The field of 64 is set as the road to Omaha continued on Monday. There were two Big 12 teams in action on the diamond as the conference went 0-2. Here are my three thoughts on the Big 12 from day four of the college baseball regionals.
Monday’s Scores
Florida: 4, Oklahoma State: 2
UConn: 7, Oklahoma: 1
What Happened to Oklahoma State?
After winning their first two games of the regional with ease, the Cowboys ran into some trouble the last two days. Oklahoma State scored a whopping 26 runs in their first two postseason games before scoring just a total of four runs in their last two games against Florida.
It seemed like the Cowboys were hitting home runs left and right to start the weekend and then they couldn’t hit any in their last 18 innings. That is something we aren’t used to seeing in Stillwater because that is a hitter friendly ballpark. I felt like the pitching held up for Oklahoma State, but their offense just completely disappeared. I will give credit to Florida because winning three games in a span of 36 hours is tough and they were able to do just that.
I really thought that this Oklahoma State team could get to Omaha. They were extremely balanced this season and finally had the pitching that they didn’t have in previous years. I guess it just wasn’t their time, but I find it strange that the Cowboys have hosted three straight regionals and have yet to win one of them. That has to change at some point.
Goodbye Oklahoma
Much like what I said about Texas on Sunday, I am not going to sit here and poke fun at the Sooners. Monday just wasn’t their day and it seemed like nothing was going their way at all against UConn. Their pitching wore down and the offense just couldn’t catch a break.
It just hit me that this will be the last time I talk about an Oklahoma team on this website. It’s been a pleasure having the Sooners in the conference and they finally won their first regular season Big 12 title this year. Skip Johnson is a great coach, and I will never forget that 2022 Oklahoma team that made it all the way to the finals. They have a quality program in Norman, and I am sure they will be just fine in the SEC. Goodbye Oklahoma, I had fun while it lasted.
The Super Regionals are Set
With Oklahoma and Oklahoma State falling on Monday, which means that there are just two Big 12 teams left in the postseason. Kansas State will take on Virginia in Charlottesville while West Virginia will face North Carolina in Chapel Hill.
Both teams are going to have their hands full, and I look forward to seeing them this upcoming weekend. This year has been the year of the underdogs. There are six teams who are either a three or four seed in the Super Regionals which is the most ever in a single season. I just hope that at least one Big 12 team can make it to Omaha this year but two would be even better.
