Oklahoma State University Athletics
Oklahoma State University
4-3
Washington
5-3
Cowboys Win Third In A Row In Arizona
February 22, 2015 | Cowboy Baseball
PEORIA, Ariz. -- Oklahoma State capped off its appearance in the Big 12/Pac-12 Challenge with its third consecutive win Sunday as the ninth-ranked Cowboys defeated Washington, 12-2, at Peoria Stadium.
OSU scored in each of the first six innings, including plating two runs in each of the second through sixth frames, as the Cowboys improved to 4-3 on the season.
Gage Green led a 13-hit day for the Cowboys as the senior went 3-for-5 with two home runs, while Dustin Williams also had three hits and Tim Arakawa collected three RBIs.
Four different OSU pitchers saw time on the mound, with freshman Carson LaRue making his first-career start and sophomore Trey Cobb picking up his first win of the season in relief.
"It was a very positive way to finish a great, challenging trip," said OSU head coach Josh Holliday. "To see where the ballclub started last Friday against Arizona State to where we are now, a lot of good things happened.
"There's still room for improvement, but this trip has opened our eyes as a team to what we need to work on that gives us a chance to have a great ballclub."
Green got the scoring started early as the senior crushed a solo home run over the right field bullpen with one out in the top of the first to give OSU a 1-0 lead.
Washington (5-3) tied things up in the bottom of the first on a sacrifice fly by Branden Berry, but the Cowboys quickly went back on top in the second inning. Following an infield single by Dustin Williams and back-to-back errors by the Huskies that loaded the bases, Garrett McCain ripped a two-out, two-RBI double down the left field line to give OSU a 3-1 advantage.
Holliday's club tallied two more runs in the third, and once again, each of those came with two outs as Williams delivered an RBI single before Jon Littell scored on a wild pitch to push the Pokes' lead to 5-1.
In the fourth, Green once again got things going, this time leading off the inning with his second home run of the day over the wall in center field. The Cowboys' catcher/outfielder entered the game with six career homers, which included a career-high three a year ago.
Green was one of seven different Cowboys to collect hits in the game and one of three, along with Arakawa and McCain, to finish with multiple RBIs.
The offensive explosion, which saw OSU score in double figures for the third-straight game, was more than enough support for the Cowboy pitching staff.
LaRue worked three innings in his collegiate debut, allowing a run on three hits while striking out two, and Cobb followed that with a three-inning effort to get the win. Remey Reed then worked two scoreless frames and had three strikeouts, while Koda Glover struck out two of the four batters he faced to close things out in the ninth.
"To see the type of pitching we still had available on day four of a tournament, compared to say, our opponent, it's pretty clear that we've established some depth on our pitching staff," Holliday said. "I'm very encouraged by the types of kids we ran out there today in the fourth game of a tournament that we went 3-1 in."
OSU returns to action for its home opener against Missouri State at Allie P. Reynolds Stadium Wednesday at 4 p.m.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Cobb, Trey (1-0)
L: Bremer, Noah (0-1)
Batting:
2B: McCain, Garrett 1
HR: Green, Gage 2
RBI: McCain, Garrett 2 ; Green, Gage 2 ; Arakawa, Tim 3 ; Littell, Jon 1 ; Bradley, Kevin 1 ; Williams, Dustin 1
SF: Arakawa, Tim 1
Base Running:
RUNS: McCain, Garrett 2 ; Green, Gage 3 ; Costello, Conor 1 ; Arakawa, Tim 1 ; Littell, Jon 1 ; Williams, Dustin 1 ; Sluder, Ryan 2 ; Chappell, Jacob 1
SB: Costello, Conor 1
HBP: Costello, Conor 2 ; Littell, Jon 1
Batting:
3B: Schmidt, Alex 1
RBI: Schmidt, Alex 1 ; Berry, Branden 1
SF: Berry, Branden 1
Base Running:
RUNS: London, Kyle 2
HBP: Morgan, Joey 1
