Oklahoma State defeats Arizona 10-4, clinches fifth straight World Series appearance
- Parker Gerl, Assistant Sports Editor, @Parker_Gerl
- May 25, 2024 Updated 8 hrs ago
Oklahoma State was close to punching its ticket to the Women's College World Series, then it got put on hold.
But not because of softball.
After a weather delay that lasted more than two hours, the Cowgirls defeated Arizona 10-4 on Saturday night in Game 2 of the Stillwater Super Regional. The stoppage came in the fifth inning, then the Cowgirls closed out the Wildcats when play resumed to clinch their fifth straight WCWS appearance.
Arizona’s offense delivered far more than it did in Game 1, but the Cowgirls were still never seriously threatened. Their hitting power, as it has for most of the season, was too strong to be matched and served as a big-time separator between them and the Wildcats.
“I don’t even know what to say to that,” Kenny Gajewski, OSU’s head coach, said of making five straight trips to Oklahoma City.. “...(It) feels really good, and just want to enjoy this one with these guys.
It didn’t take long for OSU to do what it’s sixth-best in the NCAA at: hitting home runs (1.53 per game coming into Saturday).
Tallen Edwards sliced a first-inning, two-run blast to left field, which swiftly kept her postseason hitting streak alive and gave OSU a 2-0 lead. Then Karli Godwin doubled and Rosie Davis singled before Godwin scored on a wild pitch to make it 3-0.
The Cowgirls’ hot start forced Arizona to move off of its starting pitcher, Aissa Silva, after just 0.1 innings and 18 total pitches. The Wildcats used three pitchers after doing so in Friday’s series opener, too.
Pitching was less sporadic for OSU, though, as Ivy Rosenberry made her second start of the postseason and logged four strikeouts while giving up three earned runs on seven hits. She pitched three innings before ace Lexi Kilfoyl pitched the last four frames.
The Wildcats’ first run off Rosenberry came in the first, as Regan Shockey’s RBI single made it 3-1 OSU.
“I thought Ivy was really good here today for not having pitched a lot (in) the last couple of weeks,” Gajewski said. “... And then we turned it over to our showstopper (Kilfoyl).”
Offensively, though, the Cowgirls got back to their ways in the third.
Rosie Davis and Claire Timm hit back-to-back home runs, with Davis’ shooting into left and Timm’s into right, marking the second straight game in which OSU got consecutive homers, giving the Cowgirls a 5-1 lead.
“Claire Timm gets to her 10th home run here today; it's wild,” Gajewski said. “And you know, Rosie, maybe last weekend, started getting hotter and just keeps it on this weekend.”
Then OSU hit the 10-run mark by scoring five runs across the fourth and fifth innings. None came on home runs, but the Cowgirls’ power shined again.
Timm and fellow sophomore outfielder Lexi McDonald hit back-to-back RBI doubles in the fifth, each into the outfield at high speeds. Then Jilyen Poullard scored OSU’s last run on an RBI single.
The Cowgirls and Wildcats each posted 11 hits, but OSU hit two more over the fence than Arizona did, along with more doubles and walks. That’s what made the difference on an equal-hit night.
The Cowgirls were the only team to punch their ticket to OKC on Saturday, and they will face the winner of the Gainesville Super Regional between Florida and Baylor at the WCWS.
“I’m really glad that all of them have to play tomorrow,” Gajewski said. “That makes me happy. We can sit back and watch and plan and get a break.”
sports.ed@ocolly.com
