Oklahoma State softball vs. Tennessee: Three keys for Cowgirls to reach WCWS semifinals
Scott WrightOklahoman
Sixth-seeded Oklahoma State will see an unfamiliar face in its next elimination game at the Women’s College World Series.
Coming off Friday night’s 8-0 run-rule win over Utah, OSU will face fourth-seeded Tennessee at 6 p.m. Sunday at USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium with the winner moving to the WCWS semifinals.
The Cowgirls (47-15) have not faced Tennessee (50-9) since 2018, but the programs have a bit of postseason history. In 2011, OSU got sent to the Knoxville Regional and beat host Tennessee twice to advance to the super-regional round on the way to a WCWS appearance.
But this will be a different stage, with both teams knowing the end of their season looms.
Here are three keys to the OSU-Tennessee matchup:
Cowgirls’ fresh arms
Through two games, OSU has used three pitchers, but none of them threw more than 60 pitches. WIth his team having Saturday off, coach Kenny Gajewski will essentially have a fully rested staff when deciding how he wants to attack the Tennessee lineup.Left-hander Kelly Maxwell wasn’t her smoothest on Thursday, allowing a two-run homer in the first inning. But she only threw two frames because of the rain delay and has been strong all postseason.
Based on numbers, Lexi Kilfoyl has been the Cowgirls’ best pitcher in the NCAA Tournament and is coming off a five-inning shutout over Utah.
If you’re wondering about familiarity, it’s really not a factor. Obviously, Tennessee has never seen Maxwell or freshman Kyra Aycock, and Kilfoyl only pitched 7 ⅓ innings against the Vols during her time at Alabama, all of it coming in 2021.
Tennessee pop
While the stats might look top-heavy, Tennessee has an offense that is potent throughout, ranking second nationally in runs per game at 7.2.The first three hitters each have at least a .366 batting average, 13 home runs and 56 RBIs, and senior leadoff hitter Kiki Milloy is as dangerous as they come.
The daughter of former NFL Pro Bowl defensive back Lawyer Milloy, Kiki leads the nation with 25 home runs, batting .417 with 56 runs batted in. And she has stolen 39 bases in 40 attempts.
Sophomore McKenna Gibson and junior Zaida Puni — who began her career at OU in 2021 — fill out the top three spots in the batting order, but the offense remains consistent.
Like the Cowgirls, Tennessee has been shut out once at the WCWS and had one big offensive outburst in the 10-5 win over Alabama on Thursday.
Vols’ pitching depth
It happened in a different way, but Tennessee is in a similar situation to OSU with a rested pitching staff.The Vols went through four pitchers in their 9-0 loss to OU on Saturday, but coach Karen Weekly used neither of her top two arms. And none of those four recorded more than five outs.
Weekly has leaned most on Ashley Rogers, who has a 0.83 ERA and a 19-1 record, and Payton Gottshall, with a 1.57 ERA and 16-1 record. That duo teamed up to get Tennessee past Alabama in Thursday’s opener, with Rogers allowing two runs over the first four innings to earn the win and Gottshall giving up three in the last three frames for the save.
The Cowgirls can expect to see one or both of those pitchers on Sunday.
How to watch Oklahoma State vs. Tennessee
When: 6 p.m. SundayWhere: USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium
TV: ESPN2
Streaming: Watch ESPN app
