April 08, 2006
Four Oklahoma Sooners recorded a multi-hit game en route to defeating the No. 17 Texas A&M softball team 4-0 in front of a 1,235 fans on a windy Saturday afternoon at the Aggie Softball Complex.
The loss snapped A&M?â„¢s streak of 20 consecutive Big 12 home wins and dropped the Aggies to 26-11 overall and 5-2 in Big 12 play, while the win improved OU?â„¢s season record to 26-13-1 and 3-5 in the conference.
?I thought OU came out and played really well,? commented A&M head coach Jo Evans. ?I thought they played great defense and hit the ball well; they were very aggressive. I thought our team wasn?â„¢t as aggressive at the plate. We saw a lot of pitches to hit and just didn?â„¢t go up there really attacking the ball.?
The No. 21 Sooners plated two runs in the top of the second on four hits. Mariee Mena got things started with a single to left field, advancing to second as the ball scooted to the side of Jami Lobpries. The next batter, Susan Ogden, singled, again to left to move Mena to third. Savannah Long followed suit, singling to left to score Mena. The fourth single of the inning to left field came off the bat off Traci Dickenson, bringing in Ogden.
Oklahoma added single runs in the fifth on three hits and again in the sixth on two hits to increase their lead to four.
The only runners to reach scoring position for the Aggies were Jamie Hinshaw and Sharonda McDonald, in the bottom half of the sixth inning. A&M had the bases loaded with one out. Sooner starter D.J. Mathis coaxed a fly ball to second out of Lobpries and a caught looking by senior Rocky Spencer to get out of the inning without any damage.
Megan Gibson (13-4) was charged with the loss. She was tagged with all four runs. Gibson struckout five and walked two.
?I thought Megan threw well,? Evans said. ?She scattered a lot of hits but found ways to get outs. She kept the ball down and started using her change-up and I thought that was very effective as the game went on.?
Mathis improved to 10-3 with the complete game shutout. She struckout four and walked two, allowing five hits.
The 13 Oklahoma hits were the most given up by an Aggie pitcher this season.
Gibson was named State Farm Player of the Day with her hit in the first inning, extending her hitting streak to four games.
The final game of the series will be played at 3:30 p.m. on Sunday at the Aggie Softball Complex.
ESPN will provide a live broadcasting of the game. Live audio and stats will also be available at AggieAthletics.com. Fans attending the game can listen to the broadcast inside the stadium on 89.9 FM.
Tickets for this weekend, and all home games, are available at the gate and by calling 1-888-99-AGGIE.