Takeaways From Oklahoma's Third Battle Series Scrimmage

Gasso’s newbies seem to have made themselves right at home. 

Catcher Kendall Wells has homered in every fall scrimmage, and Thursday night was no different.

She rocketed the ball beyond the bleachers in right-center field in her first at-bat of the night, but it was a mere warning shot for what the rest of her classmates had in store. 

Infielder Lexi McDaniel hit a pair of two-run shots, then pitcher Allyssa Parker proved she can do more than strike batters out. 

Parker homered in back-to-back at-bats off of LSU transfer Sydney Berzon to add a pair of solo shots on Thursday night. Two innings later, she added another two RBIs with a two-out single through the left side to bring her total to four for the night.

In the outfield, Kai Minor robbed Ella Parker of a hit with a diving catch.

Minor was playing deep to prevent a Parker hit to the wall, but she covered a big patch of grass in a hurry to come up with an athletic out. 

Allyssa Parker added a strikeout in the circle for good measure as Oklahoma’s freshmen enjoyed their fourth Battle Series scrimmage. 

Jen Rocha Had Some Fun

The fall is the perfect time to experiment, and OU pitching coach Jennifer Rocha took full advantage. 

She left freshman Berkley Zache in the game to start the fifth inning, and after retiring the first batter of the frame, Rocha brought Ole Miss transfer Miali Guachino in to pitch. 

Guachino recorded an out against the first batter she faced, prompting Rocha to again dart to the circle.

She swapped Guachino for Audrey Lowry, and Lowry ended the frame with a strikeout. 

The Sooners have fully embraced a staff approach out of the bullpen, but Rocha hasn’t ever gotten that pitching change happy in an actual game. 

At times over the past two years, OU would bring in Paytn Monticelli for a batter or two when Gasso and Rocha got a favorable matchup. Perhaps Rocha was preparing her staff for some faster changes and a different strategy this fall, or maybe she was giving Oklahoma’s hitters an odd look to process. 

Either way, it made for an interesting top of the fifth. 

Homer Happy

The freshmen weren’t the only ones who put on a show for the OU fans on Thursday night. 

Redshirt sophomore Nelly McEnroe-Marinas clobbered a pair of home runs — one a solo shot and one a two-run bomb — in her first two at-bats. 

Later, Gabbie Garcia crushed a three-run shot, and then veteran slugger Kasidi Pickering hit a grand slam late to reward the fans who stuck around through the brewing storms. 

In total, Oklahoma hammered nine home runs on Thursday night.