STILLWATER – Oklahoma State secured a series win on the final weekend of the regular season with a 15-1 run-rule victory over New Orleans in seven innings Friday night at O'Brate Stadium.
With the win, the 21st-ranked Cowboys improved to 32-16-1 on the season, which includes a 23-8-1 mark at home. OSU is scheduled to conclude the regular season with Saturday's series finale, which is scheduled for 1 p.m.
OSU celebrated Senior Night on Friday, and several of the 12 Pokes honored before the game played prominent roles in the win.
Mitchell Stone picked up the win on the mound to improve to 2-0 as he worked five shutout innings and allowed just three hits. The southpaw struck out five and did not issue a walk.
Offensively, the Cowboys racked up 14 hits, led by Christian Encarnacion-Strand's 3-for-5, four-RBI night. Both Cade Cabbiness and Nick DeNicola homered and doubled, while Max Hewitt, Jake Thompson and Brock Mathis each had two RBIs.
OSU took control early rallying for six runs in both the second and third innings and then plating their final three runs in the fourth.
A two-RBI double by Mathis got the OSU scoring started, and a sacrifice fly by Caeden Trenkle brought home the third run. Later in the frame, Encarnacion-Strand delivered a two-RBI single before an RBI single by Thompson made the score 6-0.
The Pokes opened the third with a power surge as Cabbiness and DeNicola delivered back-to-back home runs. Encarnacion-Strand, Thompson and Carson McCusker also picked up RBIs as the rout was on.
OSU's final three runs came when Trenkle, Hewitt and Encarnacion-Strand tallied consecutive RBI singles in the fourth.
The game also saw the return of two of the Cowboys' top pitchers as Parker Scott, who had not pitched since April 16 at TCU, worked the sixth inning before Brett Standlee took the hill for the first time since May 2 at OU and sealed the win with a scoreless seventh.
