Kollin Ritchie's Two Homers and Six RBIs Power Oklahoma State Past Vanderbilt 11-1
Kollin Ritchie homered twice and drove in a career-high six runs as Oklahoma State run-ruled Vanderbilt 11-1 in eight innings at Globe Life Field for its first win of 2026.
ARLINGTON, Texas — Oklahoma State's weekend in Arlington had gone about as badly as a season-opening weekend can. On Sunday, Kollin Ritchie made sure the Cowboys left with something to show for it. The junior center fielder hit two home runs, added a two-run double and drove in a career-high six runs as Oklahoma State beat Vanderbilt 11-1 in eight innings at Globe Life Field, ending the game early under the run rule.
The win was the Cowboys' first of 2026 and came on the final day of the Shriners Children's College Showdown. Oklahoma State had opened the event with a 12-2 loss to Arkansas and a 10-1 loss to Oklahoma, according to FloBaseball. Vanderbilt, ranked No. 23 in D1Baseball's preseason poll, fell to 1-2 after a 5-4 loss to TCU and a 13-3 win over Texas Tech earlier in the weekend.
Lund Sets the Tone
Before the offense woke up, sophomore left-hander Ethan Lund kept the Cowboys in it. Making his first start of the year, Lund threw 3 2/3 scoreless, hitless innings with a career-high eight strikeouts, according to Pokes Report. He was not perfectly efficient, issuing six walks and throwing 93 pitches, according to FloBaseball, but Vanderbilt never got a run across against him.
Vanderbilt sophomore Nate Taylor matched him for a while. Making his Commodores debut, Taylor struck out seven over 4 1/3 innings and allowed just two hits, according to Vanderbilt Athletics. Colin Brueggemann's ground-rule double in the second inning was the game's first hit, per FloBaseball, and the teams were scoreless through four.
The Fifth Inning Breaks It Open
The game turned in the bottom of the fifth. Two walks and a single loaded the bases, and sophomore Garrett Shull lifted a sacrifice fly to right to bring in the first run. Ritchie followed with a three-run homer to right, and Oklahoma State led 4-0. Taylor, who was lifted during the inning, was charged with two runs and took the loss, according to FloBaseball.
The sixth inning put the game away. Pinch hitter Campbell Smithwick was hit by a pitch to drive in a run, Brock Thompson added an RBI single, and Shull drove in another run with his second sacrifice fly of the day. Ritchie then doubled in two more, and Brueggemann's single made it 10-0, according to Pokes Report.
Johnstone Spoils the No-Hit Bid
Noah Wech took over for Lund and kept the Commodores quiet until the seventh, when Logan Johnstone led off with a solo home run to right. The graduate transfer from Washington State broke up the combined no-hitter and the shutout with his first home run as a Commodore, according to Vanderbilt Athletics. Wech still earned the win, working 3 1/3 innings and allowing one run on one hit.
Vanderbilt managed just two hits all afternoon. The other was an eighth-inning single by Carter Johnstone, Logan's younger brother, according to FloBaseball. Sophomore Stormy Rhodes handled the eighth for Oklahoma State.
Ritchie Ends It
Ritchie saved his loudest swing for last. With one out in the bottom of the eighth, he sent a solo home run over the right-field wall to push the lead to 10 runs and end the game. World Baseball Network measured the blast at 392 feet. He finished with three hits, two home runs, a double, three runs scored and six RBIs.
Ritchie pointed to a change in approach after a rough start to the weekend. "I think we slowed everything down and became more comfortable in the box," he told World Baseball Network. "Our timing got better, and the results followed after that."
What It Means
For Oklahoma State, it was the response the Cowboys needed after two lopsided losses to open the season. The pitching staff limited a ranked opponent to two hits, and the lineup finally strung together the kind of innings that had been missing all weekend. Oklahoma State next heads to Phoenix for a four-game series at Grand Canyon beginning Thursday, Feb. 19.
Vanderbilt returns to Nashville for its home opener against Eastern Michigan on Tuesday at Hawkins Field, the first of six straight home games. The Commodores will take some positives from Taylor's debut and Johnstone's first homer for the program. They will not take much else from a Sunday that belonged to Kollin Ritchie.
Photo Credit: Luca Lombardo/Undrafted
