Oklahoma State University Athletics
2016 Oklahoma State Cowboy Baseball Season Superlatives
July 08, 2016 | Cowboy Baseball
• The Cowboys earned an NCAA Tournament bid for the fourth consecutive year.
• OSU's NCAA Regional berth was the 42nd in the program's history, which ranks fourth all time.
• The Cowboys advanced to the NCAA Regional finals for the third time in the last four seasons.
• The Cowboys advanced to an NCAA Super Regional for the second time in the last three years. It was OSU's fourth Super Regional in school history.
• OSU's College World Series berth was the 20th in program history, a total that ranks sixth all time in NCAA history.
• Josh Holliday became one of only 17 people in NCAA history to reach the College World Series as both a player and head coach after playing for OSU CWS teams in 1996 and 1999.
• Josh and Tom Holliday are the first father-son duo to lead teams to the College World Series. Tom led the Cowboys to Omaha in 1999.
• OSU opened the College World Series with consecutive 1-0 wins, marking the first time in history a team recorded back-to-back 1-0 shutouts at the CWS.
• The Cowboys went 7-0 in their first seven NCAA Tournament games and never trailed in any of those contests.
• OSU turned in a 1.58 ERA in its nine NCAA Tournament games, the lowest of any team in the tourney. The Cowboys allowed only 14 earned runs in 80 innings and also tossed a tournament-best three shutouts.
• OSU finished as high as No. 4 in the final national polls, its highest final ranking since 1993 and the 20th time in program history the Cowboys have been ranked in the top 10 at the end of the season. OSU finished ranked No. 4 in five different polls — Collegiate Baseball, Baseball America, USA Today (coaches poll), the NCBWA and Perfect Game — and came in at No. 5 in the D1Baseball.com poll.
• The Cowboys were ranked in at least one national poll every week of the 2016 season, running their streak of consecutive weeks in the national rankings to 70 dating back to 2013.
• In four seasons under head coach Josh Holliday, OSU has twice ended the season ranked in the top 10 nationally. Along with this year's No. 4 ranking, the Cowboys were ranked 10th in the final polls in 2014.
• OSU finished second in the Big 12 Conference regular season standings, marking the fourth consecutive year the Cowboys finished in the top two of the league.
• OSU was 13-11 against ranked teams.
• For the first time in program history, OSU swept three Big 12 road series in a single season (Texas, Kansas State and Baylor). The Cowboys finished 10-2 in conference road games.
• Pitcher Thomas Hatch became the 24th player in OSU history to earn first-team All-America honors, getting that distinction from D1Baseball.com.
• Hatch was also named to four other All-America teams, earning second-team accolades from ABCA/Rawlings and Perfect Game and third-team honors from Louisville Slugger/Collegiate Baseball and Baseball America.
• Shortstop Donnie Walton was named a third-team All-American by Baseball America.
• Pitcher Jensen Elliott garnered a pair of Freshman All-American honors, earning a spot of the Louisville Slugger/Collegiate Baseball team as well as a berth on the Baseball America second team.
• Three Cowboys earned ABCA/Rawlings All-Midwest Region status, with Thomas Hatch and J.R. Davis each first-team selections and Donnie Walton making the second team.
• Thomas Hatch was a finalist for the Gregg Olson Award, honoring the breakout player of the year.
• Hatch was also on the College Baseball Hall of Fame National Pitcher of the Year Watch List.
• Donnie Walton was on the Golden Spikes Award Watch List and the Brooks Wallace Award Watch List.
• Tyler Buffett was named to the College Baseball Hall of Fame National Pitcher of the Year Watch List and the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Watch List.
• Head coach Josh Holliday was named the ABCA/Diamond Midwest Regional Coach of the Year.
• OSU sophomore Thomas Hatch became OSU's third Big 12 Conference Pitcher of the Year, joining Michael Freeman (2015) and Andrew Heaney (2012) in earning that distinction.
• OSU had nine players garner All-Big 12 accolades in 2016. Named to the All-Big 12 First Team were pitchers Thomas Hatch and Tyler Buffett and infielders Donnie Walton and J.R Davis. Infielder Garrett Benge earned second-team honors, while infielder Dustin Williams, outfielder Corey Hassel and pitchers Trey Cobb and Jensen Elliott were named honorable mention all-conference performers.
• Jensen Elliott was named to the Big 12 All-Freshman Team.
• Donnie Walton became the first player in OSU history to be named All-Big 12 First Team three times in a career. He was a first-team pick from 2014-16 after earning honorable mention status in 2013.
• OSU set a Big 12 record by having 12 conference weekly award winners in 2016. The Cowboys also set a record with seven pitcher of the week honorees.
• Six Cowboys were named to the NCAA Clemson Regional All-Tournament Team: Corey Hassel (Most Valuable Player), J.R. Davis, Jon Littell, Conor Costello, Thomas Hatch and Jensen Elliott.
• OSU finished third in the NCAA by turning 75 double plays, and the Cowboys' .978 fielding percentage led the Big 12 and ranked 18th nationally. The .978 fielding percentage was the second highest in school history.
• The Cowboys ranked fourth in the NCAA with 10 shutouts. The 10 shutouts was the second most in a single season in program history.
• OSU's pitching staff racked up 574 strikeouts, the second-highest single-season total in program history.
• The Cowboys also posted the second-most saves in school history with 21.
• Corey Hassel's 21 sacrifice bunts were the second most in a season in OSU history and ranked third in the NCAA in 2016.
• Thomas Hatch turned in a streak of 38 2/3 consecutive innings in which he did not allow an earned run. During that stretch, he recorded 33-straight scoreless frames.
• Hatch also recorded a streak of 23 1/3 scoreless innings in the NCAA Tournament, tossing a shutout against Nebraska in the Regional, working seven scoreless frames vs. South Carolina in the Super Regional and then throwing a shutout against UC Santa Barbara in the opening game of the College World Series.
• Thomas Hatch and Trey Cobb became the 13th and 14th pitchers in OSU history to record 100 strikeouts in a season. Hatch finished with 112, while Cobb recorded 100.
• Thomas Hatch's four shutouts tied for the second most in a season in OSU history and is also tied for second on the Cowboys' career shutouts list.
• Thomas Hatch worked 130 1/3 innings, the fifth most in a single season in program history.
• Tyler Buffett set an OSU single-season record with 37 appearances, a total that led the Big 12 and ranked fifth nationally.
• Buffett ranked second in the Big 12 in saves (9) and opponent batting average (.229) and third in wins (9).
• A pair of OSU pitchers ranked in the top 10 in the NCAA in games started. Thomas Hatch was second with 19, while Jensen Elliott ranked 10th with 17.
• OSU's pitching staff led the Big 12 in opponent batting average (.240), strikeouts (574), complete games (5), shutouts (10) and saves (21). The Cowboys also ranked second in the league with a 3.21 ERA.
• Thomas Hatch led the Big 12 with a 2.14 ERA, 112 strikeouts, 19 starts, four complete games and 130 1/3 innings pitched.
• Dustin Williams led the Big 12 with 14 home runs.
• J.R. Davis became only the third OSU player to hit for the cycle during the Big 12 Conference era (since 1997) and is one of just 18 Big 12 players to ever achieve the feat. Davis' cycle came against West Virginia on April 3.
• OSU had three pitchers rank in the top 10 in the Big 12 in ERA — Thomas Hatch (1st at 2.14), Tyler Buffett (4th at 2.81) and Trey Cobb (6th at 3.09).
• A pair of Cowboys ranked in the top 10 in the Big 12 in batting average — J.R. Davis (5th at .347) and Donnie Walton (9th at .337).
• Trey Cobb recorded four saves in the NCAA Tournament, which tied for the most of any pitcher in the tourney.
• Donnie Walton finished his career among the top 10 on OSU's all-time list in a number of categories, including:
• OSU tied a program record by having 11 players selected in the 2016 Major League Baseball Draft, tying the 2007 team for the most Cowboy draft picks.
• OSU's 11 Major League Baseball Draft picks were the third most of any Division I program in 2016.
• OSU had a program-record 15 players named Academic All-Big 12, including a record nine of those earning first-team accolades. Named to the first team were seniors Conor Costello, Alex Hackerott and Donnie Walton, juniors Michael Mertz, Remey Reed and Dustin Williams and sophomores Thomas Hatch, Garrett McCain and Andrew Rosa. Earning second-team honors were senior David Petrino, juniors Tyler Buffett and Ryan Sluder, sophomores Jacob Chappell and Jon Littell and redshirt freshman Carson Teel.
• Conor Costello became one of only four OSU student-athletes to be named to the Academic All-Big 12 First Team three times in a career, joining Josh Holliday, Gage Green and Jon Perrin.
• The Cowboys had 31 players earn a 3.0 or higher grade point average during the spring of 2016, a record for the program.
• OSU also turned in a record 3.26 team GPA in the spring.
• Conor Costello was a candidate for the Senior CLASS Award.
• OSU's NCAA Regional berth was the 42nd in the program's history, which ranks fourth all time.
• The Cowboys advanced to the NCAA Regional finals for the third time in the last four seasons.
• The Cowboys advanced to an NCAA Super Regional for the second time in the last three years. It was OSU's fourth Super Regional in school history.
• OSU's College World Series berth was the 20th in program history, a total that ranks sixth all time in NCAA history.
• Josh Holliday became one of only 17 people in NCAA history to reach the College World Series as both a player and head coach after playing for OSU CWS teams in 1996 and 1999.
• Josh and Tom Holliday are the first father-son duo to lead teams to the College World Series. Tom led the Cowboys to Omaha in 1999.
• OSU opened the College World Series with consecutive 1-0 wins, marking the first time in history a team recorded back-to-back 1-0 shutouts at the CWS.
• The Cowboys went 7-0 in their first seven NCAA Tournament games and never trailed in any of those contests.
• OSU turned in a 1.58 ERA in its nine NCAA Tournament games, the lowest of any team in the tourney. The Cowboys allowed only 14 earned runs in 80 innings and also tossed a tournament-best three shutouts.
• OSU finished as high as No. 4 in the final national polls, its highest final ranking since 1993 and the 20th time in program history the Cowboys have been ranked in the top 10 at the end of the season. OSU finished ranked No. 4 in five different polls — Collegiate Baseball, Baseball America, USA Today (coaches poll), the NCBWA and Perfect Game — and came in at No. 5 in the D1Baseball.com poll.
• The Cowboys were ranked in at least one national poll every week of the 2016 season, running their streak of consecutive weeks in the national rankings to 70 dating back to 2013.
• In four seasons under head coach Josh Holliday, OSU has twice ended the season ranked in the top 10 nationally. Along with this year's No. 4 ranking, the Cowboys were ranked 10th in the final polls in 2014.
• OSU finished second in the Big 12 Conference regular season standings, marking the fourth consecutive year the Cowboys finished in the top two of the league.
• OSU was 13-11 against ranked teams.
• For the first time in program history, OSU swept three Big 12 road series in a single season (Texas, Kansas State and Baylor). The Cowboys finished 10-2 in conference road games.
• Pitcher Thomas Hatch became the 24th player in OSU history to earn first-team All-America honors, getting that distinction from D1Baseball.com.
• Hatch was also named to four other All-America teams, earning second-team accolades from ABCA/Rawlings and Perfect Game and third-team honors from Louisville Slugger/Collegiate Baseball and Baseball America.
• Shortstop Donnie Walton was named a third-team All-American by Baseball America.
• Pitcher Jensen Elliott garnered a pair of Freshman All-American honors, earning a spot of the Louisville Slugger/Collegiate Baseball team as well as a berth on the Baseball America second team.
• Three Cowboys earned ABCA/Rawlings All-Midwest Region status, with Thomas Hatch and J.R. Davis each first-team selections and Donnie Walton making the second team.
• Thomas Hatch was a finalist for the Gregg Olson Award, honoring the breakout player of the year.
• Hatch was also on the College Baseball Hall of Fame National Pitcher of the Year Watch List.
• Donnie Walton was on the Golden Spikes Award Watch List and the Brooks Wallace Award Watch List.
• Tyler Buffett was named to the College Baseball Hall of Fame National Pitcher of the Year Watch List and the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Watch List.
• Head coach Josh Holliday was named the ABCA/Diamond Midwest Regional Coach of the Year.
• OSU sophomore Thomas Hatch became OSU's third Big 12 Conference Pitcher of the Year, joining Michael Freeman (2015) and Andrew Heaney (2012) in earning that distinction.
• OSU had nine players garner All-Big 12 accolades in 2016. Named to the All-Big 12 First Team were pitchers Thomas Hatch and Tyler Buffett and infielders Donnie Walton and J.R Davis. Infielder Garrett Benge earned second-team honors, while infielder Dustin Williams, outfielder Corey Hassel and pitchers Trey Cobb and Jensen Elliott were named honorable mention all-conference performers.
• Jensen Elliott was named to the Big 12 All-Freshman Team.
• Donnie Walton became the first player in OSU history to be named All-Big 12 First Team three times in a career. He was a first-team pick from 2014-16 after earning honorable mention status in 2013.
• OSU set a Big 12 record by having 12 conference weekly award winners in 2016. The Cowboys also set a record with seven pitcher of the week honorees.
- Tyler Buffett, Big 12 Co-Pitcher of the Week, March 7
- Dustin Williams, Big 12 Player of the Week, March 14
- Trey Cobb, Big 12 Pitcher of the Week, March 21
- Tyler Buffett, Big 12 Pitcher of the Week, March 28
- J.R. Davis, Big 12 Newcomer of the Week, April 4
- Jensen Elliott, Big 12 Pitcher of the Week, April 4
- Trey Cobb, Big 12 Pitcher of the Week, April 18
- Jensen Elliott, Big 12 Newcomer of the Week, April 18
- Thomas Hatch, Big 12 Pitcher of the Week, April 25
- Thomas Hatch, Big 12 Pitcher of the Week, May 9
- Corey Hassel, Big 12 Co-Player of the Week, May 23
- J.R. Davis, Big 12 Newcomer of the Week, May 23
• Six Cowboys were named to the NCAA Clemson Regional All-Tournament Team: Corey Hassel (Most Valuable Player), J.R. Davis, Jon Littell, Conor Costello, Thomas Hatch and Jensen Elliott.
• OSU finished third in the NCAA by turning 75 double plays, and the Cowboys' .978 fielding percentage led the Big 12 and ranked 18th nationally. The .978 fielding percentage was the second highest in school history.
• The Cowboys ranked fourth in the NCAA with 10 shutouts. The 10 shutouts was the second most in a single season in program history.
• OSU's pitching staff racked up 574 strikeouts, the second-highest single-season total in program history.
• The Cowboys also posted the second-most saves in school history with 21.
• Corey Hassel's 21 sacrifice bunts were the second most in a season in OSU history and ranked third in the NCAA in 2016.
• Thomas Hatch turned in a streak of 38 2/3 consecutive innings in which he did not allow an earned run. During that stretch, he recorded 33-straight scoreless frames.
• Hatch also recorded a streak of 23 1/3 scoreless innings in the NCAA Tournament, tossing a shutout against Nebraska in the Regional, working seven scoreless frames vs. South Carolina in the Super Regional and then throwing a shutout against UC Santa Barbara in the opening game of the College World Series.
• Thomas Hatch and Trey Cobb became the 13th and 14th pitchers in OSU history to record 100 strikeouts in a season. Hatch finished with 112, while Cobb recorded 100.
• Thomas Hatch's four shutouts tied for the second most in a season in OSU history and is also tied for second on the Cowboys' career shutouts list.
• Thomas Hatch worked 130 1/3 innings, the fifth most in a single season in program history.
• Tyler Buffett set an OSU single-season record with 37 appearances, a total that led the Big 12 and ranked fifth nationally.
• Buffett ranked second in the Big 12 in saves (9) and opponent batting average (.229) and third in wins (9).
• A pair of OSU pitchers ranked in the top 10 in the NCAA in games started. Thomas Hatch was second with 19, while Jensen Elliott ranked 10th with 17.
• OSU's pitching staff led the Big 12 in opponent batting average (.240), strikeouts (574), complete games (5), shutouts (10) and saves (21). The Cowboys also ranked second in the league with a 3.21 ERA.
• Thomas Hatch led the Big 12 with a 2.14 ERA, 112 strikeouts, 19 starts, four complete games and 130 1/3 innings pitched.
• Dustin Williams led the Big 12 with 14 home runs.
• J.R. Davis became only the third OSU player to hit for the cycle during the Big 12 Conference era (since 1997) and is one of just 18 Big 12 players to ever achieve the feat. Davis' cycle came against West Virginia on April 3.
• OSU had three pitchers rank in the top 10 in the Big 12 in ERA — Thomas Hatch (1st at 2.14), Tyler Buffett (4th at 2.81) and Trey Cobb (6th at 3.09).
• A pair of Cowboys ranked in the top 10 in the Big 12 in batting average — J.R. Davis (5th at .347) and Donnie Walton (9th at .337).
• Trey Cobb recorded four saves in the NCAA Tournament, which tied for the most of any pitcher in the tourney.
• Donnie Walton finished his career among the top 10 on OSU's all-time list in a number of categories, including:
- Sacrifice hits – 1st with 55
- Sacrifice flies – 2nd with 15
- At-bats – 4th with 821
- Games – 8th with 225
- Hits – 10th with 259
• OSU tied a program record by having 11 players selected in the 2016 Major League Baseball Draft, tying the 2007 team for the most Cowboy draft picks.
- Thomas Hatch, RHP, 3rd round, Chicago Cubs
- Donnie Walton, SS, 5th round, Seattle Mariners
- Remey Reed, RHP, 6th round, Miami Marlins
- Garrett Williams, LHP, 7th round, San Francisco Giants
- Tyler Buffett, RHP, 7th round, Houston Astros
- Trey Cobb, RHP, 12th round, Chicago Cubs
- Michael Mertz, RHP, 14th round, Miami Marlins
- J.R. Davis, 2B, 15th round, St. Louis Cardinals
- Collin Theroux, C, 32nd round, Oakland A's
- Conor Costello, RHP, 32nd round, Los Angeles Dodgers
- Dustin Williams, 1B, 36th round, Pittsburgh Pirates
• OSU's 11 Major League Baseball Draft picks were the third most of any Division I program in 2016.
• OSU had a program-record 15 players named Academic All-Big 12, including a record nine of those earning first-team accolades. Named to the first team were seniors Conor Costello, Alex Hackerott and Donnie Walton, juniors Michael Mertz, Remey Reed and Dustin Williams and sophomores Thomas Hatch, Garrett McCain and Andrew Rosa. Earning second-team honors were senior David Petrino, juniors Tyler Buffett and Ryan Sluder, sophomores Jacob Chappell and Jon Littell and redshirt freshman Carson Teel.
• Conor Costello became one of only four OSU student-athletes to be named to the Academic All-Big 12 First Team three times in a career, joining Josh Holliday, Gage Green and Jon Perrin.
• The Cowboys had 31 players earn a 3.0 or higher grade point average during the spring of 2016, a record for the program.
• OSU also turned in a record 3.26 team GPA in the spring.
• Conor Costello was a candidate for the Senior CLASS Award.
Players Mentioned
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Wednesday, May 27
Monday, May 18
