Oklahoma State saw two poor performances on Friday and Saturday against Arkansas and OU, but get a bit of redemption against No. 23 Vanderbilt on Sunday - Finishes 1-2 for the weekend
ARLINGTON, Texas — The Oklahoma State Cowboys baseball team kicked off their 2026 season with a challenging slatw at the Shriners Children’s College Showdown in Arlington, Texas.
Facing a gauntlet of ranked opponents at Globe Life Field, OSU finished with a 1-2 record, starting slow against SEC powerhouses but ending on a high note with a dominant victory.
The tournament exposed early-season pitching inconsistencies and offensive lulls, but highlighted emerging stars like Kollin Ritchie, who provided clutch power hitting.
Overall, the Cowboys batted .208 as a team, with pitchers posting a 7.71 ERA across the three games.
Despite the losses, the experience against top competition sets a foundation for growth in the Big 12.
Friday’s opener pitted OSU against No. 7 Arkansas, resulting in a lopsided 12-2 run-rule defeat in eight innings.
The Razorbacks jumped ahead early, with catcher Ryder Helfrick smashing two home runs, a two-run shot in the first and a solo blast in the third, to build a 3-0 lead. Arkansas exploded for five runs in the fifth, capitalizing on OSU errors and timely hitting from Nolan Souza and TJ Pompey.
For the Cowboys, starter Tyler Denning struggled, allowing seven runs (six earned) on seven hits over 4.1 innings, with four strikeouts but three walks.
Reliever Ty Harrington fared no better, surrendering five more runs. Offensively, OSU managed just five hits, with Brock Thompson going 1-for-3 with a run scored and Aidan Meola adding a 1-for-4 effort.
The lone bright spots were RBI singles from Colin Brueggemann and TP Wentworth in the seventh, but it was too little too late as Arkansas’ pitching staff struck out 11 Cowboys while limiting them to a .172 average.
Saturday brought the Bedlam rivalry against No. 19 Oklahoma, where OSU fell 10-1 in a game dominated by Sooner pitching.
OU transfer LJ Mercurius dazzled in his debut, fanning 12 over 5.1 innings while allowing just three hits and one run.
The Sooners struck first in the opening frame with a two-RBI double from Jaxon Willits, then added a solo homer from Trey Gambill in the fourth to make it 4-0.
Oklahoma broke it open with four runs in the fifth, including a three-run bomb by Gambill.
OSU starter Janzen Keisel took the loss, giving up eight runs on nine hits in 4.2 innings, though he struck out five. The Cowboys’ offense was stifled, collecting only four hits total.
Kollin Ritchie provided the sole run with an RBI single in the fifth, scoring Thompson, who went 1-for-4. Brueggemann added a double, but OSU left eight runners on base, highlighting missed opportunities against a Sooner bullpen that struck out 17 overall.
Sunday’s finale against No. 23 Vanderbilt offered redemption, as OSU erupted for an 11-1 run-rule win in eight innings.
After four scoreless innings, the Cowboys unleashed four runs in the fifth, sparked by Ritchie’s three-run homer.
They piled on six more in the sixth, with Ritchie delivering a two-run double and Brueggemann an RBI single. Ritchie capped his monster day with a solo homer in the eighth, his second of the game, finishing 3-for-5 with six RBI and three runs scored. Brueggemann went 2-for-4 with an RBI, while Garrett Shull drove in two via sacrifice flies.
On the mound, Ethan Lund was stellar in 3.2 hitless innings, striking out eight despite six walks. Noah Wech earned the win with 3.1 innings of one-run ball, and Stormy Rhodes closed it out.
Vanderbilt managed just two hits, with Logan Johnstone’s solo homer their only run.
Reflecting on the weekend, head coach Josh Holliday shared his candid thoughts: “It will make the trip home somewhat tolerable, and dinner won’t taste quite so crappy, and I might smile sometime between now and Thursday.”
The strong finish provides momentum heading into a road series at Grand Canyon from February 19-21, followed by a home opener against Central Arkansas on February 24 at O’Brate Stadium.
With early lessons learned, OSU looks to build toward Big 12 contention.