Oklahoma State University Athletics
Oklahoma State University
San Francisco
Cowboys Continue Winning Ways In Palm Springs
March 08, 2009 | Cowboy Baseball
PALM SPRINGS, Calif. - Oklahoma State won its third game at the Palm Springs Invitational Saturday with a 6-4 triumph over San Francisco.
The win was the fifth in a row for the 11th-ranked Cowboys, who improved to 9-1 on the season. USF dropped to 4-9.
Tyler Blandford turned in a strong performance on the mound, racking up a career-high 10 strikeouts in improving to 2-0. The 10 strikeouts bested his previous high of nine set last season against Western Illinois.
A junior right hander, Blandford worked six innings and allowed three runs on just three hits while also walking three.
Freshman Randy McCurry picked up his fifth save, halfway to the OSU's single-season record, as he struck out the side in the ninth to secure the win for the Cowboys.
Tom Belza and Neil Medchill each collected two RBIs to lead the offense, and seven of the nine Cowboys in the starting lineup had hits.
OSU got on the scoreboard in its first at bat. Dusty Harvard led off with a double as he hustled into second on a high chopper into right field. After a sacrifice bunt by Kevin David moved Harvard to third, Belza recorded an RBI groundout to give the Cowboys a 1-0 lead.
The Dons tied the score in the third on an RBI double by Robert Abel.
In the fourth, OSU would regain the lead. Belza led off the frame with a single, and Doug Kroll was hit by a pitch. After a groundout advanced the Cowboy runners to second and third, Belza scored on a balk by USF pitcher Matt Hiserman to make the score 2-1.
The Cowboys added to their lead in the decisive fifth inning as they plated four unearned runs. David brought home OSU's first run with an RBI single, and Belza followed with a sacrifice fly to provide the Pokes' fourth run.
OSU wasn't done. After Kroll extended his hitting streak to 10 games with a single, Medchill brought home two more runs with a triple off the wall in center field that gave the Cowboys a 6-1 lead.
USF rallied for a pair of runs in the seventh. A hit batsman and two walks loaded the bases with no outs, and the Dons then scored runs on a groundout and a sac fly to trim their deficit in half at 6-3.
The Dons' final run came in the ninth off McCurry, but OSU's closer struck out Abel, who represented the tying run, to end the game.
OSU concludes play in the Palm Springs Invitational Sunday against UC Riverside at 8 p.m. (CST).
