Oklahoma Responds With Emphatic Victory Over Arizona

The Sooners needed just three batters to open the scoring. 

Kasidi Pickering drew a leadoff walk, then Parker hit a one-out bomb on a frozen rope to straightaway center. 

Nelly McEnroe-Marinas immediately got aboard with a walk of her own, then Garcia looped a towering homer over the batter’s eye in center to extend the lead to 4-0.

Freshman center fielder Kai Minor reached with a two-out single, then she quickly got into scoring position by stealing second. 

The additional 60 feet gained was crucial as Ailana Agbayani singled to the right field shallows, but Minor was able to hustle home and put the cherry on top of a five-run first. 

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The Sooners dealt more damage in the second. 

This time it was Parker who drew the walk, and after she swiped second, McEnroe-Marinas brought the junior home with a single into right to put Oklahoma up 6-0.

The cushion was more than enough for sophomore left-hander Audrey Lowry. 

After her one-hit outing against Arizona State in the season-opener, Lowry got the start again and cruised. 

Lowry fanned a pair of Wildcat batters in the first, then cooly worked around a single in the second. 

Arizona did string together back-to-back one-out singles in the third, but Lowry was able to induce a pair of fly balls to keep the hosts off the board. 

With Lowry in command, the Sooners further tormented Arizona’s pitching staff in the fourth. 

Singles by Pickering and Kendall Wells, and another McEnroe-Marinas walk loaded the bases for Garcia with one out. 

Garcia bounced a ball to first, but Sina Talatania bobbled the ball and had to settle for touching first instead of trying to make a play at the plate. 

The fielder’s choice was Garcia’s third RBI of the night, and it brought freshman Allyssa Parker to the plate. 

Parker took one pitch and fouled off two more before connecting for a three-run bomb, which was the second home run of her weekend. 

Another freshman, Kai Minor, continued the onslaught by dropping a bunt down for a single, then her classmate Lexi McDaniel belted her first career home run to put the Sooners up 12-0.

OU wasn’t done. 

Tia Milloy took advantage of a fielding error to reach base, then Pickering doubled to put a pair of runners in scoring position. 

Isabela Emerling singled to score Milloy, then Ella Parker rocketed a home run off the batter’s eye to balloon the Oklahoma advantage to 16-0.

Lowry recorded the first out of the fourth inning before Patty Gasso turned to LSU transfer Sydney Berzon. 

Lowry allowed three hits and run up two batters in 3 1/3 innings of work, and she issued zero free passes in the win.

Berzon allowed a walk to the first batter she faced, but she quickly fed her defense a pair of ground balls to end the fourth. 

The 10-run fourth wasn’t enough for Oklahoma, it seemed. 

Minor led the fifth off with a solo blast to bring the Sooners’ long ball total up to five.

Milloy then singles, then Pickering made it 19-0 with another two-run shot.

Allyssa Parker then made it an even 20 with a two-out, RBI-single.

Minor officially closed down the scoring with a single after Parker. 

Freshman right-hander Berkley Zache made her debut in the bottom of the fifth when Gasso sent her to the circle to close the game. 

Zache loaded the bases with a walk, a single and a hit batter, then Sydney Stewart finally put the Wildcats on the board with a no-out, RBI-single. 

Arizona plated another on a four-pitch walk, then Zache recorded her first out on a sacrifice fly.

The freshman then rang up her first strikeout and induced a groundball to end the contest. 

Ella Parker led the team with five RBIs in a 2-for-3 performance at the plate. Allyssa Parker was second with four RBIs and Garcia ended with three RBIs. 

Emerling also had a nice night coming off the bench. The senior went 2-for-2 with an RBI. 

Oklahoma and Arizona will return at 12 p.m. on Sunday to decide the weekend series. The contest will air on ESPN+. 

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