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NORMAN — It wasn’t easy for Sam Landry.
But Landry got the job done.
Landry went the distance Friday, throwing a four-hit shutout to lead the second-seeded OU softball team to a 3-0 win over 15th-seeded Alabama in the opener of the best-of-three Super Regional at Love’s Field.
The Sooners will have a chance to clinch its ninth consecutive Women’s College World Series appearance when it takes on the Crimson Tide at 2 p.m. Saturday.
Alabama had runners on base in each of the first six innings, but Landry repeatedly shut the door on the Crimson Tide.
Landry (22-4) allowed just four hits, walking two and hitting one batter as the Sooners finished off the game in just more than two hours.
Alabama stranded seven runners on base.
It was Landry’s fourth seven-inning shutout of the season and her first since April 18 against Mississippi State.
OU got all the offense it needed in the third, when Kasidi Pickering blasted a 246-foot home run to center to put the Sooners ahead 2-0.
The home run was Pickering's 10th in 44 career NCAA postseason at-bats and her fourth in the last three games.
Here are two more takeaways from the Sooners’ win:
CARLSON: How OU softball freshman Gabbie Garcia cracked open another level being 'totally unafraid'
Sydney Barker hit the ball hard in each of her first two at-bats but wasn’t rewarded, as each of her hard grounders were gobbled up by Alabama first baseman Abby Duchscherer.
When Barker came up with two outs and a runner on second in the fifth, though, she delivered.
Barker looped Jocelyn Briski’s 2-1 offering into right-center field, allowing Abigale Dayton to score for a critical insurance run.
Barker continued her ascension as a part of OU’s offense after spending much of the season in a reserve role.
Barker started for the sixth consecutive game and hit No. 3 for the third consecutive game.
The freshman has hit safely in each of those six games, going 8 for 17 with six runs and five RBIs.
REQUIRED READING: Who are top OU softball players in 50 years of program history? Meet 50 greatest Sooners
With one out in the seventh, Alabama’s Larissa Preuitt hit a sinking liner into center field that seemed destined to fall in front of centerfielder Hannah Coor.
But Coor, who Sooners coach Patty Gasso said recently would play every game in some capacity thanks to her defense, ran in and snagged Preuitt’s liner with a diving catch for the second out of the inning.
Coor’s dive was far from the only defensive highlight for the Sooners.
Shortstop Gabbie Garcia, in particular, made a couple slick plays up the middle to keep the Crimson Tide off the board.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma softball on brink of WCWS berth as Sam Landry blanks Alabama
Continue reading...
But Landry got the job done.
Landry went the distance Friday, throwing a four-hit shutout to lead the second-seeded OU softball team to a 3-0 win over 15th-seeded Alabama in the opener of the best-of-three Super Regional at Love’s Field.
The Sooners will have a chance to clinch its ninth consecutive Women’s College World Series appearance when it takes on the Crimson Tide at 2 p.m. Saturday.
Alabama had runners on base in each of the first six innings, but Landry repeatedly shut the door on the Crimson Tide.
Landry (22-4) allowed just four hits, walking two and hitting one batter as the Sooners finished off the game in just more than two hours.
Alabama stranded seven runners on base.
It was Landry’s fourth seven-inning shutout of the season and her first since April 18 against Mississippi State.
OU got all the offense it needed in the third, when Kasidi Pickering blasted a 246-foot home run to center to put the Sooners ahead 2-0.
The home run was Pickering's 10th in 44 career NCAA postseason at-bats and her fourth in the last three games.
Here are two more takeaways from the Sooners’ win:
CARLSON: How OU softball freshman Gabbie Garcia cracked open another level being 'totally unafraid'
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Sydney Barker stays hot
Sydney Barker hit the ball hard in each of her first two at-bats but wasn’t rewarded, as each of her hard grounders were gobbled up by Alabama first baseman Abby Duchscherer.
When Barker came up with two outs and a runner on second in the fifth, though, she delivered.
Barker looped Jocelyn Briski’s 2-1 offering into right-center field, allowing Abigale Dayton to score for a critical insurance run.
Barker continued her ascension as a part of OU’s offense after spending much of the season in a reserve role.
Barker started for the sixth consecutive game and hit No. 3 for the third consecutive game.
The freshman has hit safely in each of those six games, going 8 for 17 with six runs and five RBIs.
REQUIRED READING: Who are top OU softball players in 50 years of program history? Meet 50 greatest Sooners
Sooners’ defense shines through
With one out in the seventh, Alabama’s Larissa Preuitt hit a sinking liner into center field that seemed destined to fall in front of centerfielder Hannah Coor.
But Coor, who Sooners coach Patty Gasso said recently would play every game in some capacity thanks to her defense, ran in and snagged Preuitt’s liner with a diving catch for the second out of the inning.
Coor’s dive was far from the only defensive highlight for the Sooners.
Shortstop Gabbie Garcia, in particular, made a couple slick plays up the middle to keep the Crimson Tide off the board.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma softball on brink of WCWS berth as Sam Landry blanks Alabama
Continue reading...
