OSU Softball Team Splits First Two Games in Houston

The Cowgirls only led for a total of one inning all day, but it was still enough to pull out one win.

Thursday, May 26th 2011, 12:12 pm

By: News On 6

OSU Softball Team Splits First Two Games in Houston

Originally Published: Feb 18, 2011 5:26 PM CDT

Corey DeMoss
Oklahoma Sports Staff Writer

HOUSTON, Texas – The Oklahoma State softball team split its first two games of the Hilton Houston Plaza Classic Friday, winning its first game 5-3 over LSU but losing its second 3-2 to Houston.

The Cowgirls (5-2) trailed for the majority of both contests, starting with LSU taking a 2-0 lead in the top of the third inning thanks to a two-run home run by Anissa Young. The Tigers stretched that lead to 3-0 in the fourth when Alex Boulet scored on a double steal.

OSU got two of those runs back in the bottom of the fourth thanks to a two-run homer from Tamara Brown, cutting the lead to 3-2. The score stayed that way until the bottom of the sixth, when Chelsea Garcia delivered a three-run homer to give the Cowgirls their first lead. Pitcher Kat Espinosa locked things down in the seventh to seal the win.

The second game of the day did not start any better; but OSU nearly pulled off another late comeback. Houston got on the board in each of the first three innings, starting with a solo homer by Bailie Lott in the bottom of the first.

The Cougars’ next two runs came thanks to costly OSU mistakes. In the bottom of the second, Houston had a runner on a second with two outs when Jennifer Klinkert hit a ground ball back to the mound that should have ended the inning. But Simone Freeman threw the ball away, allowing Klinkert to reach base and the runner from second to score and take a 2-0 lead.

In the third inning, a wild pitch by Freeman allowed a runner to advance from second to third with one out. That runner then scored on a sacrifice fly to stretch the lead to three.

The Cowgirls got on the board in the fourth with a solo home run to Alysia Hamilton, and then had a prime scoring opportunity sixth with runners on second and third with only one out.

Brown drove home the runner on third with a ground ball, but Hamilton became stuck in a pickle between second and third. Houston tagged Hamilton for the third out to end the inning with only one run scoring to keep a 3-2 lead. The Cowgirls then went down in order in the seventh to end the game.

OSU also split the first two games of Kajikawa Classic to start the season before it went on to win its next three in a row. The Cowgirls will play two more games Saturday, starting against Southern University at 9 a.m.