Oklahoma State Softball Jams to a 7-4 Series Opening Win Over Utah
(Robert Allen, Reporter and Columnist for Pokes Report contributed to this story.)
STILLWATER — A double-digit strikeout performance from Ruby Meylan led the No. 23 Oklahoma State softball team to a 7-4 victory over Utah at Cowgirl Stadium Friday. With the win, the Cowgirls improved to 31-17 overall and 11-9 in the Big 12, while the Utes dropped to 13-37 and 5-17 in the conference.
With the decision, Meylan tallied her 20th win of the season, a mark that only 23 other Cowgirls have achieved.
Utah opened the scoring in the fourth inning when Emily Capobianco hit a two-run home run to left field, but the Cowgirls responded with three of their own in the bottom of the fourth. Claire Timm hit a leadoff double, setting up Micaela Wark's seventh home run of the season, a two-run blast to right. OSU then loaded the bases with a Megan Delgadillo triple and walks to Tallen Edwards and Rosie Davis. Amanda Hasler was hit by a pitch, plating the go-ahead run for the Cowgirls.
Timm started the fifth with a career-high third hit of the night. Three more runs were added thanks to back-to-back-to-back RBI doubles by Megan Bloodworth, Delgadillo, and Edwards. The final run came on a single by Davis.
The Utes added two runs in the sixth, but their efforts fell short.
Meylan picked up the win in the circle and improved to 20-7, pitching for seven innings with 10 strikeouts and four hits allowed. This marks her sixth double-digit strikeout performance of the season and moved her into the top 15 on the OSU single season strikeout list. Utah's Brooklyn Carreon took the loss, falling to 3-10.
Offensive standouts for the Cowgirls included Timm (3-for-4 with a double and a run), Wark (1-for-3 with a home run and two RBIs) and Delgadillo (2-for-3 with an RBI and two runs).
The only disappointment on the night was that BYU, who the Cowgirls are chasing to pass for a first day bye in the Big 12 standings scored a 2-1 win over Texas Tech on Friday night in the second game of the series between those two teams. The margin is thin. A BYU win or an OSU loss would clinch the fifth spot for BYU. If BYU loses their last game with Tech and the Cowgirls win one more against Utah then Oklahoma State finishes fifth.
The Cowgirls return to action at 2 p.m. tomorrow for the second game of the series. The game will be live streamed on ESPN+ and can be heard on the Varsity Network app.
