only once.
200 Club
With the Cowboys' season-opening win over BYU, Frank Anderson became the fifth head coach in OSU history to reach 200 career victories. He is the third-fastest coach to reach the milestone in Stillwater behind Gary Ward and Tom Holliday.
Anderson is in his sixth season at OSU and owns a career record of 203-108.
Aluminum Assault
Over the last several seasons, OSU has established itself among the top hitting teams not only in the Big 12 Conference but on a national scale.
Last season, OSU led the Big 12 in three offensive categories — batting average (.326), slugging percentage (.531) and home runs (89). The Cowboys finished second in the league in runs, hits, triples and RBIs.
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.
Kings Of The Hill
OSU also had one of the top pitching staffs in college baseball in 2008.
The Cowboys led the Big 12 with a 3.98 team ERA and also topped the league with 21 saves. The staff returns seven pitchers who made at least eight appearances and worked 15 or more innings in '08.
OSU's 3.98 ERA in '08 marked the first time since 2005 the Cowboys' finished the season with a team ERA under 4.00. The '05 and '08 seasons are the only two since 1974 that OSU has had an ERA of less than 4.00.
Awards Watch
Several Cowboys have been named to preseason awards lists by various publications, including:
• Baseball America Preseason All-America
Andrew Oliver (second team)
• Louisville Slugger Preseason All-America
Andrew Oliver (second team)
Tyler Lyons (third team)
• Rivals.com Preseason All-America
Andrew Oliver
• Golden Spikes Award Watch List
Tyler Lyons, Andrew Oliver
• Wallace Award Watch List
Tom Belza, Tyler Lyons, Andrew Oliver, Neil Medchill
