Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboy Baseball Set To Host NCAA Oklahoma City Regional
May 27, 2019 | Cowboy Baseball
STILLWATER – Oklahoma State was awarded the No. 9 national seed in the 2019 NCAA Baseball Championship and is the host and top-seeded team at the 2019 NCAA Oklahoma City Regional, with the four-team, double-elimination tournament field also including second-seeded Connecticut, third-seeded Nebraska and fourth-seeded Harvard.
Due to more than 12 inches of rain in Stillwater since May 15, the playing surface at Allie P. Reynolds Stadium is unplayable, and Oklahoma State will now host the Regional at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark in Oklahoma City.
The NCAA Oklahoma City Regional opens play Friday with Nebraska (31-22) facing UConn (36-23) at 12:06 p.m. The second game pits OSU (36-18) vs. Harvard (27-14) at 6:06 p.m. Times for the Saturday and Sunday games, as well as Monday's if-necessary game, will be announced at a later time.
"Obviously we had every intention of playing at Allie P., but as you know, weather is not something you can control," said OSU head coach Josh Holliday. "The amount of rain we've received in the past week, as well as what's on the way, the facility and the risk of it not being playable on the outfield is just something we couldn't afford to risk. We're thankful that Oklahoma City is giving us a chance to host this great tournament in a ballpark and a setting that will be awesome. As much as we'd love to play here, we're very much looking forward to playing at a place where we have great memories. Kids have great imagery right now in their minds of the town and the crowd there and the overall experience we had.
"Sometimes you have to take situations as they come and make the very best of them, and that's exactly what we're doing. The administration has been awesome getting this put together in a short amount of time. We appreciate the NCAA working with us to make sure that our team gets a chance to host a regional in an area that's to our advantage from the standpoint of sharing it with our fans and playing in a great facility."
OSU brings a 36-18 record into the NCAA tourney and is coming off a Big 12 Baseball Championship title last week in which the Pokes captured the 33rd conference championship in league history. The Cowboys have won 11 of their last 13 games, including six wins over nationally ranked Oregon State and Baylor.
The 2019 NCAA Regional appearance will mark the seventh in a row for the Cowboys, and OSU is making its 45th NCAA Tournament appearance, a total that ranks fourth all time. OSU owns an all-time NCAA tourney record of 149-95 (.611), with the 149 wins ranking sixth in NCAA history.
OSU's 2019 Regional berth is the seventh in as many seasons under Holliday, and OSU is 15-12 in NCAA tourney play under his direction. During his tenure, the Cowboys have made four NCAA Regional finals appearances and earned two Super Regional berths, and in 2016, Holliday led his alma mater to the 20th College World Series in program history.
This year marks the third under Holliday that the Cowboys have been a top-seed and Regional host; they previously achieved that status in 2014 and 2015. Holliday-coached OSU teams have been a No. 3 seed three times (2013, 2017 and 2018) and garnered a No. 2 seed in 2016.
OSU is seeking to advance to the fifth NCAA Super Regional in program history (1999, 2007, 2014, 2016). Should the Cowboys win the Stillwater Regional, they will face the winner of the NCAA Lubbock (Texas Tech) Regional in a Super Regional.
Oklahoma State senior catcher/DH Colin Simpson
On the team's familiarity with Chickasaw Bricktown Stadium: "It helps a lot. I think we play really well in that ballpark. We love it. I love playing there. We know that field really, really well. We've played there a lot. Even though we moved sites, it helps a lot to know that field and to have played there a bunch."
On being back in Stillwater for a few days: "Luckily I get to be in my own bed for a couple days before we leave, but I'm just really looking forward to regionals. Yeah, you'd like to be at home and in your own atmosphere, but I think Bricktown is kind of like our own atmosphere. It's kind of like a home field. Even when we were in the Big 12 Championship, that place was flooded with bright orange and there were only a couple of West Virginia fans there. So even though it's not actually home, it's like a second home field for us."
Oklahoma State senior pitcher Joe Lienhard
On his excitement about hosting a Regional: "It's really exciting coming off of a long weekend in Oklahoma City. It's been a grind so to be able to be back at our own place for a few days and kind of get situated for a little bit and get our feet underneath us. We're in the real nitty-gritty now — it's the postseason. Every game matters, and it's going to be a lot of high intensity moments in a great atmosphere in Oklahoma City. Being able to host a regional is an awesome feeling. Not being able to do it here (in Stillwater), it's tough a little bit. But we have great support in Oklahoma City, and we're very familiar with that ballpark. We're very excited and looking forward to it for sure."
On the crowd at the Big 12 Tournament: "It was awesome. With the game scheduling being late at night and then with the game being cancelled and played early the next morning… our fans are just awesome, you know, being able to have their support and they have our backs all the time. I remember in the championship game I was sitting there when it started, and I turned to somebody in the dugout and was like, 'Man, there's not quite as many people here as there was my sophomore year.' I think everyone knew the game time that year, but yesterday we didn't quite know exactly when the game would start. But I looked around at about the third inning and that thing was close to full in the bottom layer. Our fans are pretty awesome. Being able to have that support, it almost makes it feel like a home game for us. That's huge in any situation and especially a tournament setting. It's pretty awesome to see."
