Oklahoma State University Athletics
Oklahoma State University
Arkansas
Cowboys Host Hogs Tuesday Night At Allie P.
March 28, 2016 | Cowboy Baseball
#16 Oklahoma State (17-7)
vs. #15 Arkansas (18-6)
Allie P. Reynolds Stadium (4,000)
Stillwater, Okla.
Tues., March 29: 6 p.m.
Oklahoma StateÂ
    Oklahoma State returns home to Allie P. Reynolds Stadium Tuesday for a showdown of nationally ranked teams as the No. 16 Cowboys host 15th-ranked Arkansas at 6 p.m. Winners of four in a row, OSU is 17-7 on the season, which includes three wins over a ranked opponent. Following the midweek test, the Cowboys return to Big 12 Conference action with a weekend series at West Virginia. OSU is atop the Big 12 standings following a sweep of Kansas State to open league play last week in Manhattan.
    Led by Donnie Walton and his .330 batting average, the Cowboys are hitting a collective .246 while the pitching staff ranks fifth nationally with a Big 12-best 2.20 ERAÂ
    The Cowboys are coming off a 38-20 season in which they made their third consecutive NCAA Regional appearance, and expectations are again high. OSU was ranked in the top 10 nationally in four different preseason polls and returns seven starters from 2015, including All-Big 12 Conference performers Donnie Walton, Ryan Sluder and Corey Hassel.
    The 2016 season will mark OSU's fourth under Holliday, who compiled a 127-57 record in his first three seasons at his alma mater.Â
About The Razorbacks
    Arkansas is 18-6 on the season, which includes an 0-3 mark in road games, and the Razorbacks are coming off a three-game sweep of Auburn last weekend. Led by sophomore Carson Shaddy (.388, 5 HR, 23 RBI), the Hogs are hitting .289 as a team, while the pitching staff sports a collective 3.88 ERA.
    Expected to start on the mound for Arkansas is freshman right-hander Blaine Knight, who is 2-0 with a 4.32 ERA in five appearances (three starts) this season.
    OSU is 44-20 all time against Arkansas. The two teams last squared off at the 2015 NCAA Stillwater Regional, with Arkansas handing the Cowboys a 7-5 loss at Reynolds Stadium.
Watch, Listen, Follow
    Tuesday's game will be televised live on FOX Sports Plus, with Dave Hunziker and Cowboy Baseball Hall of Famer Tom Holliday on the call.
    All OSU baseball games are carried live by Stillwater Radio and air on KSPI 93.7 FM or 780 AM. Rex Holt, who is in his 34th season on the air with Cowboy baseball, will call the action, with Matt "Chief" Davis providing color commentary. Radio broadcasts are also available online at okstate.com/watch.
   Live stats for all games can also be found at okstate.com, with links available under the Schedule tab on the baseball home page. Additionally, fans can follow the official OSU Baseball Twitter account, @OSUBaseball, for in-game updates.
In The Polls
    OSU is ranked as high as No. 16 in this week's national polls, earning that spot from Baseball America and Perfect Game. The Cowboys are also ranked 18th by the NCBWA, 20th in the USA Today coaches poll and 21st byÂ
D1Baseball.com.
    OSU has been ranked in at least one national poll for 58 consecutive weeks dating back to 2013, when the Cowboys were in the polls for the final 14 weeks of the season. During that time, they have spent 16 weeks in the Top 10 and been ranked as high as No. 3 (by the NCBWA in 2014). They finished the '14 season ranked 10th in each of the final polls, marking the 19th time in program history OSU ended the season in the top 10 in the national polls.
Home Sweet Home
    Allie P. Reynolds Stadium has been home to Oklahoma State baseball since April 4, 1981, and in those 35 seasons, the Cowboys have been nearly unbeatable on their home field.Â
    OSU is 889-210 (.809) all time at Reynolds Stadium and has lost more than two consecutive games on its home turf only five times (six in a row in 2007; three straight in 2010, 2012, 2013 and 2014).
    The Cowboys are 9-2 on their home field in 2016.
On The Road Again and Again and Again and Again and Again and Again and Again and...
    As has become commonplace, OSU opened Big 12 Conference play on the road in 2016.
    The Cowboys have begun league play at Allie P. Reynolds Stadium only twice since 2003 (in 2005 and 2013), and this season OSU opened at Kansas State.
    The trend will continue in the near future as the conference office has set schedules for 2017 and 2018, and in each of those seasons, OSU opens Big 12 action away from Stillwater.
    Since 2004 and spanning through 2018, OSU will have opened conference play on the road 13 times and only two times at home. Since Big 12 baseball began play in 1997, the Cowboys will have opened league play on the road 16 times and just six times in Stillwater.
Close Calls
    OSU is 34-18 in one-run games since 2013, including an 8-5 mark this season (eight in row after losing first five, including four walk-off defeats). Under head coach Josh Holliday (2013-pres.), 36 of the Cowboys' 64 losses have come by two runs or less. In 2015, 14 of OSU's 20 losses were by two runs or less.Â
Dealing
    OSU ranks fifth nationally with a 2.20 team ERA, and four Cowboys rank in the top 10 in the Big 12 in ERA – Tyler Buffett (second at 1.27), Thomas Hatch (fourth at 1.70), Jensen Elliott (seventh at 2.05) and Trey Cobb (eighth at 2.15).
    OSU's 208 strikeouts, .219 opponent batting average and nine saves also lead the conference.
Back In The Saddle
    Donnie Walton spurned professional baseball last summer to return for his senior season with the Cowboys in 2016.
    Walton has established himself as one of the Big 12's elite players since arriving on campus in 2013. In 184 career games, the switch hitter owns a .309 batting average to go along with nine home runs, 108 RBIs, 37 doubles and an OSU-record 54 sacrifice bunts (which ranks ninth on the NCAA's all-time list).
    Primarily a shortstop throughout his career, Walton is one of just nine players in OSU history to earn All-Big 12 First Team accolades twice (in 2014 & 2015), with no Cowboy ever achieving that status three times.
    A 23rd-round draft pick of the Milwaukee Brewers last June, Walton chose not to sign a pro contract and instead starred in the prestigious Cape Cod Baseball League. He was named the CCBL All-Star Game MVP and then earned the Star of Stars Award as the most valuable player of the CCBL playoffs after leading the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox to the league championship.
   Walton is one of 50 players on USA Baseball's 2016 Golden Spikes Award Preseason Watch List. The award is given to the top player in amateur baseball.
Hometown Hero
    Corey Hassel played in 86 games and hit just .208 in his first two seasons at OSU, but the Stillwater native had a breakout junior campaign for his hometown Cowboys in 2015.
    Used mostly as a late-game defensive replacement and pinch runner in 2013 and 2014, Hassel became a regular starter in the outfield as a junior and led the Cowboys with a .312 batting average. He also topped OSU in multi-hit games (18) and multi-RBI efforts (11) en route to All-Big 12 Second Team honors. In conference play, Hassel hit .344 with two home runs and 18 RBIs and led OSU in numerous offensive categories, including RBIs, hits (31) and doubles (6).
    A starter in all 24 games this season, Hassel is hitting .299 to go along with a .417 on-base percentage, seven stolen bases and a team-high 10 doubles.
The Candyman Can
    Tyler Buffett was a reliable performer on the mound in his first two seasons in Stillwater but he has taken on a starring role in 2016.
    In a team-high 14 appearances, 13 of those in relief, the junior right-hander is 4-1 with three saves and a 1.27 ERA, with the four wins and three saves already marking career highs. He leads the Big 12 with a .167 opponent batting average and ranks second in wins, saves, and ERA. He's also among the conference leaders in strikeouts (35) and innings pitched (35.1).
    Buffett has twice been named the Big 12 Pitcher of the Week, earning that distinction on March 7 and March 28.
Deep Threat
    Dustin Williams tied for the OSU lead with six home runs last season — and in 15 games this year, he'd already equaled his long ball total of a year ago.
    The Cowboys' junior first baseman currently leads the Big 12 with seven homers while ranking fourth in RBIs (22) and total bases (47).
    The left-handed hitting Williams was named the Big 12 Player of the Week on March 14 following a three-game stretch that saw him go 5-for-11 (.455) at the plate with four home runs, seven RBIs, 17 total bases and a 1.545 slugging percentage. He homered in all three games — including twice in one of them — and also drove in multiple runs in each contest.
Workhorse
    Trey Cobb became the Cowboys' go-to pitcher out of the bullpen in 2015. His team-high 31 appearances marked the third most in a single season in OSU history, and the right-hander compiled a 5-2 record and two saves to go along with a 2.61 ERA. In 58.2 innings — all in relief — Cobb racked up 53 strikeouts, and opponents hit just .221 against him as he earned honorable mention All-Big 12 accolades.
    Cobb has made 10 appearances this season, four of those as a starter, and is 3-3 with two saves and a 2.15 ERA. He has also recorded 35 strikeouts in 29.1 innings, including 13 in six innings of work against 18th-ranked Michigan.Â
Hit Man
    Garrett Benge put up video game numbers at the junior college level last season, and he's proving to be a valuable hitter in his first season in an OSU uniform.
    As a freshman at Cowley County CC, Benge was the 2015 NJCAA Division I Player of the Year after hitting .502 with 19 home runs, 97 RBIs, 26 doubles and four triples. In 59 games, he collected 103 hits and a .946 slugging percentage.
    Now manning the hot corner in Stillwater, Benge is has swung a consistent bat for the Cowboys as he ranks second on the club in batting average (.321), doubles (7) and RBIs (17).
