OSU Baseball: Cowboys Close Regular Season with 7-5 Win Against Arizona, Secure Big 12 5 Seed

STILLWATER — The Cowboys knack for the long ball led the way to their fourth Big 12 series win in a row to close the regular season.

Oklahoma State beat Arizona 7-5 on Saturday in the teams’ rubber match. The game saw four balls leave the yard, and three of those came off the Cowboys’ bats.

The Cowboys entered the day with 130 homers on the season, which was good for second nationally behind only Georgia (142).

With the Cowboys down 3-1 in the bottom of the fourth on Saturday, Colin Brueggemann got the home run party started, as the senior sent a solo shot to right on Senior Day. It was his 16th of the season. It was crushed, landing 437 feet from home plate with a 106-mph exit velocity.

Bomba numero 16 for Bruegge 💣#GoPokes pic.twitter.com/TvXgEuOKJg

— OSU Cowboy Baseball (@OSUBaseball) May 16, 2026

That seemed to crack the seal for the Pokes, as later in the inning, freshman Remo Indomenico hit his first career home run. It was a two-run shot that put the Pokes back in the lead.

When the ball hits the sky, like a big pizza pie, THAT’S A REMO 🤌#GoPokes | @RemoIndomenico pic.twitter.com/T5NFVCJenF

— OSU Cowboy Baseball (@OSUBaseball) May 16, 2026

Then later in the fourth, senior Aidan Meola hit a three-run shot off the scoreboard. Had the scoreboard not been there, that ball might still be airborne. It was his 17th of the year. All of a sudden, the Pokes led 7-3.

Somebody check on the scoreboard 😬

Meola goes yard for the third home run of the inning#GoPokes | @aidanmeola1 pic.twitter.com/kt1YJouGEf

— OSU Cowboy Baseball (@OSUBaseball) May 16, 2026

Kollin Ritchie entered the day in solo second nationally in round-trippers with 28. Although he didn’t add to his tally Saturday, he was still productive.

He went 3-for-4 at the dish with two of those hits going into a heavy shift, with Ritchie making it look like target practice.

Then he went the other way, doubling to left-center in the sixth. It looked like a single off the bat, but Ritchie took advantage of some lackadaisical fielding and booked it to second.

He’s a stand-up guy 🤠

A stand-up double is hit No. 3 for @RitchieKollin #GoPokes pic.twitter.com/rU8BmwrMtU

— OSU Cowboy Baseball (@OSUBaseball) May 16, 2026

Arizona elected to intentionally walk Ritchie in the eighth to a chorus of boos from those in attendance at O’Brate Stadium.

Sophomore right-hander Stormy Rhodes got the start on the bump and gave the Cowboys a solid outing. He threw seven innings, giving up five runs on eight hits while walking one and striking out six.

He handed the ball to Noah Wech in the eighth, who made quick work of his lone inning, using just nine pitches to retire three Wildcats. Two of those outs came via strikeout.

Then Mario Pesca entered to close. The senior righty from The Bronx struck out the first batter he faced before giving up a single. But he left the tying run at the plate twice — first with a lineout to left then with a flyout to the warning track.

After transferring in from St. John’s ahead of last season, Pesca made it known Saturday how grateful he is for the opportunity for these two seasons in orange.

“I love this place more than you could ever imagine,” Pesca said. “… I wish I was a Cowboy for a few more years. I wish I had more time here because I love this place. I love Coach (Josh) Holliday. I will forever be indebted to him He gave me the opportunity to be a Cowboy, and that’s something that I’m so grateful for. I’m so grateful to be here and be able to help or try to win some games, however they see fit. Just the fact that I can put the jersey on and play for him is one of the best things that I can do. I’m super thankful for him.”

Cowboys Secure 5 Seed in Big 12 Tournament

OSU closes the regular season at 36-19 and 18-12 in Big 12 play. That secures the 5 seed at next week’s Big 12 Tournament in Arizona. The tournament starts Tuesday, but with the 5 seed, the Cowboys won’t open until Thursday, where they’ll play 4 seed UCF to start.

Josh Holliday’s Postgame News Conference