2006 National Champions
Image by Rich Heins
2006 Postseason Statistics And Game-By-Game
Oregon State went to the 2006 College World Series in Omaha as veterans after the Beavers made their second all-time appearance at the CWS in 2005.
The Beavers returned a number of players who made the 2005 appearance, and who were bounced after two games. That left them hungry, knowing they wanted more. And in 2006, they did not disappoint as Oregon State went 6-2 over eight games in Omaha to claim its first national championship.
The Beavers dispatched of North Carolina in the national title series. Oregon State lost to the Tar Heels, 4-3, in the first game, and saw itself behind UNC, 5-0, after three-and-a-half innings, but the Beavers scored seven in the bottom of the fourth and forced a third game after an 11-7 victory. A North Carolina error in the eighth gave the Beavers a run, breaking a 2-2 tie in the deciding game, and ultimately, the victory.
That national championship victory made the Beavers the first NCAA title holder from the Pacific-10 Conference since USC in 1998.
• Oregon State became the first team from the Pacific Northwest to win the national title, and the first from the northern part of the country to win it in 40 years.
• The Beavers were the first team to ever face six elimination games at the College World Series. And OSU became the first national championship club to win despite losing two games in Omaha.
• Oregon State opened its trip in Omaha by losing to Miami, 11-1. By virtue of that loss, the Beavers became just the second team in the last 25 years to win the title after losing their first game.
• Right-handed starter Jonah Nickerson was named the Most Oustanding Player of the College World Series. He made three CWS appearances, throwing 21 2/3 innings, allowing just four runs (two earned), 12 hits and four walks. Nickerson struck out 19.
• Nickerson ended the postseason with a 4-0 record, winning at least one game in the NCAA Regional, NCAA Super Regional and College World Series. He threw 36 2/3 innings over five games and allowed just 20 hits to go along with 34 strikeouts and a 1.23 ERA.
• Nickerson paced the Oregon State pitching staff, which saw eight pitchers contribute in the postseason run. Only one pitcher had an ERA above 5.00, and the team combined to limit opponents to a .219 batting average.
• Offensively, the Beavers finished with a .302 average as a team through 13 postseason games. Tyler Graham paced the way for the Beavers with a .426 batting average while Bill Rowe was close behind with a .419 mark. His 18 runs batted in led the team.
• Oregon State opened the postseason by hosting an NCAA Regional and the Beavers outscored their opponents - Wright State, Kansas and Hawaii - by a combined 28-9 mark. Oregon State never trailed during regional play.
• The Beavers defeated Stanford, 4-3, to open Super Regional play at Goss in the next round, then shut out the Cardinal, 15-0, in the second game to advance to Omaha. The 15-run win marked the second-biggest in the school’s postseason history and was just the second shutout ever thrown, at the time, by OSU pitchers in NCAA play.
• Oregon State advanced to the postseason by winning the Pac-10 title and was named a No. 1 seed at its own regional.
• The Beavers ended the 2006 season with 50 victories, a school-record. It eclipsed the previous record of 46 set in 2005.
2006 Postseason Statistics And Game-By-Game
Oregon State went to the 2006 College World Series in Omaha as veterans after the Beavers made their second all-time appearance at the CWS in 2005.
The Beavers returned a number of players who made the 2005 appearance, and who were bounced after two games. That left them hungry, knowing they wanted more. And in 2006, they did not disappoint as Oregon State went 6-2 over eight games in Omaha to claim its first national championship.
The Beavers dispatched of North Carolina in the national title series. Oregon State lost to the Tar Heels, 4-3, in the first game, and saw itself behind UNC, 5-0, after three-and-a-half innings, but the Beavers scored seven in the bottom of the fourth and forced a third game after an 11-7 victory. A North Carolina error in the eighth gave the Beavers a run, breaking a 2-2 tie in the deciding game, and ultimately, the victory.
That national championship victory made the Beavers the first NCAA title holder from the Pacific-10 Conference since USC in 1998.
• Oregon State became the first team from the Pacific Northwest to win the national title, and the first from the northern part of the country to win it in 40 years.
• The Beavers were the first team to ever face six elimination games at the College World Series. And OSU became the first national championship club to win despite losing two games in Omaha.
• Oregon State opened its trip in Omaha by losing to Miami, 11-1. By virtue of that loss, the Beavers became just the second team in the last 25 years to win the title after losing their first game.
• Right-handed starter Jonah Nickerson was named the Most Oustanding Player of the College World Series. He made three CWS appearances, throwing 21 2/3 innings, allowing just four runs (two earned), 12 hits and four walks. Nickerson struck out 19.
• Nickerson ended the postseason with a 4-0 record, winning at least one game in the NCAA Regional, NCAA Super Regional and College World Series. He threw 36 2/3 innings over five games and allowed just 20 hits to go along with 34 strikeouts and a 1.23 ERA.
• Nickerson paced the Oregon State pitching staff, which saw eight pitchers contribute in the postseason run. Only one pitcher had an ERA above 5.00, and the team combined to limit opponents to a .219 batting average.
• Offensively, the Beavers finished with a .302 average as a team through 13 postseason games. Tyler Graham paced the way for the Beavers with a .426 batting average while Bill Rowe was close behind with a .419 mark. His 18 runs batted in led the team.
• Oregon State opened the postseason by hosting an NCAA Regional and the Beavers outscored their opponents - Wright State, Kansas and Hawaii - by a combined 28-9 mark. Oregon State never trailed during regional play.
• The Beavers defeated Stanford, 4-3, to open Super Regional play at Goss in the next round, then shut out the Cardinal, 15-0, in the second game to advance to Omaha. The 15-run win marked the second-biggest in the school’s postseason history and was just the second shutout ever thrown, at the time, by OSU pitchers in NCAA play.
• Oregon State advanced to the postseason by winning the Pac-10 title and was named a No. 1 seed at its own regional.
• The Beavers ended the 2006 season with 50 victories, a school-record. It eclipsed the previous record of 46 set in 2005.
