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Oklahoma State softball rewind: Cowgirls reboot bats, but will that be enough in Bedlam?

scott wright, oklahoman
·4 min read
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STILLWATER — The Oklahoma State softball team rediscovered its offense enough to end its losing streak and get a couple of run-rule victories heading into Bedlam.

The Cowgirls took two of three at Texas Tech over the weekend, finally surpassing the elusive 40-win mark.

The Cowgirls had reached 39 wins through 42 games, the best start in program history, but followed it up with five straight losses.

Now, the question is whether OSU’s offense is rejuvenated enough to take on the nation’s best pitching staff when top-ranked OU comes to Cowgirl Stadium for the final three games of the regular season.

Here’s a look at what we learned about OSU softball last week:

More: 'The sky is not falling' for Oklahoma State softball

Freshman Micaela Wark's big weekend helped break the Oklahoma State offense out of its recent slump.
Freshman Micaela Wark's big weekend helped break the Oklahoma State offense out of its recent slump.

No. 7 Oklahoma State

Overall record: 41-9, 10-5 Big 12

Last week: 2-1 (beat Texas Tech 10-1 and 8-0, lost to Texas Tech 4-3)

This week: At North Texas, 6 p.m. Wednesday; three-game series vs. OU, 6 p.m. Friday, 4 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday

OSU bats come back — mostly

Having struggled to drive in runs during their losing streak, the Cowgirls took care of it with three home runs in the opener at Texas Tech, all with runners on base.

Morgyn Wynne, Micaela Wark and Kiley Naomi each homered, accounting for eight of OSU’s 10 runs, with another scoring on a Wark sacrifice fly and one scoring on a wild pitch. Wynne’s third-inning homer was the Cowgirls’ first since April 15 — which was also their last victory prior to the losing streak.

Wark added another homer, her ninth of the year, plus an RBI double in Sunday’s 8-0 win in five innings. She finished the series going 4-for-9 with two home runs, a double and six RBIs.

Chyenne Factor drove in a pair of runs with singles in the finale and third baseman Claire Timm got in on the action, too.

Timm, a true freshman from Buena Park, California, was inserted into the starting lineup for the first time all season and responded with a hit in each of the three games, including two doubles and three runs batted in.

For the season, Timm is now batting .292 with three doubles among her seven hits.

More: Why OSU ace Kelly Maxwell doesn't go anywhere without super glue

Oklahoma State's Kyra Aycock (34) pitches inning a college softball game between the Oklahoma State Cowgirls (OSU) and the University of North Texas in Stillwater, Okla., Wednesday, March 22, 2023.
Oklahoma State's Kyra Aycock (34) pitches inning a college softball game between the Oklahoma State Cowgirls (OSU) and the University of North Texas in Stillwater, Okla., Wednesday, March 22, 2023.

Another walk-off loss

In between the pair of run-rule wins, the Cowgirls had a bit of a flashback with an extra-inning, walk-off loss.

OSU took a 3-0 lead in the top of the fourth inning, but Tech rallied to tie it in the bottom of the fourth. And the Red Raiders ended it with Arriana Villa’s RBI single in the bottom of the eighth.

During the five-game losing streak, OSU had three extra-inning losses, and another walk-off loss in the bottom of the seventh.

For the season, seven of OSU’s nine losses have been in extra innings or by one run.

Despite the recent losses, the Cowgirl pitching staff has remained strong. The three primary starters all have earned-run averages of 2.20 or better over at least 79 innings pitched, led by Kelly Maxwell at 1.47.

Freshman Kyra Aycock finished off the weekend with a shutout on Sunday. She allowed five hits and hit one batter while striking out three. It was Aycock’s seventh shutout performance of at least five innings this season.

More: How OSU's Morgyn Wynne fought out of a 'dark place' to rediscover her offensive game

Oklahoma State's Chyenne Factor (9) hits a home run in the fourth inning during the college softball game between the Oklahoma State Cowgirls and the Iowa State Cyclones at Cowgirl Stadium in Stillwater, Okla., Friday, April, 14, 2023.
Oklahoma State's Chyenne Factor (9) hits a home run in the fourth inning during the college softball game between the Oklahoma State Cowgirls and the Iowa State Cyclones at Cowgirl Stadium in Stillwater, Okla., Friday, April, 14, 2023.

Big 12 softball seeding in flux

The Cowgirls go into Bedlam not knowing where they’ll be seeded when the Big 12 Tournament opens on May 11.

Currently in third place, a game behind Texas, the Cowgirls need some help to get to second. Texas hosts fourth-place Baylor, which cannot catch OSU in the standings. But OSU needs to sweep OU in addition to Baylor winning twice at Texas.

OU has already clinched the regular season title, but the Cowgirls are trying to position themselves for a run at repeating as conference tournament champions.

It’s also unclear who the Cowgirls would open the Big 12 Tournament against, regardless of which seed they earn. The bottom four teams in the league — Baylor, Kansas, Texas Tech and Iowa State — are separated by one game in the win column.

With the Cowgirls currently sitting near the top-eight cutoff in the rankings — the spot to guarantee a super-regional in Stillwater — the Big 12 Tournament will be an important final word for the Cowgirls with the NCAA selection committee.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma State softball rewind: Cowgirls reboot bats before Bedlam