OSU Baseball: Osmond, Cowboys Clinch Bedlam Series with 9-4 Win

STILLWATER — As Bryce Osmond walked off the mound in the seventh inning to a standing ovation, the Oklahoma native lifted up the Oklahoma State on the front of his jersey to the cheering fans.

Behind Osmond, Oklahoma State defeated Oklahoma 9-4 on Sunday in O’Brate Stadium in the team’s conference rubber match. Osmond, a sophomore from Jenks, threw six innings where he allowed one run off five hits while walking three and striking out eight.

“[The standing ovation was] very cool,” Osmond said. “You only have a handful of those throughout a career, and that was a special moment for me, especially it being Bedlam.”

It didn’t take long for Osmond to get some run support.

Nolan McLean has had a bit of a “home run or strikeout” start to his sophomore season. It was a bit different Sunday, but it started with a home run. He hit his second home run in as many days when he put a pitch in the OSU bullpen in the second inning. It was a three-run shot, also scoring David Mendham and Chase Adkison.

McLean hit a leadoff single through the left side in the fourth inning. He got to second when Marcus Brown singled to right, and true freshman Aidan Meola brought McLean home with a double to left. Brown scored three at-bats later when Jake Thompson singled to center.

McLean drew a walk in the fifth with Mendham on third. The final pitch of the at-bat was wild, and Mendham was able to dart across home plate.

McLean nearly had another home run in the seventh, but his ball to center field was caught at the wall. That came after the Cowboys added two runs in the sixth.

Spending time playing third, right field and pitching, McLean is hitting .248 on the season with a team-best seven home runs but also a team-high 55 strikeouts. In nine appearances on the mound, McLean has a 4.50 ERA. He has struck out 18 of the 37 batters he has faced.

“Nolan is a kid who has tremendous expectations,” Holliday said. “He has great talent, but he’s also still a young player learning how to put all those things together. Sometimes being super talent is a blessing, but it’s also difficult because you see moments of greatness and you think it’s going to happen all the time. Being consistently good is what great is all about.

“I’m very proud of him. I appreciate him. I know he wants to be great. I know consistency is ultimately what he wants. He’s chasing that consistency.”

OU had a comeback attempt in the seventh, but Mitchell Stone put a stop to it. The Sooners scored three runs in the frame and had two runners on with two outs when Stone trotted in from the bullpen. Stone coolly struck out Jimmy Crooks in four pitches. Roman Phansalkar came on in the eighth and pitched two innings where he allowed one run off one hit while striking out two. Phansalkar’s fastball got up to 98 MPH.

The win moves OSU to 23-9 on the year and 7-2 in conference play. Since Holliday took over in 2013, the Cowboys have lost the Bedlam conference series only twice. Holliday advanced to 29-11 against OU this weekend.

“It means we show up and compete our hearts out, play with pride, represent the orange and black with everything we have in us,” Holliday said. “It means a lot to us.”

Josh Holliday’s Postgame News Conference

Up Next

Oklahoma State hosts Wichita State at 6 p.m. Tuesday at O’Brate Stadium.