Tag: ella parker

Sooners score 12 in the first to wreck the Texas Tech Red Raiders

The Oklahoma Sooners got off to a hot start in their 15-2 win over the Texas Tech Red Raiders.

The Oklahoma Sooners got off to a phenomenal start in their 15-2 win over the Texas Tech Red Raiders with 12 runs in the first inning before ever registering and out. And they never looked back.

[autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag] swung at the first pitch she saw, dribbling it into center field. After Coleman took second on a passed ball, [autotag]Ella Parker[/autotag] beat out a play to first to put runners on the corner, and Kasidi Pickering walked to load the bases for the red-hot Cydney Sanders. Sanders singled to right field, bringing in Coleman to take a 1-0 lead.

Tiare Jennings then doubled to bring two more in, and [autotag]Alyssa Brito[/autotag] drew another Sooners walk to load the bases again. [autotag]Riley Ludlam[/autotag] walked to make it 4-0. RBI singles from [autotag]Avery Hodge[/autotag] and [autotag]Rylie Boone[/autotag] made it 6-0 as the Sooners batted around in the first inning.

Still, with no outs and the bases loaded, [autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag] drew a walk to make it 7-0, and [autotag]Ella Parker[/autotag] singled to bring in Hodge and Boone, and the Sooners were up 9-0. Then the Sooners got their only home run of the inning, a three-run shot to right by [autotag]Kasidi Pickering[/autotag] to put Oklahoma up 12-0 before registering their first out of the game.

It was an incredible effort from the Sooners, who drew five walks in the inning.

According to SoonerSports.com, the 12 runs were the most scored in an inning by the Sooners since 2022 against the Kansas Jayhawks.

In the circle, Kierston Deal allowed a solo home run in the first and one in the fourth. They were the first runs she’d given up since her start against Long Beach State in Puerto Vallarta to start the season. Deal threw 3.1 innings, allowing just three hits, no walks and recording one strikeout. Despite the home runs, it was another strong performance for Deal who has been great over the last month.

[autotag]Karlie Keeney[/autotag] pitched 1.2 scoreless innings, striking out two Red Raiders without allowing a hit.

Texas Tech came into the series third in the conference in runs scored and home runs, and the Sooners’ pitching staff has allowed just two runs through 12 innings.

[autotag]Tiare Jennings[/autotag], who reached base in all five plate appearances on Friday night, did it again Saturday. She was 2-for-2 with a double, a walk, and three RBIs. This weekend, she’s 5-for-5 with two doubles, two home runs, three walks and nine RBIs.

[autotag]Ella Parker[/autotag], batting in the two spot, was 3-for-4 with a double and three RBIs. The Sooners leader in batting average is now hitting .450 as a true freshman.

The Sooners look to close out their series in Texas Tech with a sweep Sunday at Noon. Oklahoma is now 26-1 (5-0 Big 12) this season and riding an eight game winnings streak.

After [autotag]Kelly Maxwell[/autotag] pitched Friday night and Deal threw on Saturday, [autotag]Nicole May[/autotag] will likely get the ball to close out the series.

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Kelly Maxwell dazzles, Tiare Jennings hits two home runs in Sooners win over Texas Tech

The Oklahoma Sooners got a fantastic outing from Kelly Maxwell and Tiare Jennings launched two home runs as the Sooners beat Texas Tech 14-0

The No. 1 Oklahoma Sooners traveled to Lubbock, Texas, to take on the Texas Tech Red Raiders. OU took the first of three games 14-0.

[autotag]Kelly Maxwell[/autotag] threw six innings, striking out 10, allowing two hits and four walks to move to 8-0 on the season, and [autotag]Tiare Jennings[/autotag] led the way with two home runs and six RBIs.

Oklahoma got the scoring going in the top of the first. After [autotag]Ella Parker[/autotag] stole second, Jennings brought her home on an RBI double to put Oklahoma up 1-0.

In the second inning, [autotag]Kinzie Hansen[/autotag] hit her seventh home run of the season to put Oklahoma up 2-0.

In the third innings, the Sooners put up three runs on a pair of walks from [autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag] and [autotag]Cydney Sanders[/autotag] and the first of Jennings’ two home runs to give the Sooners a commanding 5-0 lead.

Oklahoma added another run in the fourth to make it 6-0.

Maxwell cruised throughout the game until running into a bit of trouble in the sixth inning. She allowed a leadoff walk, then hit the next Texas Tech batter before issuing another walk to load the bases. The veteran star then showed incredible poise, striking out the next three Red Raider hitters to keep the game scoreless through six.

Then in the top of the seventh, the Sooners lineup put an exclamation point on the evening with an eight-run inning to leave no doubt.

Alyssa Brito led off the inning with a single and then Tiare Jennings launched her second home run of the game to put OU up 8-0. [autotag]Riley Ludlam[/autotag] walked and then with one out, so did Alynah Torres. Singles by [autotag]Rylie Boone[/autotag] and [autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag] and a [autotag]Cydney Sanders[/autotag] fielder’s choice tacked on three more runs before [autotag]Maya Bland[/autotag] doubled to bring in two more and make the score 13-0. Jennings and Ludlam walked to load the bases for [autotag]Quincee Lilio[/autotag] who also walked to score Bland and make it 14-0 Oklahoma.

[autotag]Peytn Monticelli[/autotag] came in to pitch a scoreless seventh, striking out two and hitting a batter to close out the game.

The Sooners moved to 25-1 on the season and 4-0 in Big 12 play.

Tiare Jennings led the way at the plate with a 3-for-3 day with two home runs, six RBIs, a double, and two walks. She retook the team RBI lead and now sits with nine home runs and 31 RBIs on the season. Jennings’ batting average is now up to .423.

Cydney Sanders, who had been red hot in the month of March, didn’t record a hit in the game, but walked four times had an RBI and scored a run. Jayda Coleman was 2-for-4 and reached base on a walk.

Over her last three starts, Kelly Maxwell is 3-0 and hasn’t allowed a run while recording 25 strikeouts in 18 innings pitched.

It was a strong performance to set the stage for the weekend on a cool night in Lubbock. The Sooners will take the field Saturday at 1 p.m. CT against the Texas Tech Red Raiders.

More: How to watch the No. 1 Oklahoma Sooners vs. Texas Tech

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‘We were out of the running lane’: Patty Gasso explains controversial out call in Oklahoma’s loss to Louisiana

In a game with a lot of controversial moments, one stands above the rest. Patty Gasso breaks it down.

In the Oklahoma Sooners’ loss to the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns on Sunday, there were several controversial moments. But one such moments stood above the rest.

In the bottom of the fifth inning, the Sooners were down by one, 3-2. Freshman [autotag]Ella Parker[/autotag] came up to bat with two outs and hit a ground ball. Though it appeared the first baseman had to jump off the bag to catch the throw, Parker was called out at first.

A lengthy review determined she was still out even though it was clear the first baseman came off the bag to make the catch. If she had been called safe, the Sooners were going to score one run and maybe two to take the lead.

Patty Gasso explained after the game why the call stood as an out.

“We were out of the running lane,” Gasso said. “It was interference by the runner. That’s why the contact happened. If she was one step over in the running lane, she would have been safe. It was a crazy game like that. Lots of controversy.”

She was then asked about having a safety bag, which is an extra bag on the foul side of the first base line so runners can run through that to avoid contact with the first baseman. Gasso said she is not an advocate of the safety bag.

That was just another play in a long list of plays that didn’t end up going Oklahoma’s way, contributing to the loss.

More: Best photos from the Sooners opening day at Love’s Field

More: Social media reacts to Sooners loss to Louisiana 

 

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Oklahoma Sooners earn 70th win in a row with 8-0 win over Louisiana

The Oklahoma Sooners extended their win streak to 70 with an 8-0 win over Louisiana.

The Oklahoma Sooners moved to 17-0 with an 8-0 win over the Louisiana Ragin Cajuns in the first of two games on Saturday. OU has now won an incredible 70 games in a row.

[autotag]Kierston Deal[/autotag] got the start and worked four scoreless innings, allowing three hits, two walks, and a hit batter with two strikeouts in the outing. [autotag]Peytn Monticelli[/autotag] came in and threw a scoreless fifth inning to help Oklahoma seal the win.

Oklahoma’s offense got going early with a three-run first inning. [autotag]Alyssa Brito[/autotag], [autotag]Ella Parker[/autotag], and [autotag]Tiare Jennings[/autotag] each had an RBI double in the frame to put the Sooners up early.

The Sooners added four more runs in the second. [autotag]Riley Ludlam[/autotag] led off with a solo home run before Brito doubled home [autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag] for her second extra-base hit of the game. Parker walked to load the bases and [autotag]Avery Hodge[/autotag] earned another walk to score [autotag]Riley Boone[/autotag]. [autotag]Tiare Jennings[/autotag] closed the scoring with a sacrifice fly to put the Sooners up 7-0.

In the bottom of the fourth, [autotag]Alyssa Brito[/autotag] smashed her third double of the day, and after a passed ball allowed Brito to get to third and eventually scored on [autotag]Maya Bland[/autotag]’s ground out.

The Sooners will take on Liberty in the afternoon part of their Saturday double-header after beating the Flames 8-0 on Friday night.

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Oklahoma Sooners walk off opener at Love’s Field, 9-7 over Miami (OH)

It didn’t start off great but Oklahoma rallied for a 9-7 walk-off win in their first game at Love’s Field.

The Oklahoma Sooners played their first game at their new home. [autotag]Love’s Field[/autotag], the nation’s largest on-campus softball stadium, is the new home of the Sooners.

Things didn’t start well for the Sooners. The nation’s leader in home runs, the Miami (OH) Redhawks, hit back-to-back home runs off [autotag]Nicole May[/autotag] in the top of the 1st inning to get things started. The Redhawks led 3-0 after the top of the 1st. The Sooners loaded the bases with no one out in the bottom of the 1st but only managed to score one run on an [autotag]Ella Parker[/autotag] sacrifice fly that scored [autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag]. Miami (OH) led 3-1 after one.

The 2nd inning was all about clutch pitching. Both pitchers were able to get out of two on jams.

The bottom of the 4th inning looked like it was going to be a big one. [autotag]Rylie Boone[/autotag] and [autotag]Kinzie Hansen[/autotag] started things off by putting runners on second and third respectively with no outs. [autotag]Alynah Torres[/autotag] grounded out but was able to score Boone. Right after that, Miami (OH) struck out [autotag]Cydney Sanders[/autotag] and got Coleman to pop out to only allow one run. The Redhawks led 3-2 after four.

[autotag]Karlie Keeney[/autotag] made quick work in the 5th inning and then [autotag]Alyssa Brito[/autotag] hit the first Sooners’ home run at Love’s Field to tie the game up at three heading to the 6th inning.

In the bottom of the 6th inning, [autotag]Riley Ludlam[/autotag] came in as a pinch hitter and hit a single up the middle that scored Hansen to give the Sooners their first lead. The very next at-bat, Coleman hit a two-run shot to give the Sooners a 6-3 lead. But they weren’t done there because in the very next at-bat freshman [autotag]Kasidi Pickering[/autotag] hit a solo shot to right field. The Sooners headed to the 7th inning with a 7-3 lead and needed three outs to improve to 15-0 on the season.

Keeney allowed back-to-back-to-back home runs to Miami to tie the game at seven with no outs in the inning. Keeney recovered to retire the side, setting the game up for another heroic moment.

The Sooners needed someone to step up and it was two of their veterans who did it. Boone started things off with a single before Hansen hit a walk-off two-run home run to win the game and extend Oklahoma’s winning streak to 68 and open Love’s Field with a huge win.

The Sooners face Liberty in the night cap of their double-header in their new home.

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Oklahoma Sooners earn top 25 win over Mississippi State Bulldogs 9-3

The Oklahoma Sooners extended their winning streak with a big win over the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

The Oklahoma Sooners are out in California for the [autotag]Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic[/autotag]. And the first day of action in Cathedral City proved to live up to the hype.

In their first matchup of the evening, the Mississippi State Bulldogs fired the first salvo with a two-run home run in the top of the first inning from Jessie Blaine. But their first inning lead was shortlived as Sooners catcher Kinzie Hansen tied it up with a two-run home run of her own.

Oklahoma starter [autotag]Nicole May[/autotag] ran into some more trouble in the second inning against a very good Bulldogs lineup. Sierra Sacco gave Mississippi State the 3-2 lead on a single with two outs in the inning.

As they did in the bottom of the first, the Sooners answered right back in the bottom of the second.

True freshman [autotag]Ella Parker[/autotag] singled to lead off the inning and with one out, Avery Hodge’s infield single put runners on first and second for [autotag]Rylie Boone[/autotag]. Boone proceeded to give the Sooners the lead with a two-run double to right field.

In the bottom of the third, Parker tacked onto the Sooners lead, driving in Alyssa Brito to give OU a 5-3 lead.

The Sooners added two more runs to their lead in the bottom of the fourth. [autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag] drew a one-out walk and [autotag]Tiare Jennings[/autotag] doubled to bring her home for a 6-3 lead. The Sooners kept the pressure on with [autotag]Alyssa Brito[/autotag] singling to bring home Jennings to put Oklahoma in a commanding 7-3 lead.

After May walked the lead-off hitter on four pitchers to start the fifth, Patty Gasso brought in [autotag]S.J. Geurin[/autotag], who retired the next three Bulldogs hitters to get out of the inning.

More: How to watch the Oklahoma Sooners in the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic

Oklahoma didn’t slow down their offensive onslaught, adding two more runs in the bottom of the fifth.

After surrendering a one-out walk and a fielder’s choice, Gasso turned to [autotag]Kelly Maxwell[/autotag]. Maxwell came in and got the final out of the inning.

Things got interesting in the bottom of the seventh as Maxwell surrendered a pair of walks, but she also struck out the side to close out the Sooners win.

May threw four innings, surrendering three runs on seven hits and three walks. She also had four strikeouts in the game and earned her fourth win of the season. It wasn’t a clean performance, but she battled and was able to get out of some tough situations.

Jayda Coleman, Tiare Jennings, Alyssa Brito, and Ella Parker each had two hits, and six different Sooners recorded an RBI in the top 25 win over Mississippi State.

More: Top matchups for this week in College Softball

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3 Stars from Oklahoma’s 5-0 weekend in the Cowgirl Challenge

The Oklahoma Sooners continued their record-winning streak in the Cowgirl Challenge and here are this weekend’s three stars.

The Oklahoma Sooners just completed a 5-0 weekend in Lake Charles, La. at the Cowgirl Challenge hosted by McNeese State.

Though the schedule may not have been as daunting as the week before, McNeese State and Central Arkansas were NCAA tournament teams in 2023 that represented themselves well in the regional. McNeese State nearly pulled off the upset to advance to the Super Regionals.

Against a couple of rising programs, the Sooners outscored the opposition 36-1 in the five games, earning a trio of run rules.

The pitching staff threw four shutouts as Patty Gasso and Jennifer Rocha went deep into their arsenal, utilizing six different pitchers during the weekend.

After another tremendous weekend in which the Sooners extended their winning streak to 62 games, and haven’t lost now in more than a year, here are the three stars and a few honorable mentions from the weekend.

Kelly Maxwell throws a gem in Sooners 8-1 win over McNeese State

Kelly Maxwell struck out 8 and Alyssa Brito launched her fourth home run in the Sooners 8-1 win over McNeese State.

After picking up a run-rule win in their opener in the Cowgirl Challenge, the Oklahoma Sooners kept the good times rolling in their nightcap with the 2023 NCAA Tournament qualifier McNeese State.

It was another decisive win for the Sooners. However, they were forced to play from behind due to a first inning home run from McNeese State’s Corine Poncho off of Sooners starter [autotag]Kelly Maxwell[/autotag].

She left the ball high and over the plate and Poncho made her pay for it with a drive to deep center field. Maxwell rebounded with a masterful performance over the remainder of her five innings pitched.

After the home run, Maxwell allowed just two more hits the rest of the way and racked up eight strikeouts without allowing a walk to lead the Sooners to the 8-1 win.

It didn’t take long for the Sooners to respond to the early deficit. After going down in order in the top of the second, [autotag]Ella Parker[/autotag] led off the top of the second with an infield single and [autotag]Kinzie Hansen[/autotag] drove a ball up the middle for a single of her own. After [autotag]Kasidi Pickering[/autotag]’s fielder’s choice put runners on first and third with one, [autotag]Cydney Sanders[/autotag] struck out on a 3-2 pitch. But with two outs in the inning, [autotag]Rylie Boone[/autotag] came through in the clutch once again with a two-RBI single to center field to give the Sooners the 2-1 lead.

Maxwell pitched a 1-2-3 bottom of the second for the shutdown inning and the Sooners went right back to the work in the top of the third with a lead-off single from [autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag]. Coleman advanced to second on a wild pitch.

After another infield single from [autotag]Alyssa Brito[/autotag], Coleman and Brito scored on a bunt single from [autotag]Tiare Jennings[/autotag] and a throwing error to put the Sooners up 4-1. Hansen then drove in Jennings on a sacrifice fly to end the inning with a commanding 5-1 lead.

Though they had opportunities to add to the lead in the fourth and fifth after getting their lead-off hitter on base, the Sooners couldn’t capitalize. However, Oklahoma took advantage of [autotag]Cydney Sanders[/autotag]’ lead-off single in the sixth. [autotag]Rylie Boone[/autotag] earned her second base hit of the game and fourth of the day to move Sanders to second. A sacrifice bunt from Alynah Torres moved Sanders and Boone into scoring position for Jayda Coleman, who drove Sanders in with a sacrifice fly to make it 6-1. Then Alyssa Brito hammered her fourth home run of the season on a 2-2 count to put Oklahoma up 8-1.

[autotag]Karlie Keeney[/autotag] relieved Maxwell in the sixth and pitched two scoreless innings to finish off the Cowgirls and move to 6-0 on the season. With the win, the Sooners winning streak moves to 59 games ahead of their double-header on Saturday.

Maxwell is now 3-0 on the season and has allowed just four hits in 12.2 innings of work. The opposition is hitting just .098 off of Maxwell in the early stages of the season.

Brito finished the day 3-for-4, and Hansen and Boone also collected multi-hit games. It was Boone’s second game of the day with a pair of hits. Boone and Brito are now hitting .500 on the season. Brito is tied with Kasidi Pickering for the team lead in RBIs with seven. Boone is just two off the pace with five RBIs in 2024 after collecting four between the two games on Friday.

The Sooners are back in action on Saturday with games against Lamar and McNeese State. The game against Lamar can be streamed on SoonerSports.com while the matchup with McNeese State will be streamed on ESPN+.

More: How to watch, key players for Oklahoma Sooners in Cowgirl Challenge

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Oklahoma Sooners run rule Central Arkansas 9-0 to open Cowgirl Challenge

Oklahoma Sooners opened their weekend in the Cowgirl Challenge with a 9-0 win over Central Arkansas.

The Oklahoma Sooners offense erupted in the bottom of the fourth inning for nine runs, which was all they needed to beat Central Arkansas and move to 5-0 on the season.

Central Arkansas starter Julia Petty kept the Sooners’ bats at bay for three innings, surrendering just a few hits. But in the bottom of the fourth inning, the Sooners bats came to life.

[autotag]Kinzie Hansen[/autotag] led off the inning with an infield single and advanced to second on a throwing error. True freshman [autotag]Ella Parker[/autotag] took advantage and drove Hansen in on an RBI single, giving the Sooners a 1-0 lead. Parker took second on the throw home. After [autotag]Kasidi Pickering[/autotag] walked, [autotag]Alynah Torres[/autotag] singled to bring Parker in to make it 2-0. Pickering went first to third on the hit to keep the scoring threat alive.

After Torres stole second, putting a pair of runners in scoring position, [autotag]Rylie Boone[/autotag] cleared the bases with a triple to right field. [autotag]Avery Hodge[/autotag] followed that up with a triple of her own to make it 5-0 Sooners with no outs in the inning.

Hodge scored on a wild pitch to make it 6-0 followed by doubles from [autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag] and [autotag]Tiare Jennings[/autotag] made it 7-0. [autotag]Riley Ludlam[/autotag], pinch hitting for [autotag]Cydney Sanders[/autotag], reahed on an error and Hansen walked to load the bases for Parker. Parker came through again with an RBI single to score Jennings and make it 8-0 and put the run rule in effect. The final run of the nine-run fourth inning came from [autotag]Hannah Coor[/autotag], who reached on a fielder’s choice but scored Ludlam in the process.

It was the type of showing that reminded us that the Sooners can put runs on the board in a hurry. They sent 11 batters to the plate before Central Arkansas was able to record an out in the inning. By the time the bottom of the fourth came to a close, the game was all but over.

[autotag]Nicole May[/autotag] threw another four scoreless innings to keep her ERA at a perfect 0.00 on the season. She allowed one hit and one walk while striking out six for another fantastic performance from the Sooners veteran.

[autotag]Peytn Monticelli[/autotag] worked a scoreless fifth inning, surrendering a walk while also striking out the side to close out the Sooners win.

Coleman, Jennings, Parker, and Torres each recorded two hits. Parker and Boone each had a pair of RBIs.

It was a strong performance to start the weekend in Lake Charles. Though the bats were slow to get going, once they did, Oklahoma couldn’t be stopped. The Sooners extended their record winning-streak to 58 games with the win ahead of their night cap with McNeese State.

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Oklahoma Softball signs four players on national signing day

Oklahoma Softball had a great day, landing four top 20 recruits on national signing day. From @bendackiw

National Signing Day is always a fun time for both the student-athlete and their families. As a national power, Oklahoma Softball always gets the cream of the crop.

Head Coach Patty Gasso does not play around on the recruiting trail.

OU Softball signed four players on national signing day: outfielder Maya Bland, infielder Maya McEnroe-Marinas, utility player Ella Parker and utility player Kasidi Pickering.

It was a good day for the crimson and cream. Let’s take a better look at the new Sooners.