OSU Sweeps Cincinnati 10-4 — Kennedy, Leblanc Anchor Hawksworth's Unconventional Pitching Plan

Josh Holliday gradually gained confidence as time passed when speaking with pitching coach Blake Hawksworth in the early hours of Sunday morning.

The two worked rigorously to compile a pitching plan for Oklahoma State’s series finale against Cincinnati — an eventual 10-4 victory for the Cowboys. But given the optics and unideal elements headlining the starting rotation, it made pinpointing one all the more difficult. 

Left-hander Hudson Barrett — the team’s usual Friday starter — had undergone a rehab process with Holliday and Hawksworth, which had involved a predetermined pitch count in starts upon his return to the rotation two weeks from an arm tweak suffered in a March 6 start against Garnder-Webb. But Barrett exited his outing against BYU a week prior after only one inning due to arm soreness. Fast-forward, Holliday told reporters after Friday’s series opener that Barrett would miss extensive time. 

So, Holliday and Hawksworth were forced to pivot. And while Hawksworth’s blueprint was unorthodox, Holliday said he felt more at ease upon further reflection. It was unique, yet meticulous, and in the end, feasible enough to buy the offense enough time to catch fire and pave the way to a sweep of Cincinnati with a win Sunday at O’Brate Stadium. 

“Blake felt good about the plan he had and so we went with it,” Holliday said. “We were very confident in it going in... I'm glad it worked out for us."

Step 1 — start sophomore reliever Bryce Leblanc as an opener. 

Hawksworth cited the left-hander’s experience as a starter during his lone season at Odessa Junior College — which included seven starts — as the primary reason. Not to mention, his analytics against the Bearcats’ (21-13, 4-8 Big 12) left-handed heavy lineup was also analytically favorable, Holliday noted. 

Leblanc answered the call, striking out four to only three hits and one run through 2 1/3 innings, providing stability for the offense and an ideal segue into the second step of Hawksworth’s plan. 

Step 2 — opting for sophomore reliever Jake Kennedy as soon as Leblanc had pitched through the Cincinnati lineup. 

Kennedy had showcased his best during a two-inning, three-strikeout effort on Friday. So, Hawksworth and Holliday felt at ease throwing the young right-hander back into the line of fire. Despite the injury issues he went through as a freshman in 2025, and despite him having a small sample size of experience in high-leverage situations.

A message from Visit Stillwater

Orange Power Weekend is coming to America's friendliest college town — packed with the Remember the 10 run, the spring football game, OSU Big 12 baseball, and softball. Put on your brightest orange and cheer on the Cowboys, then stick around for Calf Fry, Red Dirt concerts, and downtown arts festivals.

He didn’t miss a beat.

Kennedy struck out a career-high five through four innings of work, allowing the bats to ignite and cruise to a fourth-straight double-digit run total. Holliday noted how this weekend might merely be a foreshadowing of what is to come for the Cowboys' (21-11, 6-6 Big 12) second-year pitching prospect.

“That’s just an outstanding, outstanding middle relief effort against a good offensive team,” Holliday said. “You just look at what he did over the course of the weekend, it was just exceptional. And it was a big reason why we were able to put together three wins. It was because of his big contributions in Game 1, and then what he did today in Game 3.”

Veteran southpaw Drew Blake before threw the ensuing 1 2/3 innings sophomore righty Noah Wech slammed the door in the final frame, securing a statement series sweep.

Now, the Cowboys head into the new week more battled tested, polished and with a stronger regular-season resume. All thanks to Hawksworth and Holliday's unconventional blueprint for the day. Their RPI jumped three spots to 42nd after Sunday, as more opportunities await to bolster that number in the coming weeks.

By design, it wasn’t intended to be a traditional. But nothing comes conventionally with an ace arm out of the picture.

However, as the innings passed by and outs piled up, OSU's unconventional formula on the mound looked less like a gamble and more like a calculated advantage, especially with Leblanc and Kennedy delivering the caliber of outings teammates and coaches couldn’t ignore.

“For starters, we had really good pitching — Bryce Leblanc pitched his butt off, and Jake Kennedy coming in and doing an amazing job,” Cowboys’ right fielder TP Wentworth said. “That was big for us. Jake Kennedy having a weekend himself. That was huge.”

Crooked innings provide offensive spark

Holliday has profusely marveled over the optics that make up O'Brate Stadium.

The home run-friendly metrics. The warm, humid weather toward the midseason point that makes hitting come so seamlessly. And perhaps most notably, the harrowing Stillwater wind that shifts from friend to foe for hitters so often.

On Sunday, the wind came in foe form, neutralizing a plethora of hard-hit balls that are home runs on the average day.

So, with his team leading Cincinnati 2-1 with one out in the bottom of the second, Aidan Meola stepped up to bat with a plate approach that was predetermined — swing for the scoreboard. Which is why Holliday's knowledge of the ballpark came in clutch for OSU's third baseman.

“There’s one little spot to the left that the scoreboard blocks the wind,” Holliday said. “If you can hit it right at the scoreboard, it’ll still go right there. But the minute it elevates or gets outside of the scoreboard, the wind will absolutely knock it down.”

Holliday said he relayed that sentiment to Meola, who applied it to his at-bat.

Moments later, Meola unloaded on a first-pitch four-seam fastball from Cincinnati right-hander Connor Blue, and watched his ball laser toward the scoreboard.

No aforementioned elevation. No slicing motion or abrupt curve in its trajectory. It came off the bat purely on a line, as it landed into the visitor's bullpen in left field for a three-run blast. It finalized a four-run offensive frame and gave OSU a 5-1 lead it wouldn't come close to giving up.

“That was a good inning,” Holliday said. “That was built on some good at-bats and some good baseball.

"Fortunately Aidan was able to connect there and give us a cushion, and we were able to play off of it."

But the offensive onslaught didn't stop there.

OSU plated another run in the bottom of the fourth off of an RBI infield single from catcher Campbell Smithwick to make it 6-1.

Two innings later came another four spot, courtesy of two walks, a single, a throwing error and a two-run bomb from Wentworth to finalize OSU's scoring on the day. It marked Wentworth's third long ball of the weekend after a two-homer performance Saturday.

Holliday said he felt OSU had showcased its "most complete" offensive weekend this season. The stat sheet echoed that, as eight different Cowboys recorded a hit in what was a balanced 10-hit attack. Sunday was merely the finishing touch.

“I think that just one through nine in the order, kind of felt like something good was going to happen,” Wentworth said. “And I just think everybody caught a barrel and contributed. So, that was sweet, and I was lucky to add to the run total.”

Brueggemann finding stride at the plate

After a sluggish start to the season, first baseman Colin Brueggemann has found his footing at the plate as of late.

He'd homered four times the past week heading into Sunday. His fifth came in the bottom of the first, courtesy of a solo bomb to give OSU an early 1-0 lead.

Holliday has often stated how vital Brueggemann's offensive contributions are to OSU's success down the stretch. He's shown his capability with run production, which is why his slow start was so unforeseen to his coaches and teammates.

One month ago, Brueggemann's batting average was as low as .190. Fast-forward, he's donning a .264 clip and is tied for second on the team in home runs with nine.

And he's showing no signs of his hot hand at the plate slowing down.

“He’s a proven bat,” Conover said. “As long as I’ve been here and the years before then, he’s done so much good for this team and this program. So, we all know as a team what Colin Brueggemann (is capable of). So, when we get to see him at his best, it’s super fun and it’s just a huge block for our team.

“We need it from him. So, it’s good to have him back right where he belongs.”