PALO ALTO, Calif. – In the first game ever played at Stanford Softball Stadium, the host Cardinal were 4-2 winners over No. 24/20 Oklahoma State Thursday.
The game was part of the Stanford Invitational and was the season opener for both squads.
Cardinal left-hander Zoe Prystajko set a career high with nine strikeouts en route to claiming the victory, while OSU senior Ruby Meylan threw 113 pitches in taking the loss.
No. 18/17 Stanford opened the scoring with an RBI single from River Mahler in the first. OSU had opportunities in the third, fourth and fifth innings, but stranded runners in scoring position each time.
Meylan worked her way out of jams in the third and fourth innings and nearly did it again in the fifth, but an infield single from Ava Gall with two outs scored a pair of runs and extended the Stanford advantage to 3-0. With runners on second and third, Gall hit the ball hard up the middle. Cowgirl second baseman Jayden Jones made a diving play to keep the ball on the infield, but Taryn Kern was able to score easily from third and Mahler came around from second base as Jones tried to throw her out at the plate from her knees.
The Cowgirls fought back in the top of the sixth on the strength of a two-run home run from freshman Jayelle Austin in her collegiate debut. Following an infield single by Claire Timm, Austin drove Prystajko's next pitch comfortably over the fence, just inside the right field foul pole to trim the deficit to 3-2.
Stanford responded with an RBI single by Kern in the bottom of the sixth, but OSU limited the potential damage when Austin hit cutoff man Aubrey Jones, who threw out Jordana King at the plate for the third out.
Cardinal reliever Alyssa Houston closed things out with a 1-2-3 seventh inning.
It was a rare season-opening defeat for Oklahoma State, which had won its previous five.
The Cowgirls return to action with a pair of games tomorrow. First is a 1:30 p.m. clash with San Jose State, followed by a 4 p.m. battle with California. Both games will be played at Stanford Softball Stadium.
