Liberty University
16-6
Oklahoma State
19-1
No. 5 Oklahoma State Outlasts Liberty 9-4
3/12/2021 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Liberty battled through early struggles at the plate, narrowing the deficit to 7-4 with a four-run sixth before falling 9-4 to No. 5 Oklahoma State in game one a doubleheader, Friday at Cowgirl Stadium.
Oklahoma State (19-1) extended its winning streak to seven games, while the Lady Flames (16-6) saw their own seven-game winning streak come to a close.
Scoring Summary
Oklahoma State – 2nd INNING – Doggett homers, Pennington and Factor score, 3-0
Oklahoma State – 2nd INNING – Naomi doubles, Petty scores, 4-0
Oklahoma State – 4th INNING – Naomi homers, Petty and Dominguez score, 7-0
Liberty – 6th INNING – Bishop homers, Via scores, 7-2
Liberty – 6th INNING – Canetto doubles, Bishop-Riley scores, Canetto scores on error, 7-4
Oklahoma State – 6th INNING – Febrey singles, Naomi scores, 8-4
Oklahoma State – 6th INNING – Alexander steals home, 9-4
Notable Numbers
- The Cowgirls outhit the Lady Flames 10-4 for the game, with the Lady Flames committing two errors and OSU committing one error. Both teams left three runners on base.
- Kelly Maxwell (7-0) earned the victory despite allowing her first three earned runs of the season. She struck out four, walked three and allowed four hits.
- Liberty's Karlie Keeney (7-3) drew the loss, allowing seven runs (five earned) on eight hits, walking one and fanning two in four innings pitched. McKenzie Wagoner pitched a scoreless inning, while Naomi Jones yielded two runs on one hit, walking two in 2/3 of an inning. Emily Kirby allowed one hit in 1/3 of an inning.
- Kiley Naomi went 2-for-3 with a double, homer, four RBI and two runs scored, while Jordan Doggett (1-for-2) homered and drove in three runs.
- Autumn Bishop went 1-for-4 with a homer, two RBI and one run scored. Kara Canetto extended her hitting streak to 13 games, going 1-for-3 with a double, one RBI and one run scored.
Turning Point
- Oklahoma State took a 7-0 lead into the sixth inning, with the big hits being a three-run homer by Doggett in the second inning and a fourth-inning three-run blast by Naomi.
- Maxwell retired the first 17 batters she faced before Madison Via hit a two-out single in the top of the seventh. Bishop broke up the shutout with a two-run homer. After Bishop-Riley walked, Canetto hit an RBI double and scored on an overthrow to make it 7-4. Keeney walked and Caroline Hudson singled, bringing the tying run to the plate. Sweat flied out to center to end the threat.
- The Cowgirls gained breathing room with two runs in the bottom of the sixth before Maxwell pitched a scoreless seventh.
Beyond the Box Score
- Today was the first meeting between Oklahoma State and Liberty in softball.
- Liberty is now 0-5 against Top 25 opponents so far this season, with all three opponents (LSU, Alabama, Oklahoma State) appearing in the Top 10 at time of meeting.
- Liberty has homered in each of its last 13 games. That is the team's longest streak with at least one home run since hitting homers in a program-record 16 straight games in 2007.
- Canetto extended her hitting streak to 13 games. Her hitting streak is the longest by a Liberty player since Autumn Bishop's 13-game hitting streak from April 2-20, 2019.
- Caroline Hudson caught two runners attempting to steal today, making her 10-for-24 this year (.416).
- Liberty's four-run sixth inning was its second-most runs in a single inning against a nationally-ranked opponent and most since scoring five runs in the second inning of a 10-7 loss to then No. 10 Alabama on March 9, 2010.
- Liberty will face Oklahoma State and No. 1 Oklahoma twice each at this weekend's Oklahoma Hall of Fame Classic.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Maxwell, K. (7-0)
L: Keeney, Karlie (7-3)
Batting:
2B: Canetto, Kara 1
HR: Bishop, Autumn 1
RBI: Bishop, Autumn 2 ; Canetto, Kara 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Bishop, Autumn 1 ; Bishop-Riley, Amber 1 ; Canetto, Kara 1 ; Via, Madison 1
Batting:
2B: Naomi, K. 1
HR: Naomi, K. 1 ; Doggett, J. 1
RBI: Naomi, K. 4 ; Febrey, A. 1 ; Doggett, J. 3
Base Running:
RUNS: Naomi, K. 2 ; Alexander, C 1 ; Factor, C. 1 ; Pennington,S 1 ; Doggett, J. 1 ; Dominguez, R 1 ; Petty, K. 2
CS: Cunconan, M. 1 ; Hobson, A. 1
