OSU Baseball: Cowboys Drop Tuscaloosa Regional Opener to USC-Upstate

The Cowboys found themselves behind the proverbial 8 ball essentially at the very start of the Tuscaloosa Regional.

Oklahoma State dropped its Regional opener to USC-Upstate 8-5 on Friday, pushing the Pokes to the loser’s bracket in Tuscaloosa.

OSU had a chance late, loading the bases in the bottom of the ninth with one out before back-to-back looking strikeouts ended the game. That was one of three times the Cowboys left them loaded, with 13 Cowboys being stranded overall.

Ethan Lund has probably been the most consistent piece of the Cowboys’ pitching staff this season, but he didn’t have his best stuff Friday.

The Spartans had two runs before even putting a ball in play. Lund walked the first four batters he faced, a stretch that included runners scoring on a wild pitch and then a passed ball.

Lund then forced a double-play, but another run scored in that process to make it 3-0 in the top of the first. Then a wild pitch with a runner on third in the top of the second gave Upstate a 4-0 lead.

The Cowboy offense would respond. The Pokes plated four in the bottom of the second.

The first run came via an Evan Saunders single to left that scored Campbell Smithwick. Saunders got the start at third base because, as the broadcast noted, Aidan Meola suffered a hand/wrist injury in practice leading up to the Regional. Meola is one of the Cowboys’ best players but has dealt with a ridiculous amount of injuries in his college career.

After Saunders’ single, freshman Remo Indomencio sent the first pitch he saw over the fence in right. It was a three-run shot that tied the ballgame at 4.

That’s Amore@RemoIndomenico with the no-doubter#GoPokes pic.twitter.com/fBBFSgPKLK

— OSU Cowboy Baseball (@OSUBaseball) May 29, 2026

But Lund’s rough day would continue as he gave up a single and hit a batter in the second, which ended his day. The Cowboys brought Stormy Rhodes out of the bullpen with two down in the top of the third, but he gave up an RBI single on his third pitch, giving Upstate the lead back at 5-4.

That run counted on Lund’s stat line, as he finished his outing giving up five runs on four hits while walking three and hitting another in 2 2/3 innings.

The Spartans made it 6-4 in the fourth before the Cowboys got back on the board in the bottom of the fifth off a Garrett Shull double.

But then Upstate got some insurance in the eighth with a two-RBI single to left.

Rhodes did good to get through the game, as the Cowboys will need all the fresh arms they can get with now a longer road to Supers because of the loss. He threw 6 1/3, giving up three runs on four hits while hitting one and striking out six.

The Cowboys will play the loser of Alabama and Alabama State at 1 p.m. (Central) on Saturday in a do-or-die game.