Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboys In Search Of Third-Straight Series Win
April 07, 2011 | Cowboy Baseball
April 7, 2011
OSU Game Notes vs. Missouri in PDF Format
#23 Oklahoma State (21-8, 5-4)
vs. Missouri (13-16, 1-4)
. . .
April 8-10 • Stillwater, Okla.
Allie P. Reynolds Stadium (4,000)
Fri. - 6:30 p.m./Sat. - 2 p.m./Sun. - 1 p.m.
Oklahoma State
Oklahoma State will be looking for its third-straight Big 12 Conference series win this weekend at Allie P. Reynolds Stadium when the Cowboys host Missouri. OSU is fourth in the conference standings with a 5-4 mark and brings a 21-8 overall record and No. 23 national ranking into the series. The Cowboys are coming off back-to-back series wins against No. 4 Texas and Nebraska.
OSU ranks second in the Big 12 in batting average (.307) and third in ERA (2.51). Dane Phillips leads the offense with a .425 batting average, while Brad Propst has compiled a team-high five wins on the mound.
Head coach Frank Anderson is in his eighth season at the helm of the Cowboys and has led the club to 283 wins and five NCAA Tournament appearances in his career. During a four-year span from 2006-09, OSU was the only Big 12 Conference team to advance to an NCAA Regional championship round each season.
About Missouri
Missouri is 13-16 overall and in 10th place in the Big 12 standings with a 1-4 mark. The Tigers, who have lost four-straight games, sport a .256 team batting average and a 4.74 ERA.
Expected to start on the mound for the Tigers this weekend are:
Fri.: Rob Zastryzny, Fr., LHP (2-2, 3.21)
Sat.: Matt Stites, Jr., RHP (1-2, 4.36)
Sun.: Zack Hardoin, Sr., LHP (2-4, 5.62)
OSU is 126-65 all time against Mizzou and won 2-of-3 games against the Tigers in Columbia last season.
Watch, Listen, Follow
All OSU baseball games are carried live by Stillwater Radio and will air on KSPI 93.7 FM. Rex Holt, who is in his 29th season with Cowboy baseball (16th as the play-by-play voice), will call the action, with Matt "Chief" Davis providing color commentary.
Radio broadcasts and live stats can also be accessed via www.okstate.com (links are available under Schedule).
Additionally, all OSU home games are available to watch online via paid subscription at okstate.tv.
Home Sweet Home
Allie P. Reynolds Stadium has been home to Oklahoma State baseball since 1981, and in those 31 seasons the Cowboys have been nearly unbeatable on their home field.
OSU is 779-171 (.820) all-time at Reynolds Stadium and has lost more than two consecutive games on their home turf only twice (six in a row in May 2007; three straight in 2010).
The Cowboys are 16-3 at home in 2011.
300 Club
OSU head coach Frank Anderson is on the verge of becoming the third coach in Cowboy history to reach 300 wins. Gary Ward (953 wins) and Toby Greene (318) are the only two previous OSU coaches to reach that mark.
Anderson is in his eighth season at OSU and owns a career record of 283-166, which includes a 101-94 Big 12 mark. He ranks third on OSU's all-time coaching wins list.
Aluminum Assault
Over the last several seasons, OSU has established itself among the top hitting teams in the Big 12 Conference, and that trend is continuing this season.
Along with a .307 batting average that ranks second in the league, the Cowboys lead the conference with 72 doubles and 18 triples and hold down the second spot in hits (313) and slugging percentage (.472).
The 2010 club ranked second in the league with a .307 batting average and finished third in doubles (128) and sacrifice flies (31). Five of the Cowboy regulars in the starting lineup hit .316 or better.
In 2009, the Cowboys ranked among the Big 12's best in batting average (third at .300), triples (second with 21), home runs (third with 81) and slugging percentage (second at .503).
OSU led the Big 12 in three offensive categories in 2008 -- 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.
Strong Armed
OSU's pitching staff has allowed just 74 earned runs in 265.0 innings, which translates to a 2.51 team ERA, and the Cowboys are second in the league with six shutouts.
Ten different Cowboy hurlers have notched wins, with five of those collecting at least two wins.
Want more? OSU's opponents are hitting just .238, and of the 12 Cowboys with at least three appearances, 10 of them have an ERA of 3.40 or less.
And while we're at it, go ahead and note that OSU's staff has issued just 63 walks, the second fewest in the Big 12.
Among the leaders on the pitching staff this season are:
• Brad Propst - A converted infielder, Propst entered this season with three wins and three saves in 30 career appearances. The senior right-hander has started seven games in 2011 and is 5-1 with a 1.29 ERA.
• Andrew Heaney - A year ago, this lefty became the first freshman to lead OSU in wins since 2001 as he was 5-4 with a save in 16 outings (10 starts). As a sophomore, he's been even better, with three wins, a 3.40 ERA and 34 strikeouts in 42.1 innings.
• Mike Strong - A two-time MLB Draft pick, Strong is 3-0 with a 2.64 ERA in seven games this season and has 39 Ks in 30.2 IP. In his last five outings, the lefty has racked up 34 strikeouts.
• Chris Marlowe - Marlowe leads the Cowboys with 12 appearances, and this JUCO transfer has been nearly unhittable. He has a team-high 43 strikeouts in only 26.2 innings and earned his first-career win by striking out 10 in 4.2 innings of relief work vs. New Mexico, a performance that earned him Big 12 Co-Newcomer of the Week honors.
• Blake Barnes - A junior right-hander Barnes has three wins, all in relief, and a 1.61 ERA. Opponents are hitting just .198 against him, and he has 15 Ks in 22.1 innings of work.
• Gabe Weidenaar - A junior who spends most of his time in center field, Weidenaar has also been a star on the mound as he's recorded two saves and has yet to allow a run in five appearances. He has nine strikeouts in 11.1 IP and opponents are hitting only .158 off him.
The Thief Can Hit
Senior second baseman Davis Duren led the Big 12 with 29 stolen bases as a junior in 2010. That total ranked 40th nationally and was the most by a Cowboy since 1994.
Against Oklahoma Christian, Duren swiped four bags, the most by a Cowboy since 2004 and one shy of OSU's single-game record.
Duren was 29-of-34 on stolen base attempts last season and is 3-of-6 this season to bring his career totals to 46-of-55.
Through nine games in 2011, Duren leads the Cowboys with a .385 batting average and nine RBIs in league play. He was named Big 12 Player of the Week on April 4 after hitting .615 (8-for-13) with two home runs and seven RBIs in the Nebraska series.
Senior Sensation
Brad Propst is having a memorable final season in an OSU uniform.
The senior right-hander has established himself as the ace of the Cowboys' staff with a 5-1 record and a 1.29 ERA in seven starts.
Propst has pitched at least six innings in six of his seven starts, and he ranks fifth in the Big 12 with 48.2 innings pitched.
On March 28, Propst was named Big 12 Pitcher of Week after tossing a complete game against No. 4 Texas in which he allowed just one run on seven hits and struck out six.
Propst is 3-0 with a 0.75 ERA in his three Big 12 starts, and he has allowed just two runs in 24 IP.
It's Been Awhile
Two weeks ago, OSU became the first team to win a Big 12 series against Texas since 2009, snapping the Longhorns' streak of 11-straight conference series wins.
Last weekend, the Cowboys won a series against Nebraska in Lincoln for the first time since 1997.
Based in large part on those performances, OSU entered the national rankings this week for the first time since the end of 2009 season. The Cowboys are ranked 23rd by Baseball America and are 30th in the NCBWA poll.
ReKord Setters
Mike Strong and Chris Marlowe set an OSU record in the series opener against Texas as the duo combined for 21 strikeouts, the most ever by the Cowboys in a single game and one shy of the Big 12 Conference record.
Strong and Marlowe broke the record set just last season by Kevin Chambers and Brian Denneny, who combined for 20 strikeouts against Alabama A&M.
In the record-setting performance, Strong was the starter and struck out nine in 8.1 innings before Marlowe came out of the bullpen and racked up 12 Ks in 6.2 innings.
Top 10
OSU entered the week ranked among the top 10 in the NCAA in several team categories, including:
• Doubles - 6th with 70
• Triples - 2nd with 18
• Walks Allowed Per 9 Inn. - 4th at 2.07
• Double Plays - 4th at 37
More Top 10
The Cowboys also had several individuals among the top 10 in the national statistics entering last week's games, including:
• Hits - Dane Phillips 6th with 48
• Triples - Dane Phillips 1st with 7
• Sacrifice flies - Zach Johnson 4th with 5
Short Hops
• The Cowboys are hitting .317 (103-for-325) with runners in scoring position.
• Nine different position players have made their OSU debuts this season while 10 different pitchers have toed the pitching rubber for the first time as Cowboys.
• OSU has turned 39 double plays this season, the most in the Big 12.
• Chris Marlowe is averaging 14.51 strikeouts per nine innings, while Mike Strong's strikeouts per nine innings average stands at 11.45.
