Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboys Close Out Homestand With Wednesday Doubleheader
March 17, 2009 | Cowboy Baseball
#11 Oklahoma State (13-4) vs. Western Illinois (1-7)
March 18 (DH) • 3 p.m. & 6:30 p.m.
Stillwater, Okla. • Allie P. Reynolds Stadium (4,000)
Oklahoma State
The Cowboys are 13-4 on the season, including three wins over ranked teams. Coach Frank Anderson's club is coming off a weekend in which it split a pair of games against both Cal State Fullerton and Rhode Island.
OSU wraps up a six-game homestand at Allie P. Reynolds Stadium Wednesday with a doubleheader against Western Illinois beginning at 3 p.m. OSU opens Big 12 Conference play Friday at Nebraska.
The Cowboys sport a .310 batting average on the season and rank among the Big 12 leaders in several offensive categories, while their pitching staff has a 5.72 ERA and leads the league with nine saves.
Western Illinois
Western Illinois is 1-7 on the season, its lone win coming last Friday with a 24-0 triumph against Medaille College.
The Leathernecks, who are members of The Summit League, are coached by Stan Hyman. Hyman is in his eighth season at WIU and sports a 175-245 career record.
In The Polls
Oklahoma State's highest ranking is No. 11 in the USA Today/ESPN coaches' poll. The Cowboys are ranked 12th by Collegiate Baseball and the NCBWA and 19th by Baseball America.
Western Illinois is unranked.
On The Air & The Web
All OSU baseball games are carried live by Stillwater Radio on KSPI 93.7 FM, 780 AM or KVRO 101.1 FM. 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 also log on to www.okstate.com (link is available under Audio/Video - Live Stats).
About Western Illinois
The Leathernecks are 1-7 on the season, with their losses coming at No. 16 Oklahoma, at No. 21 Arkansas and at Missouri.
OSU owns a 20-1 all-time record vs. WIU. Last season, the Cowboys won a pair of games against WIU, outscoring the Leathernecks by a 20-2 margin.
Players To Watch
• 1B Tyler Metcalf (.276, 2 HR, 12 RBI)
• 3B Drew Laidig (.286, HR, 6 RBI)
• LF Jared Wolf (.435, 5 RBI)
Probable Starting Pitchers
Game 1: LHP Austin Brough
0-2, 11.00 ERA in three starts
Game 2: TBA
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 727-152 (.827) all-time at Reynolds Stadium. The Cowboys have lost more than two consecutive games on their home turf only once.
The Cowboys are 6-2 at Reynolds Stadium in 2009.
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 212-112.
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.
Through the first month of the 2009 season, the Cowboys rank third in the Big 12 in batting average (.310), runs (144), hits (185), home runs (24), RBI (135), slugging percentage (.515) and on-base percentage (.410).
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 t he 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, and the '09 version has been solid as well.
Each of the Cowboys' weekend starters has three wins in 2009, and the pitching staff leads the Big 12 in saves (9) while ranking second in strikeouts (163).
Last season, the Cowboys led the Big 12 with a 3.98 team ERA and also topped the league with 21 saves. The staff returned 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
March 18 (DH) • 3 p.m. & 6:30 p.m.
Stillwater, Okla. • Allie P. Reynolds Stadium (4,000)
Oklahoma State
The Cowboys are 13-4 on the season, including three wins over ranked teams. Coach Frank Anderson's club is coming off a weekend in which it split a pair of games against both Cal State Fullerton and Rhode Island.
OSU wraps up a six-game homestand at Allie P. Reynolds Stadium Wednesday with a doubleheader against Western Illinois beginning at 3 p.m. OSU opens Big 12 Conference play Friday at Nebraska.
The Cowboys sport a .310 batting average on the season and rank among the Big 12 leaders in several offensive categories, while their pitching staff has a 5.72 ERA and leads the league with nine saves.
Western Illinois
Western Illinois is 1-7 on the season, its lone win coming last Friday with a 24-0 triumph against Medaille College.
The Leathernecks, who are members of The Summit League, are coached by Stan Hyman. Hyman is in his eighth season at WIU and sports a 175-245 career record.
In The Polls
Oklahoma State's highest ranking is No. 11 in the USA Today/ESPN coaches' poll. The Cowboys are ranked 12th by Collegiate Baseball and the NCBWA and 19th by Baseball America.
Western Illinois is unranked.
On The Air & The Web
All OSU baseball games are carried live by Stillwater Radio on KSPI 93.7 FM, 780 AM or KVRO 101.1 FM. 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 also log on to www.okstate.com (link is available under Audio/Video - Live Stats).
About Western Illinois
The Leathernecks are 1-7 on the season, with their losses coming at No. 16 Oklahoma, at No. 21 Arkansas and at Missouri.
OSU owns a 20-1 all-time record vs. WIU. Last season, the Cowboys won a pair of games against WIU, outscoring the Leathernecks by a 20-2 margin.
Players To Watch
• 1B Tyler Metcalf (.276, 2 HR, 12 RBI)
• 3B Drew Laidig (.286, HR, 6 RBI)
• LF Jared Wolf (.435, 5 RBI)
Probable Starting Pitchers
Game 1: LHP Austin Brough
0-2, 11.00 ERA in three starts
Game 2: TBA
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 727-152 (.827) all-time at Reynolds Stadium. The Cowboys have lost more than two consecutive games on their home turf only once.
The Cowboys are 6-2 at Reynolds Stadium in 2009.
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 212-112.
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.
Through the first month of the 2009 season, the Cowboys rank third in the Big 12 in batting average (.310), runs (144), hits (185), home runs (24), RBI (135), slugging percentage (.515) and on-base percentage (.410).
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 t he 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, and the '09 version has been solid as well.
Each of the Cowboys' weekend starters has three wins in 2009, and the pitching staff leads the Big 12 in saves (9) while ranking second in strikeouts (163).
Last season, the Cowboys led the Big 12 with a 3.98 team ERA and also topped the league with 21 saves. The staff returned 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
Friday, June 05
Friday, May 29
Wednesday, May 27
Monday, May 18
