Miranda Elish's Bedlam Pitching Status Still Uncertain

STILLWATER – No. 7 Oklahoma State softball (38-9 overall; 14-1 Big 12) is set to face No. 1 Oklahoma this week in Norman to decide who takes home the regular season Big 12 crown.

Back in the lineup this past weekend against Florida State was Miranda Elish, the Cowgirls’ leader when it comes to batting average (.378) and slugging percentage (659). She was sidelined with an injury to her right bicep on April 24 against Texas. However, Elish’s return to the circle is still up in the air.

Head coach Kenny Gajewski met with members of the media on Tuesday morning to discuss the matchup against the Sooners, which included the status of Elish.

“I can’t give you an honest answer. I don’t know if she’ll pitch,” said Gajewski.

Elish is the second-leading pitcher in the Cowgirls’ rotation, sitting with 13 wins on the season in 23 appearances and a 2.09 ERA, 128 strikeouts to 33 walks in 104.0 innings pitched. She’s also three games behind Kelly Maxwell with 10 complete games pitched on the season.

So, getting Elish back for the biggest series of the season would be huge for Gajewski and the Cowgirls, but the uncertainty factor is still there.

“(It’s) a pretty significant injury to a tendon. Bicep. It’s real,” Gajewski said. “The fact that she can hit and do things, I’m like ‘Okay, well maybe it’s possible (that she pitches).’ You just don’t know. But I think that’s out there. She’s got this deal and it is what it is. It’s tough.”

It was announced on Monday the first game of the Bedlam series had been picked up and will be televised by ESPN on Thursday evening at 7 p.m. at Marita Hynes Field in Norman. Bedlam is always the biggest series of the season, but this year’s will decide the Big 12 regular season champs. The Cowgirls are looking to earn their first conference title since 1995 and their first in the Big 12, while ending the Sooners’ reign of nine-straight Big 12 titles.