OSU Softball Blows Out Nicholls State in Home Run Parade

The two teams combined to hit seven home runs, with two different players hitting more than one.

Thursday, May 26th 2011, 12:13 pm

By: News On 6

OSU Softball Blows Out Nicholls State in Home Run Parade

Originally Published: Feb 20, 2011 1:27 PM CDT

Corey DeMoss
Oklahoma Sports Staff Writer

HOUSTON, Texas – The Oklahoma State softball team finished the Hilton Houston Plaza Classic with a convincing 12-3 blowout of Nicholls State Sunday in a game that featured a total of seven home runs.

OSU (8-2) jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead thanks to a two-run home run by Alysia Hamilton in the third at-bat of the game, and the Cowgirls never let up after that.

Oklahoma State added one run in each of the second, third and fourth innings thanks to a solo home run by Mariah Gearhart, an RBI single by Chelsea Garcia and another RBI from Hamilton.

The Generals made things interesting by scoring three total runs in the fourth and fifth innings thanks to two home runs from Ashley Ray. First she led off the fourth with a solo shot, and then hit a two-run blast in the fifth to cut the OSU lead to 5-3.

OSU blew the game open in the sixth and seventh innings thanks to more long balls. Ari Morrison hit a three-run homer in the sixth, followed by a solo shot from Julie Ward two at-bats later to stretch the lead to 9-3.

Morrison cranked her second homer of the game in the seventh, this time driving in two runs to give her a total of five RBIs in two innings. Kelsey Schultz added an RBI single to finish the scoring and give OSU a commanding nine-run lead. Nicholls State went down quickly in the bottom half to end the game.

The Cowgirls’ win was the second in a row over Nicholls State, but was significantly easier than the first. The teams went into extra innings Saturday before OSU won with a walk-off single in the bottom of the 10th.

OSU finished the Hilton Houston Plaza Classic with a 4-1 record, matching the same record it recorded at the Kajikawa Classic to start the season. The Cowgirls will remain on the road for yet another tournament, the Cethdral City Classic in Palm Springs, Calif., starting at noon Thursday against UC-Santa Barbara.