Big 12 Tournament: Cowboys Advance To Title Game After Bedlam Victory

Postseason baseball often comes down to defense and timely hitting. Oklahoma State controlled both Saturday, and ended up with a 5-1 win over the Sooners.

"When you watch these games, you can appreciate how one play here or there can change an inning,” said OSU head coach Josh Holliday. “Our kids have been awesome on the infield making play after play."

The Sooners hit into three double plays, and Bryan Case threw out runners trying to steal in back-to-back innings, preventing Oklahoma from getting anything going.

"They were playing aggressive; they were playing to win, and Bryan was able to shorten a couple innings with those great throws,” Holliday explained.

OU catcher Anthony Hermelyn explained what went wrong for the Sooners. "It's just baseball. Sometimes it goes your way, sometimes it doesn't,” he stated. “If you look at last night, we had runners in scoring position only a couple times, but we were able to find ways to get them home. Today was a different story."

OSU pitcher Jon Perrin elaborated on why defense is a major factor for the Cowboys. "Defense is your best friend. You're not striking out 27 guys, I promise that,” he said. “We have a great defensive ball club. It's a credit to our coaches and all the hard work those guys put in. It makes my job and everyone else on the staff's job easier when you can pitch to contact and you don't have to miss many bats to have a good day."

If the rain stops, the stage is set for a pitcher's duel in Sunday's championship game against Texas. The Cowboys have allowed just two runs in three games, while the Longhorns have allowed just four runs, only using three pitchers.