Rounding Third: Cowboys fall to ASU on national stage

@joshhollidayosu with Cowboy Baseball legend Robin Ventura before @OSUBaseball vs. Arizona State! #springtraining pic.twitter.com/T4q5iKlxKp

— Jenny Holliday (@Jenny_Holliday) March 2, 2014

Josh Holliday gets his 50^th career win at OSU, but the Pokes struggle in Surprise. Here’s what you missed with Cowboy Baseball last week.

Dominant Pitching, Clutch Hits Lead to Shutout Versus Gonzaga

The Cowboys traveled to Surprise, Arizona, this weekend to compete in the Sanderson Ford College Baseball Classic. It was a pitchers’ duel as OSU opened the trip against the Bulldogs. Neither team would score in the first six innings. It was the Cowboys who opened the scoring in the seventh, with an RBI double from Brian Case.

That turned out to be all OSU needed, as four Cowboy pitchers combined to allow only eight hits and no runs. Dustin Williams added an insurance run in the ninth with an RBI triple as the Pokes won, 2-0.

Big Sixth Inning Completes Huge Comeback Against Manhattan

A slow start almost doomed the Cowboys on Friday against Manhattan College. The Jaspers opened a 6-0 lead after 5.5 innings, but this is an OSU team that doesn’t know when to quit. The Pokes sent 13 guys to the plate in the sixth, scoring eight runs and completing their fifth comeback win of the season, 10-7.

Lack of Offense Causes Concern; Pokes Fall to Sun Devils

After a rainout against Santa Clara on Saturday, OSU faced a big showdown against traditional powerhouse Arizona State. The offensive woes would continue though, as two ASU pitchers combined for 15 strikeouts and only three hits allowed. In all, OSU had 29 K’s over three games this weekend. The Cowboys would drop their second game of the year, 6-1.

Last Week’s Results 

Thursday: No. 11 OSU 2, Gonzaga 0

Winning Pitcher: Tyler Nurdin (1-1)
Save: Brendan McCurry (4)
Nurdin: 6 IP, 0 R, 7 H, 5 K
D. Williams: 2-3, 3B, 2 R

Friday: No. 11 OSU 10, Manhattan 7

Winning Pitcher: Michael Freeman (2-0)}
OSU: Down 6-0 entering Bottom 6^th
D. Williams: 2-2, 3B, 2 R, 3 RBI
Saxon: 2-3, 2 R, 2 RBI

Saturday: No. 11 OSU vs Santa Clara (cancelled – rain)

Sunday: No. 29 Arizona State 6, No. 11 OSU 1

Losing Pitcher: Thomas Hatch (2-1)
OSU: 3 H, 17 K
Costello: 2-4, 2B 

In The Polls (As of Feb. 24)

NCBWA: 14th (18th last week)

Collegiate Baseball: 11th (18th last week)

Baseball America: Unranked[1. Baseball America just doesn’t get it, apparently. Also, they have Texas and TCU jumping three spots each, to 15^th and 16^th respectively.]

USA Today: 18th[1. This poll still hasn’t been updated since January 31.]

Offensive Player of the Week

Dustin Williams, Fr. DH/1B

The freshman from Texas spent the weekend celebrating the independence of his home state, going 4-8 with two triples and three RBIs. He also added four walks and two runs.

Pitcher of the Week

Tyler Nurdin, Jr. SP

Nurdin pitched six shutout innings Thursday, scattering seven hits and striking out five in a win against Gonzaga. He didn’t allow a walk and threw 64 of his 91 pitches for strikes.

Team Stats Leaders

Batting Average: Walton, .370
Runs: Walton, 12
RBIs: Krietemeier, 13
HR: Krietemeier, 4
SB: Arakawa, 5
Wins: Perrin, Freeman & Hatch, 2
Innings: Hatch, 15.2
ERA: McCurry, 0.00 (7.2 IP)
Strikeouts: Perrin, 14

Tweets of the Week

https://twitter.com/VinnyW35/status/439879469499555840

https://twitter.com/RobieRojas/status/439987715438702592

Upcoming Games

It’s the start of an eight-game homestand for the Cowboys as Grambling State (2-9) visits on Wednesday at 4 p.m. OSU opens a three-game series Friday at 6:30 p.m. against San Diego (8-1). It’s the first trip out of sunny California for the Toreros this season. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m. Saturday and noon Sunday.

What to Watch For 

This is the time of the season where players start to make a name for themselves, whether it’s showing how much they’ve improved since last season (Donnie Walton and Jon Perrin) or making enough of an impact to grab a starting spot in the lineup (Dustin Williams and Thomas Hatch). Holliday has done a great job of rotating players in and getting everyone some early experience. But coming off a loss and with a strong San Diego team coming in this weekend, it’s time to see who will step up and provide some consistency for this team.