Published: March 26, 2008 10:18 am            

Quality start

Gardner, Wildcat defense aid in 10-2 Cowboy victory

It won’t bump Oklahoma State into the nation’s top 10 next week, but it was a nice way to start an important week of baseball.

The Cowboys, who return to Big 12 Conference action this weekend at Kansas State (10-11, 0-3), opened a two-game, mid-week series with No. 6 Arizona on Tuesday night at Reynolds Stadium with a 10-2 victory in front of a season-high 1,856.

Right-hander Matt Gardner worked a season-best 61⁄3 innings and the Pokes blew the contest open in the fourth inning with a little help from the Wildcats (13-6).

Tied at 1-1 after Donnie Webb’s double and Neil Medchill’s RBI ground ball in the second, Webb’s bunt with runners at first and second led to a wild throw by UA pitcher Mike Colla and a 2-1 lead and runners at second and third in the fourth.

After a walk, Luis Flores scored two with a single and the lead moved to 4-1.

A hard-hit ground ball off the bat of Thomas Belza led to an error and scored another and the hosts led 5-1. Jordy Mercer’s hot-shot to third made it 6-1, and before the Pokes were through in the fourth, 10 batters had come to the plate, five runs had scored on just three hits, and the Wildcats threw in three errors for good measure.

“We weren’t too sure what to expect (with Gardner),” said OSU head coach Frank Anderson. “It was good for him to throw the ball over the plate and compete. We made some plays behind him and it was his second straight good outing.

“Arizona is a good club, so it was a nice win for us.

Entering Tuesday, UA had committed 34 errors in 18 games and had not scored a run in 191⁄3 innings. They broke the scoreless drought in the second inning, but failed to capitalize on a number of scoring chances over the first three innings.

“I was laboring a little bit early,” admitted Gardner, who tossed six innings in O-State’s 34-1 victory against Arkansas-Pine Bluff last week. “I was talking to Rebel (Ridling) about maybe going out and getting a quick inning and I was able to do that and settle in a little bit.

“It felt good. (UAPB) wasn’t a murderer’s row, but I was able to get some innings and get some confidence going. Pitching is never easy, but it’s easier to do with a lead.

The senior from Andrews, Texas, struck out six and gave up seven hits, three of them in the seventh inning. Gardner (3-1) faced 27 batters and tossed 101 pitches before giving way to left-hander Brett Davis, who struck out his only batter, and Robbie Weinhardt, who struck out the .370-hitting Colt Sedbrook to end the seventh and keep the Pokes in front, 7-2.

UA’s fourth error of the evening gave the hosts an 8-2 advantage in the bottom of the seventh. Ridling’s RBI ground ball and pinch-hitter Dusty Harvard’s RBI single in the eighth closed the scoring.

Webb pushed his batting average to .403 with a 2-for-4 night that also included three runs scored. Ridling was 3-for-5

“This is a great win for us. We stayed patient at the plate,” said Webb, a junior from Stillwater. “We put pressure on their defense all night. They made errors, but we were hitting it hard and you could tell they were on their heels a little bit.

“We expect them to come back (tonight) ready to play.”

The two teams finish the short series tonight at 6:30. The Wildcats have lost five of their last six games.

Union product Matt Willis (1-0, 3.88 ERA) is expected to start on the mound for Anderson’s squad.



Early numbers

Through 21 games, Oklahoma State led the Big 12 Conference in team batting at .332. Texas, with a 17-6 mark, was No. 2 at .325. Kansas State, who hosts the Cowboys this weekend, is hitting a league-low .226. Wildcat hitters have struck out a Big 12-high 170 times.

A trio of Cowboys — Donnie Webb (.402), Matt Hague (.389) and Rebel Ridling (.372) rank among the league’s top 12 in hitting.



A little history

OSU and Arizona met 13 times prior to Tuesday night’s game at Reynolds Stadium. The first five meetings came in the College World Series, the first in 1954.

The Wildcats beat O-State, 7-4, in 2003 in the last game between the two programs.

        

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