Tag: Haley Lee

Jordy Bahl, Cydney Sanders lead Oklahoma to 7-0 win over Baylor.

Jordy Bahl was sensational again, striking out 10 Baylor Bears to lead Oklahoma to a 7-0 win to improve to 40-1.

[autotag]Jordy Bahl[/autotag] extended her scoreless innings streak to 22.2 innings and the Oklahoma Sooners got to Doriana Orme early and often to pick up their 40th win of the season over Baylor 7-0.

After dropping their only game of the season to the Bears just over two months ago, Oklahoma has now won 32 in a row to improve to 40-1 on the season.

Bahl threw an efficient 5.2 innings with 10 strikeouts to pick up her 13th win of the season, and [autotag]Nicole May[/autotag] provided 1.1 innings of scoreless relief. Bahl and May combined for Oklahoma’s 24th shutout of the season by allowing just four hits in the win.

Oklahoma loaded the bases in the first inning but couldn’t cash in on Orme, but made the Baylor ace throw more than 30 pitches in the inning. [autotag]Tiare Jennings[/autotag] attempted to score on a [autotag]Haley Lee[/autotag] single through the right side, but was thrown out from right field at the plate. That was the closest the Sooners came to scoring in the first inning.

It was in the second inning that the Sooners broke through when Cydney Sanders hit her third home run of the season, a bomb to left field.

In the third inning, Tiare Jennings led off with a double, but Oklahoma couldn’t do much with it after Haley Lee popped out in foul territory and [autotag]Alyssa Brito[/autotag] struck out swinging. However, the captain, Grace Lyons, was able to punch a single up the middle, scoring Jennings to give Oklahoma a 2-0 lead.

In the fourth, the Sooners broke the game open, taking advantage of back-to-back errors by the Bears and some timely hitting to take a 5-0 lead and force Orme from the circle.

The Sooners added a couple more in the fifth inning on a double from [autotag]Sophia Nugent[/autotag] and an RBI single from [autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag].

With the win, Bahl improved to 13-1 on the season and has recorded 117 strikeouts in 88.1 innings pitched. She lowered her ERA to 1.12 on the season.

[autotag]Cydney Sanders[/autotag] had perhaps her best performance of the season, going 2-for-2 with a home run, a double, an RBI, two runs scored, and a pair of walks. It was her first game this season with multiple extra-base hits in the same game. In her last three games, Sanders is 4-for-6 with two home runs, two doubles, three RBIs, and five runs scored.

Alyssa Brito and [autotag]Grace Lyons[/autotag] each had multi-hit games in the Sooners win over the Baylor Bears.

The Sooners improved to 10-0 in Big 12 play and after Oklahoma State’s loss to Texas earlier, the Sooners now have a two-game lead for first place in the Big 12. Baylor fell to 4-6 in conference play.

The two sides meet up again at 2 p.m. CT on Saturday. Game two of the series can be seen on ESPN+.

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No. 1 Oklahoma Softball at No. 16/19 Baylor: How to watch, weekend preview, key players, schedule,

The No. 1Oklahoma Sooners return to Waco to face the Baylor Bears in Big 12 action and here’s how you can tune in and our series preview.

The Oklahoma Sooners return to the scene of their only loss on the 2023 season to face the No. 16/19 Baylor Bears for a three-game series in Big 12 play.

Riding a 31-game winning streak since the loss two months ago, the Sooners have been absolutely rolling. They’ve picked up 11 top 25 wins in that stretch, including wins over top 10 opponents UCLA, LSU, Florida State, and a three-game sweep against the Texas Longhorns.

The Baylor Bears are 28-9 since beating Oklahoma and have some strong wins, including a pair of victories over No. 4/5 Tennessee a couple of weeks ago. They’ve also lost games to Long Beach State, Texas A&M, Boston University, South Dakota State, Kansas, and Texas Tech and were swept by Oklahoma State.

They’ve been an odd team to watch this season. They’ve beaten some of the best teams in the country, but have dropped games to teams they probably shouldn’t have.

Which Baylor Bears team shows up?

Here’s a look at the two teams and the broadcast schedule as they prepare for their three-game clash in Waco.

Led by Alex Storako at No. 1 overall, trio of Sooners selected in WPF Draft

Led by Alex Storako at No. 1 overall to the Oklahoma City Spark, three Sooners were selected in the 2023 WPF Draft.

For the second year in a row, the Oklahoma Sooners heard their name called first in the Women’s Professional Fastpitch draft as pitcher Alex Storako follows Jocelyn Alo as the first overall pick.

Storako was selected first overall by the Oklahoma City Spark. She’s having a phenomenal season for the Oklahoma Sooners after transferring from Michigan last summer.

She’s 13-0 with a 0.80 ERA and 85 strikeouts in 70 innings pitched for the Sooners. In 2022 with the Wolverines, Storako had 300 strikeouts in 200 innings pitched and went 25-8 with a 1.71 ERA.

Joining Storako with the Spark is Haley Lee, who was selected with the first pick of the fourth round. Lee’s having a fantastic season in the utility role for the Sooners, batting .426 with a team-leading 13 home runs. She’s second on the Sooenrs in RBIs with 38 in 2023.

Storako and Lee could join former Sooners Jocelyn Alo and Lynnzie Elam with the Spark in their expansion season in 2023.

Grace Lyons, arguably the best defensive player in the game, was selected by another expansion team, the Texas Smoke with the second pick of the sixth round. Lyons is hitting .366 with five home runs and 20 RBIs in 2023. She also has a .455 on-base percentage this season and has stolen five bases for Oklahoma.

The WPF will begin its 2023 season in the middle of June, with the Oklahoma City Spark hosting the SIS Vipers for a series starting on June 15.

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5 takeaways from Oklahoma’s 2-0 weekend at Miami (Oh.) Tournament

The Sooners’ bats came to life in their 2-0 weekend at the Miami (Oh.) Tournament. Here are 5 takeaways from the wins.

The Oklahoma Sooners took a road trip to Ohio for the first time in program history to take part in the Miami (Oh.) Tournament. Their first game against Oakland was canceled due to inclement weather, but the Sooners took advantage of their opportunity to play a doubleheader on Saturday and went 2-0 against Miami (Oh.) and Louisville.

Oklahoma’s now 39-1 on the season, matching their 40-game record from a season ago.

The Oklahoma Sooners had the week off of Big 12 play, but will go to Waco to face a Baylor Bears team that’s handed the Sooners their only loss of the season. They’ll look to repay the favor, but before we get to Baylor, here are five takeaways from the Sooners weekend in Ohio.

Sooners’ Haley Lee named Big 12 Player of the Week

For the fourth consecutive week, an Oklahoma Sooner was named Big 12 Player of the Week, this time, the honor goes to Haley Lee.

After an incredible weekend in the Sooners’ three-game sweep of Texas Tech, Haley Lee was named Big 12 Player of the Week. Lee hit .571 with three home runs, four RBIs, and four runs scored.

For the fourth straight week, the Oklahoma Sooners are taking home the Big 12 Player of the Week award. It’s the first time in Big 12 history a team won four consecutive weekly honors. On the diamond, it’s Oklahoma’s world, and we’re just living in it.

It was Lee’s first Big 12 weekly award after playing her first four seasons in the SEC. For the season, she’s hitting .446 with 11 home runs and 36 RBIs. She’s tied with Jayda Coleman in home runs, and just three RBIs behind Tiare Jennings for the team lead.

Lee has been a sensational addition to the lineup as a graduate transfer from Texas A&M. She’s slotted in behind Tiare Jennings in the third spot in the batting order regularly and has come through time and again with her power-hitting prowess.

Lee follows [autotag]Tiare Jennings[/autotag], [autotag]Grace Lyons[/autotag], and [autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag] as the Sooners make history with their consecutive player of the week awards.

The Oklahoma Sooners lead the nation in runs per game and are closing in on Virginia Tech in home runs per game after they powered their way to a sweep of the Red Raiders.

Lee and the Sooners get back in action on Tuesday evening in Baton Rouge against the LSU Tigers.

 

Oklahoma Sooners beat Texas Tech 7-0, complete sweep

The Oklahoma Sooners completed the three-game sweep with a 7-0 win over Texas Tech.

The Texas Tech Red Raiders came into Norman with an innovative game plan. Rotate pitchers to keep the Sooners’ lineup off-balance. It worked well enough in game one of the series, limiting Oklahoma to three hits. But that’s as close as they came to knocking off the No. 1 team in the country. The Sooners completed the three-game series sweep on Saturday with a 7-0 win in Norman.

[autotag]Nicole May[/autotag] pitched 5.1 shutout innings for her 11th win of the season. [autotag]Haley Lee[/autotag] followed up Jayda Coleman’s two-homer game from Friday night with a pair of home runs herself. Lee is now tied with Coleman for the team lead in home runs at 11.

[autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag] led off the game with a hit, but was put out at second on Tiare Jennings’ fielder’s choice. Then Lee put the Sooners on the board with a two-run shot.

OU followed their two-run first with a pair of runs in the second when Grace Lyons hit her fifth home run of the season to put the Sooners up 4-0. Haley Lee kept the home run parade going in the third with a lead-off home run to make it 5-0 after three innings.

Texas Tech had no answers for the Sooners’ pitching staff. They head back to Lubbock with a trio of shutout losses at the hands of [autotag]Alex Storako[/autotag], [autotag]Jordy Bahl[/autotag], [autotag]Nicole May[/autotag], and [autotag]Kierston Deal[/autotag], who had relief appearances in Friday and Saturday’s wins.

The Sooners shut out an offense that ranked 14th in the nation in runs per game and sixth in home runs per game. As good as Oklahoma’s been, this might be their most balanced team yet. Coming into the weekend, they were No. 1 in runs scored per game and No. 2 in team ERA. Keeping Texas Tech off the board all weekend, the Sooners lowered their team ERA to 0.91 on the season.

The Oklahoma Sooners are now 36-1 and have now won 28 straight games. They’re 9-0 in Big 12 play. The Sooners go on the road for a nonconference tilt against LSU before traveling to Miami, Ohio for the Miami (OH) Tournament next weekend.

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Alex Storako stellar in Oklahoma Sooners 3-0 win over Texas Tech

Oklahoma got a standout performance from Alex Storako in the Sooners’ 3-0 win over Texas Tech.

The Oklahoma Sooners kept their run going with a 3-0 win over the Texas Tech Red Raiders on Thursday night.

Alex Storako was fantastic, allowing just three hits and a walk in her complete game shutout of Texas Tech. Storako collected four strikeouts along the way.

“I think command, ability to change speeds on ’em a bit,” Sooners coach Patty Gasso said about Storako’s performance. “They take hacks. They’re very aggressive. Almost every one I’m writing, ‘first-pitch swing,’ ‘first-pitch swing,’ they just get up, they just rip it and they’re aiming for the fence.”

Storako did a great job keeping the Red Raiders off-balance, and when Texas Tech did make good contact, the Sooners’ defense was there to support her.

Grace Lyons and Avery Hodge had moments worthy of Baseball Tonight’s Web Gems.

“I thought defense was kind of securing the game along with pitching,” coach Patty Gasso said after the win. “And a lot of times, if you have two of the three parts of your game working well, you’re going to find ways to win, and that’s really the story tonight.”

Haley Lee got the scoring going for the Sooners with a solo shot in the bottom of the first, and Alyssa Brito’s two-RBI double gave the Sooners the insurance runs they needed.

It was Lee’s ninth home run of the season, tying her with Jayda Coleman and Tiare Jennings for the team lead.

In contrast to Storako’s ability to go the distance, the Red Raiders rolled out six different pitchers for the start of each inning. It was a unique strategy, that for the most part, worked to keep Oklahoma off-balance.

Texas Tech held Oklahoma to just three hits, their fewest in 2023.

“I thought their plan and their pitchers coming in the way they did offset us a little bit,” Gasso said. “I’m looking forward to seeing what they bring tomorrow because I’m looking forward to seeing how our team’s gonna respond.”

Storako moved to 12-0 on the season and lowered her ERA to 0.75 in 2023.

The Sooners get back at it for game two against the Red Raiders at Marita Hynes Field on Friday evening at 6 p.m. CT on ESPN+.

A look at some of the best photos from the Sooners 3-0 win.

7 takeaways from the Oklahoma Sooners sweep of the Texas Longhorns

From Tiare Jennings to Jayda Coleman, takeaways from the Sooners three-game sweep of the Texas Longhorns.

It was a thrilling weekend kickstarted by the largest attendance ever for a regular season NCAA softball game at Hall of Fame Stadium on Friday night.

The Oklahoma Sooners came away with a three-game sweep over the Texas Longhorns in a matchup of top 10 teams.

The Longhorns certainly challenged the Sooners, but Oklahoma was too much for them offensively. Oklahoma is now 33-1 on the season, 6-0 in Big 12 play, has won 25 straight, and continues to prove why they’re the best team in the country.

Here are seven takeaways from the Sooners 3-0 weekend against the Texas Longhorns.

Oklahoma Sooners rally in the seventh, beat Texas in 4-3 walkoff win

Jayda Coleman and Kinzie Hansen came through in the clutch with a seven-inning rally to push the Oklahoma Sooners past the Texas Longhorns.

In game two of their three-game set, the Oklahoma Sooners fell behind early once again and needed a seventh-inning rally to defeat the Texas Longhorns.

The Longhorns lineup put the pressure on [autotag]Alex Storako[/autotag] early. Storako got through the first unscathed, but Texas opened the second with a pair of singles. With two on and nobody out, Storako forced Texas into a double play, but the runner at second advanced to third on the play.

Storako induced another ground ball, but a bobble by [autotag]Grace Lyons[/autotag] allowed the batter to make it to first and a run to score to make it 1-0 Texas.

Storako then retired the next seven batters she faced. In the fifth inning, Texas struck again to make it 2-0, and Oklahoma finally broke through with a run in the bottom of the fifth.

However, [autotag]Viviana Martinez[/autotag] added to the Longhorns’ lead in the sixth with a solo home run to make it 3-1 Texas.

The Sooners got a leadoff single from [autotag]Alyssa Brito[/autotag] in the sixth, but Texas kept them from doing any damage.

After [autotag]Jordy Bahl[/autotag] came in and pitched a scoreless sixth, the stage was set for Sooner magic in the bottom of the seventh.

[autotag]Rylie Boone[/autotag] singled to start the inning and Jayda Coleman followed it up with a two-run home run to tie the game at three apiece. The homer was her ninth of the season, leading Oklahoma in home runs this season.

[autotag]Tiare Jennings[/autotag] and [autotag]Haley Lee[/autotag] singled to put runners on first and second with no outs. [autotag]Avery Hodge[/autotag] pinch ran for Lee, and she and Jennings advanced to second and third on a wild pitch.

With one out and runners on second and third, the Longhorns walked Alyssa Brito to load the bases for [autotag]Kinzie Hansen[/autotag]. With the count 1-2, Hansen drove a pitch to left field for the walk-off win.

It was a clutch win for the Sooners to improve to 32-1 on the season and extend their win streak to 24.

[autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag], who didn’t register a hit on Friday night, came through in a big way for the Sooners on Saturday. She went 2-for-3 with a walk, home run, and two RBIs to give Oklahoma a chance to win the game in the seventh.

Kinzie Hansen, much like she did in the Women’s College World Series against Texas last year, came through with a clutch hit to propel the Sooners to victory.

Oklahoma wraps up their three-game series with Texas at Marita Hynes Field in Norman at 11 am CT and can be seen on ESPN2.

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Oklahoma Sooners hit three home runs, beat Texas 8-1 in series opener

After allowing a lead-off home run, Jordy Bahl responded with six scoreless innings, and the Sooners hit three home runs in their 8-1 win over the Texas Longhorns.

[autotag]Jordy Bahl[/autotag] gave up a home run to Texas leadoff hitter [autotag]Leighanne Goode[/autotag] and while Texas would threaten in later innings, Bahl took control of the game. Bahl settled in to throw six scoreless innings after the first to shut down the high-powered Longhorns offense to help Oklahoma win game one of the series 8-1.

It didn’t take long for the Sooners to respond to Texas’ opening frame. [autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag] hit a pop fly to left-center field, but it was misplayed, and she advanced to second on the error and then to third as the Longhorns outfielder threw behind her to second.

[autotag]Tiare Jennings[/autotag] drove her in with a single, and though Oklahoma wouldn’t score with the bases loaded and just one out, it set the stage for what would be a dominating Sooners win.

After getting one run off of starter [autotag]Estelle Czech[/autotag] in the first, the Sooners broke the game open in the second. A pair of singles by [autotag]Alynah Torres[/autotag] and [autotag]Rylie Boone[/autotag], followed by a wild pitch, put runners on second and third with nobody out. After a Jayda Coleman flyout, Tiare Jennings reminded everyone why she’s one of the best in the country with a bomb to left center for the three-run home run and put Oklahoma up 4-1.

It was Jennings’ eighth home run of the season, which ties her with [autotag]Alyssa Brito[/autotag] and Jayda Coleman for the team lead.

[autotag]Haley Lee[/autotag] followed Jennings with a home run to go back-to-back, put Oklahoma up 5-1, and chase Czech from the game. It was Lee’s seventh homer of the season.

[autotag]Sophia Simpson[/autotag] settled things down for Texas. She but with some strong defense, a timely overturned call on the field, and the way Jordy Bahl was throwing, the Longhorns couldn’t get anything going. Simpson kept the Sooners from building up on their lead with four scoreless innings until the sixth.

In the sixth, the Sooners went back to work.

With two outs in the sixth, Tiare Jennings doubled, and Haley Lee brought her around for Lee’s second RBI of the day. Now leading 6-1, [autotag]Kinzie Hanse[/autotag]n blasted a 2-1 pitch to left center for her seventh home run of the season. She now has seven home runs and 31 RBIs in just 22 games in 2023.

Tiare Jennings led the way at the plate, going 3-for-4 with a home run, a double, three runs scored, and four RBIs. Her double was nearly her second home run of the game, hitting just off the top of the wall in left field.

Haley Lee, [autotag]Grace Lyons[/autotag], Kinzie Hansen, and Rylie Boone each had multi-hit performances for the Sooners who put up 12 hits and took advantage of a pair of Longhorns errors.

On a night that set an NCAA attendance record, the Sooners put on a show. In front of 8,930 fans, Oklahoma took care of business against Texas.

Jordy Bahl picked up her ninth win of the season in the complete game, two-hit performance. Though she allowed four walks, Bahl struck out six in the win. She was superhuman tonight, throwing 108 pitches in the win. Bahl’s performance allowed Patty Gasso to keep [autotag]Nicole May[/autotag], [autotag]Alex Storako[/autotag], and [autotag]Kierston Deal[/autotag] fresh for the remainder of the three-game series.

The Sooners improved to 31-1 on the season while the Longhorns fell to 30-6-1.

Game two will be on Saturday at 11 am on ESPN2 at Marita Hynes Field in Norman, followed by the Sunday finale at the same time Sunday, also on ESPN2.

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