OSU advances to Big 12 title game with Meola’s walk-off home run

Daniel Allen Staff Reporter

ARLINGTON, Texas

– The moment couldn’t have been any bigger.

Tie ball game, one out, nobody on base in the bottom of the ninth, Aidan Meola had the opportunity to send OSU to the Big 12 title game.

Meola fouled off the first pitch from Texas Tech right-handed closer Brandon Beckel, but off the sweet spot. OSU coach Josh Holliday was confident. He knew his second baseman had Beckel timed.

“(Meola) had him,” Holliday said. “I knew it.”

On a two-ball, one-strike count, Meola whipped the bat around his shoulders with all his might. The moment it connected with the ball, he knew it was gone, and so did Holliday.

“Oh yeah,” Holliday said. “I knew (that was gone).”

Meola watched it sail into the upper left-field deck of Globe Life Field to give OSU a 6-5 walk-off win over Texas Tech in the Big 12 semifinal elimination game Saturday night, sending the Cowboys to Sunday’s championship.

He sprinted around the basepath as a herd of white pinstriped OSU jerseys swarmed home plate, awaiting his arrival. As Meola crossed home plate, his teammates flooded him in celebration.

Meola, who has been in and out of the lineup with multiple injuries during his two seasons at OSU, got his moment.

“That’s a magical mo - ment,” Holliday said. “Karma is a real thing in (baseball).

It’s a real thing in life. That’s a kid who got injured and had to have surgery, battled back from his surgery hard, pushed and pushed because he wanted to get back.

“It was just a pretty magical day for our team in so many ways.”

Through the first four innings of Saturday’s contest, a pitcher’s duel took place.

Starter Janzen Keisel threw six innings, featuring eight strikeouts, and carried the Cowboys (41-17, 15-9) until reliever Drew Blake entered in the top of the fifth.

The Red Raiders (39-21, 12-12) made work of the OSU southpaw reliever, scoring five runs in the top of the fifth, highlighted by a three-run homer from catcher Hudson White to the upper left-field deck.

Through seven innings, the opportunity of competing in the championship game seemed out of reach. The Cowboys faced a 5-0 deficit entering the bottom of the eighth.

That’s when things changed.

A single up the middle from center fielder Zach Ehrhard was followed by a two-run homer to left field, off the foul pole from pinch hitter Beau Sylvester. But it didn’t end there.

Five at-bats later, right fielder Carson Benge tied the game with a two-RBI single to right field.

“That was a huge hit from (Benge),” Holliday said. “That was a big moment in the game for us.”

The Red Raiders threatened with two singles in the top of the ninth, but freshman reliever Gabe Davis delivered two clutch strikeouts, including one on the hot hitter, White. “I’m gonna be honest, nothing really goes through my mind when I’m pitching,” Davis said. “I just kind of zone everything out, like I did there, and I get my pitch call.”

Throughout the season, moments as such have gotten away from Davis — a catalyst in his 7.03 ERA entering Saturday. This time was different. His ninth-inning heroics gave Meola a shot to complete the comeback.

Prior to Saturday, Texas

Tech had taken 20 of the 26 matchups since 2016. The Cowboys had to beat that team twice to advance -- and they did.

“(Texas Tech) is a very good program,” Holliday said. “The past 10 years they’ve been one of the best programs in the country. We were just competing our hearts out against a really good ball club. But today was our day.” sports.ed@ocolly.com

With the win, OSU clinched its fourth appearance in the Big 12 Championship game since 2017. The Cowboys will face fourth-seeded TCU on Sunday at 5 p.m. Aidan Meola was unavailable to the media after the game.

TCU didn’t stop there. It pieced together another four-run inning in the top of the third after eight consecutive batters reached base. The Horned Frogs outhit OSU 16-7, concluding a 48-run week through four games.

“At the beginning of the year, when we would hit well, then we wouldn’t pitch,” TCU coach Kirk Sarloos said. “When we pitched well, then we wouldn’t hit. We never got on track. I think (this week) everybody just did their job and handed the baton to the next guy.”

The Cowboys (41-18, 15-9) threaded in the bottom of the third, loading the bases with no outs. However, TCU