Athens Regional Loss Not Like the Others for Cowboy Baseball

Oklahoma State couldn’t get out of its regional, but it doesn’t carry the same disappointment as past early exits.

OSU finished second in the Athens Regional in the 2025 NCAA Baseball Tournament, marking yet another early exit for the Cowboys. While many of OSU’s recent regional losses have been followed with major concerns about the program and Josh Holliday’s ability to take the program to the next level, that was far from the case this year.

Entering as the third seed in the Athens Regional, OSU took a big loss to Duke to begin its postseason journey, making some fans question whether the Cowboys deserved their spot in the first place. However, a win against Binghamton at least earned the Cowboys a chance to advance to the Regional Final.

Against No. 7 overall seed and host Georgia, the Cowboys used a walk-off home run to advance to the Regional Final against Duke, marking the signature moment of the OSU season. Leading 2-0 going into the eighth against Duke, the Cowboys looked poised to force a winner-take-all game on Monday.

However, a crushing three-run inning from the Blue Devils was too much for OSU to overcome. While OSU again lost in the Regional Final, there was a sense of accomplishment and pride for even getting to that point.

Of course, being able to feel that way about a regional loss was only possible because of the poor performance in the regular season. Entering 2025, OSU was picked to win the Big 12 and was a clear candidate to host a regional once again.

Despite the high expectations, OSU never reached its potential and spent a large chunk of the season struggling to play .500 baseball, needing to win nine of its final 10 regular season games to get into the NCAA Tournament.

While OSU’s overall season was a disappointment, its ability to overcome a rough start and battle through adversity to reach the postseason marked a major success. Although the Cowboys entered the season wanting to go much further than a regional final, they ended the year in a way that should give them confidence heading into 2026.