Christian Ostrander Promoted to Baseball Associate Head Coach
7/22/2021 3:50:00 PM | Baseball
HATTIESBURG, Miss. – Southern Miss Director of Athletics Jeremy McClain announced the promotion of Christian Ostrander to associate head baseball coach Thursday.
Ostrander, who recently finished his fourth season with the program overseeing its pitchers, has enjoyed a successful stint that includes three NCAA regional berths, mentoring one National Pitcher of the Year, three All-American, one Freshman All-American and two Conference USA Pitchers of the Year in Nick Sandlin (2018) and Walker Powell (2021).
"This is a well-deserved promotion for Coach Ostrander," said Southern Miss baseball coach Scott Berry. "He continues a long history of assistant coaches that have made impacts on this program. Oz is very good at what he does, and his character aligns with what Southern Miss baseball is all about."
In 2021, Ostrander collected the C-USA Assistant Coach of the Year as the Golden Eagles finished the season ranked No. 1 nationally in strikeout-to-walk ratio (4.06), No. 2 in walks per 9 innings (2.24), No. 3 in shutouts (8), No. 6 in WHIP (1.17) and 20th in earned run average (3.74).
The Golden Eagles led the league in ERA, opposing batting average (.236) and batters struck out (560). They also finished second in the conference by allowing just 138 walks, which was the fewest given up by the squad since allowing 137 in 1982.
In his three full seasons, not counting 2020, the program has put together at least seven shutouts each year and posted a 23-0 record when they allowed two or fewer runs along with a 34-9 mark when they gave up five runs or less in 2021.
Under his tutelage, the Golden Eagles posted their second no-hitter in the last three seasons when Powell blanked Middle Tennessee on May 8, and the team's strikeout total this spring was the second most in school history.
Ostrander came to Southern Miss from Louisiana Tech where he was the pitching coach there for two seasons. Prior to his stint at LA Tech, he was the head baseball coach at Jones College and in addition spent five seasons as an assistant coach at Arkansas State and four seasons as an assistant coach at Delta State.
He is a two-time Delta State graduate.
Ostrander, who recently finished his fourth season with the program overseeing its pitchers, has enjoyed a successful stint that includes three NCAA regional berths, mentoring one National Pitcher of the Year, three All-American, one Freshman All-American and two Conference USA Pitchers of the Year in Nick Sandlin (2018) and Walker Powell (2021).
"This is a well-deserved promotion for Coach Ostrander," said Southern Miss baseball coach Scott Berry. "He continues a long history of assistant coaches that have made impacts on this program. Oz is very good at what he does, and his character aligns with what Southern Miss baseball is all about."
In 2021, Ostrander collected the C-USA Assistant Coach of the Year as the Golden Eagles finished the season ranked No. 1 nationally in strikeout-to-walk ratio (4.06), No. 2 in walks per 9 innings (2.24), No. 3 in shutouts (8), No. 6 in WHIP (1.17) and 20th in earned run average (3.74).
The Golden Eagles led the league in ERA, opposing batting average (.236) and batters struck out (560). They also finished second in the conference by allowing just 138 walks, which was the fewest given up by the squad since allowing 137 in 1982.
In his three full seasons, not counting 2020, the program has put together at least seven shutouts each year and posted a 23-0 record when they allowed two or fewer runs along with a 34-9 mark when they gave up five runs or less in 2021.
Under his tutelage, the Golden Eagles posted their second no-hitter in the last three seasons when Powell blanked Middle Tennessee on May 8, and the team's strikeout total this spring was the second most in school history.
Ostrander came to Southern Miss from Louisiana Tech where he was the pitching coach there for two seasons. Prior to his stint at LA Tech, he was the head baseball coach at Jones College and in addition spent five seasons as an assistant coach at Arkansas State and four seasons as an assistant coach at Delta State.
He is a two-time Delta State graduate.
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