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7th inning rally falls short for No. 5 Longhorns, No. 1 Sooners win opener 5-2
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Down 5-0 with one hit going into the bottom of the seventh inning, the Longhorns managed to get the tying run to the plate before the Sooners could secure the victory. Joley Mitchell singled to start the inning, and after she advanced to second base on a wild pitch, Reese Atwood ripped a double down the left-field line to score Mitchell and give Texas its first run of the game.
AUSTIN (KXAN) — No. 1 Oklahoma held off a late rally to claim a 5-2 win Friday over No. 5 Texas at McCombs Field.
Down 5-0 with one hit going into the bottom of the seventh inning, the Longhorns managed to get the tying run to the plate before the Sooners could secure the victory. Joley Mitchell singled to start the inning, and after she advanced to second base on a wild pitch, Reese Atwood ripped a double down the left-field line to score Mitchell and give Texas its first run of the game.
Ashton Maloney hit a shallow fly ball to left that was caught for the second out of the frame, but pinch runner Adayah Wallace tagged up and scored to cut Oklahoma's lead to 5-2. After a walk put two runners on for Texas, Katie Stewart came off the bench to pinch hit. On a full count, she smacked a hard groundball that glanced off Sooners third baseman Alyssa Brito but went straight to shortstop Tiare Jennings who fired it to first to end the game.
Oklahoma (35-1, 13-0 Big 12) center fielder Jayda Coleman delivered the big hit for the Sooners in the fifth with a towering 3-run home run off Mac Morgan that ended up being the difference in the game. Coleman drove in four runs with a pair of hits.
Sooners pitcher Kelly Maxwell had a no-hitter until Maloney looped a single into shallow left field in the fifth inning. Maxwell struck out 10 and walked three in a complete-game performance, allowing two runs on three hits in 114 pitches. Maxwell, a second-team NFCA All-American for the Oklahoma State Cowgirls last season, is now 11-0.
For the Longhorns (29-6, 9-4), Morgan was saddled with her first loss of the season. She allowed five runs on seven hits in 4 1/3 innings with three walks. Estella Czech didn't allow a hit in 2 2/3 innings and struck out two.
The second game of the series will start at 7 p.m. Saturday and will be broadcast on ESPN.