OSU Arrives in Tuscaloosa as One of College Baseball's Hottest Teams

For much of his tenure, Josh Holliday has followed Selection Monday with a strict routine.

On most years, the Oklahoma State head coach — now in his 14th season at the helm — spent the morning hours telephoning other coaches and pundits. Gathering information regarding his team's destination for regionals, and potential opponents it might encounter. Hours later, the unveiling of OSU's regional location, swiftly followed by rigorous preparation for its draw.

This year was different.

During the early hours of this Selection Monday, Holliday didn't make any calls. Instead, he spent his morning embracing the moment and awaiting what was to come.

"I didn't do any of that — I didn't want to know," Holliday said. "I just wanted to see (our destination) come up on the screen, share it with the kids, watch them respond and then just get to work with them. There's something pure about that."

Pure and simple, it was.

On Monday, OSU (37-20) was awarded the No. 2 seed for the Tuscaloosa Regional, hosted by seventh national seed Alabama (37-19). Also included in its draw is No. 4 seed Alabama State (34-21) and No. 3 seed USC Upstate (33-28), which the Cowboys will open regional play against Friday at 1 p.m. on ESPN+ at Sewell-Thomas Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Holliday described the moment as "fulfilling." And rightfully so.

"We've worked hard and we've earned the position we're in," Holliday said. "I am so proud of the work that we've put in to be here. Now we get a chance to go out and go for it. Plain and simple — just go for it."

The Cowboys, winners of 13 of their past 17, enter regionals among the hottest teams in college baseball. Concurrently, their recent success didn't come without early adversity.

A sluggish Opening Weekend at the Shriners College Showdown in Arlington featured blowout losses to Arkansas and rival Oklahoma, a two-game stretch where OSU was outscored by a 22-3 aggregate. One month later, a sweep to UCF to open Big 12 play. Weeks later, an uninspiring series loss to BYU on the road.

Injuries to key pieces simultaneously came at large. Namely, ace left-hander Hudson Barrett, who missed a combined two months of action stemming from separate stints on the injured list due to arm soreness. Not to mention, sophomore right-hander and closer Noah Wech missing three weeks with the same injury, and senior right-hander Mario Pesca — who began the season a starter — missing two weeks due to a blister on his throwing hand. All while sophomore shortstop Brock Thompson and senior third baseman Aidan Meola have battled through injuries of their own, remaining prominent offensive contributors and headliners within OSU's lineup.

It wasn't ideal, but it was the hand Holliday and Co. were dealt.

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So, the Cowboys battled. And gradually, as the team neared full health, winning came with relative ease.

One of the equilibriums for the Cowboys during their navigation of the aforementioned adversity was Kollin Ritchie.

The junior centerfielder carried immense hype into the season after a loud offensive outing in last season's Athens Regional. That, of course, was highlighted by a two-out, game-tying home run in the ninth inning of an eventual win against host Georgia in an elimination game.

Ritchie has drawn attention from professional scouts for his 6-foot-2, 200-plus-pound frame. His quickness, agility, baseball I.Q., and swing were merely additional luxuries. This season, Ritchie is slashing .335/.478/.828, good for a 181 wRC+ (weighted runs created plus, a measure of overall offensive production where 100 is league average) clip. He ranks third nationally with 29 home runs, and 13th with 73 RBI.

"We just didn't really worry about the (bad) side of it all throughout when we were struggling a little bit early on during the season," Ritchie said. "It was more so about just what can we do each day to be at our best when it matters. And I think that we've all done that, from a coaching staff and player standpoint, and I think that we're playing our best right now."

What emerged from that stretch was a clearer identity of which Holliday's team was evolving toward. And as OSU stabilized late in the season, few players embodied that rise more than its veteran-laden core.

"I wish I had another year left with this team," Pesca said. "This has been a special group to be part of. Just watching everyone come together and grow over the course of the season has been special. Now, I think you're seeing what we're capable of."

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The Cowboys haven't made it out of regionals since 2019 — that year's run ended in a three-game Super Regional loss at Texas Tech — nor have they made it to the College World Series since 2016. In many ways, the postseason has been a difficult stretch for OSU in recent years. At the same time, every team is different, and each season presents its own separate elements that define a team's season.

For Holliday's Cowboys, overcoming a collective buy-in has been the product of a recent hot stretch. And now, they are in prime position to challenge a talented Alabama team that boasts one of the sport's premier starting pitching rotations in right-hander Zane Adams (4.36 ERA, 3.53 K-BB, 10.02 K/9), right-hander Tyler Fay (4.7 ERA, 5.71 K-BB, 10.42 K/9), and rising freshman Myles Upchurch (3.34 ERA, 1.80 K-BB, 9.46 K/9).

Regional baseball leaves little margin for error. Yet for an OSU team that spent months navigating injuries and early-season growing pains, such pressure feels less like a burden and more as the natural next step in a season defined by an experienced group navigating adversity.

The task at hand is clear — claw out a balanced regional draw on the road in the field, where every team brings a different kind of pressure. If the past month is indicative of anything, Holliday's group will be up for the challenge.

"Their willingness to stick with things and stay true to each other has been on display since Day 1," Holliday said. "They've been a lot of fun to coach. That's why they call it a season — it's got different segments, peaks and valleys and everything in between. These guys have been a great example of sticking with something, taking on challenges, adjusting, adapting, and over the course of time they have become a very well-rounded, tough, close-knit group of kids that have definitely played their best baseball down the stretch."

Tuscaloosa NCAA Baseball Regional

Friday, May 29 | Sewell-Thomas Stadium | Tuscaloosa, Ala.

No. 2 Oklahoma State vs. No. 3 USC Upstate — 1 p.m.
No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 4 Alabama State — 6 p.m.
📺 ESPN+