Alexander Does It with a Different Highlight to Upset Oklahoma State
OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma State learned their lessons. They paid attention to what happened to their Bedlam rivals in the first game in the Women’s College World Series as James Madison and sensational fastball and rise ball pitcher Odicci Alexander knocked off the powerful Sooners batting order 4-3 in eight innings. The video watching was going on in the Cowgirls team hotel, The Hyatt Place on Thursday night. The heed to lay off that rise ball and pay attention to the changing speeds soaked in. Alexander averaged eight strikes out every seven innings, but the Cowgirls didn’t have a batter strike out until the last out in the fourth inning. Alexander became more of a contact pitcher and it worked. In the end the red-shirt senior found a different way to help her team win 2-1 and it came in the oddest of ways.
Protecting a 2-1 lead in the top of the seventh inning Alexander hit Cowgirls second baseman Karli Petty in the helmet. Scotland David came into pinch run and stole second. The next hitter was catcher Reagan Wright who hit back to the Alexander, who looked to third and threw over to third baseman Lynsey Meeks and that started a rundown, a good old-fashioned pickle and David kept it going until she appeared to be tagged out, but the umpire ruled that shortstop Sara Jubas obstructed David and both runners were safe with David at third and Wright at second with just no outs. Avery Hobson flied out to leftfield for the first out.
Alexander’s big moment as Chelsea Alexander bunted it back to Alexander and she made an athletic play to get coming to the plate and dove to tag out David heading to home.
“It was a tough situation. Runners were at second and third and I kind of knew they were going to do something like that, so just being focused, and I mean, I kind of saw her in my peripheral and I really didn't have time to flip it to Lauren (catcher Bernett), so I just went for it,” Alexander said describing the play and what she was thinking.
“If that's not Top 10 SportsCenter, I don't know what is, because that's probably the best play I've ever seen in a career by a pitcher in that situation with that much pressure, and she's tired,” said James Mdison head coach Loren LaPorte. “Obviously our whole team is and it's not just the physical part, but it's the emotional part and the mental part and they're doing such a good job staying within themselves, but it is an adrenaline rush. I can tell you. Like, I'm on a high, so I can't even imagine what they are. But just to see her leave her feet and make that tag, I mean, that's, it's unbelievable. I can't even describe it any other way.”
“Unbelievable. You couldn't ask more from this girl,” Dukes third baseman Lynsey Meeks said of Alexander. “This girl's pitched seven innings and then she goes and makes a diving game-saving play. It just shows you the player that she is and the person that she is. She's going to give everything that she has until the last three outs.”
The next hitter Kiley Naomi flew out to Jubas, who clinched it and the Dukes celebrated their second win over a Big 12 team in as many days.
“Well, we just, we had an opportunity and we let it go away. We just didn't quite execute the way we have been accustomed to, and you got to credit them,” Cowgirls head coach Kenny Gajewski said afterwards. “They're playing really well. They made plays on us all day long, held to us three hits. I thought we hit the ball pretty well. Their third baseman made some nice plays, their shortstop made a really nice play in the five, six hole earlier in that game when we had first and second, I believe with nobody out or maybe one out. They just, they just did what they needed to and credit them. They're playing very, very well. I thought we had a really good plan against Odicci and it showed and we just couldn't punch through. Just give credit to her and their staff. They just, they have got those kids dialed in.”
From the start, James Madison wasted no time as the school named after our nation’s fourth President scored in the first inning as Madison Naujokas hit the ball right back at Cowgirls pitcher Carrie Eberle and making the throw to first for what would have been the third out glanced off the runner and off of first baseman Alysen Febrey’s glove. The throwing error with two on and two out allowed Alexander, who had walked to score the game’s first run. The Dukes led 1-0.
James Madison added to their lead in the bottom of the third inning when the other hero of the win over Oklahoma, Kate Gordon led off with a solo home run to left center just about the same spot she hit the game winner in the eighth inning Thursday against the Sooners. James Madison led 2-0.
Before the bottom of the third ended the Cowgirls had a scare as Logan Newton of the Dukes slapped a ball right back at pitcher Carrie Eberle and the ball struck her just above the tongue of her left cleats squarely on the ankle. Newton was safe at first with what was ruled a single. Eberle limped around as head coach Kenny Gajewski, trainer Alexis Kahnt, and the rest of the team in the field gathered. After a few minutes Eberle put her mask back on and began warming up and gave the okay that she would tough it out and stay in the game. You can be sure there will be a bruise and that is going to hurt Saturday morning.
After a pair of singles to open the bottom of the fifth, Gajewski relieved Eberle with Kelly Maxwell. Eberle got the loss to go to 26-4, but she only gave up one earned run. She did have the error. She allowed seven hits and walked two and only struck out one. Maxwell in relief did not allow a run and struck out five.
After Karli Petty became the second Cowgirl to strike out at the hand of Alexander in the fifth inning the Cowgirls scored their only run. Catcher Reagan Wright plopped a single over the infield into leftfield. She moved over to second on a bunt by designated player Avery Hobson. Two outs and nine-hole hitter Chelsea Alexander hit a sharp ground ball past third base into leftfield and Wright made the turn and looked like an out at home but the throw from Gordon was off and Wright made it 2-1.
Unfortunately, that is the way it ended. James Madison 41-2 moves to Sunday and two chances to make the championship series. The Cowgirls (48-11) will cross over and on Saturday night catch the survivor of the elimination game between Arizona and Florida State. That is part of the interesting format of the Women’s College World Series.
“We'll be busy here tonight, and at least we have all day tomorrow to go to work,” Gajewski said id working to scout the next opponent. “We're not a crazy, like, scouting team anyways, but we'll put our work in. We'll put our hours in. We'll get familiar with both those teams pretty quick. We've watched them both play a bunch and have a lot of respect for both of them. So we'll have our kids ready and we'll figure out as a staff, like I said, who we're going to pitch. And the bottom line, when you get to this, it's just, hey, we're going to run our best against their best and the best team will win and that's the way it works. So we'll just go out there and fight.”
That game, which will be to stay alive to Sunday is scheduled for 8:30 p.m.