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STILLWATER — The level of panic that flooded Cowgirl Stadium with two outs in the top of the seventh inning surpassed anything that has been felt when the Oklahoma State softball team was in danger of losing a game.
When a line drive ricocheted off the throwing hand of OSU pitcher Ruby Meylan, causing the ace to drop her glove and walk immediately toward the dugout, far more than the game was in jeopardy.
“I saw the season flashing in front of me just real quick,” OSU coach Kenny Gajewski said.
But after getting checked by coaches and the athletic trainer, Meylan fought past the pain to record the final out of a 7-5 win over No. 11 Arizona on Sunday afternoon.
“She hit it hard and I’m just glad Ruby was able to persevere through it,” said catcher Audrey Schneidmiller, who provided the winning runs with a two-run homer in the fifth inning.
The win clinched a series victory for the Cowgirls, giving them three wins in the last five days against teams ranked 16th or better in the RPI. With OSU in need of wins like that to improve its case for a top-16 seed in the NCAA Tournament, this has been a valuable week.
But it doesn’t end now. The Cowgirls head south to take on Texas, which holds a No. 5 poll ranking but is No. 2 in the RPI before a three-game series at Baylor.
“I wish I could say ‘Whew, take a breath,’” Gajewski said. “There’s no rest for the weary. But it feels good. I’m gonna sleep good tonight, I can tell you that.”
Gajewski said he sensed poor energy around his team prior to Saturday’s game, a 9-1 run-rule win by Arizona.
Then the Wildcats struck for four runs in the top of the first inning, and Gajewski wasn’t quite sure what to expect.
“I initially thought, ‘Well, we’re gonna have to dig in. We’re gonna find out where we’re at,’” Gajewski said. “I was a little concerned, but seven innings, Ruby’s good.”
When leadoff hitter Claire Timm reached on a bunt single in the bottom of the first, Gajewski felt the mood rise, and his nerves settled. A walk and a single loaded the bases and Lexi McDonald continued her hot hitting with a two-run single.
Amanda Hasler singled in a run and another scored when Tia Warsop grounded into a double play, tying the game at 4.
From there, the offense was dialed in and Meylan rebooted, allowing one run on three hits over the final six innings to earn her 20th win of the year.
The responses to both the Saturday loss and Sunday’s early deficit were comforting for Gajewski.
“A great response by this program and this team,” he said. “When we answered back, I thought we were in a good spot. Ruby was more mentally fatigued than physically.
“We knew it was gonna be a grind, especially against a good, well-coached team. Good weekend.”
More: Big 12 softball power rankings: Keep an eye on upstart Kansas
Some of OSU’s biggest wins this season have included key hits by Schneidmiller.
She forced extra innings against Nebraska with a two-out, RBI single in the bottom of the seventh of an eventual OSU win. She put the Cowgirls up in the fourth inning of the Bedlam win on Wednesday night.
And after Arizona had answered to tie Sunday’s game at 5 in the top of the fifth, Schneidmiller drilled her third home run of the season for what turned out to be the game-winning runs.
But it wasn’t without a bit of drama.
As Schneidmiller came down the third base line, a teammate touched her before her foot hit home plate, which is not allowed. Arizona coach Caitlin Lowe argued for an out, but umpires issued a warning to OSU, as the rulebook calls for.
It led to a long delay as umpires confirmed the ruling and showed the rulebook to Lowe — and that left Schneidmiller feeling a bit nervous.
“I mean, wouldn’t anybody?” she said. “That was a crazy moment when you think what I just did for my team might be taken away. I’m really glad that it didn’t happen, but yeah, in the moment, I was pretty nervous.”
Scoring ahead of Schneidmiller on the play was outfielder Tia Warsop, who reached base on a bunt single, and advanced to third on a throwing error. The hit was the 100th of her career.
“I didn’t even know I was getting close to it, so that’s really fun,” Warsop said. “I just do it for the people behind me, so that feels good to do that for everyone.
“This was a super-important response for us today, especially from that first inning. We had a little talk about putting everything in, especially for Ruby. She’s thrown her butt off this entire series and we want to do it for her. And we responded.”
Scott Wright covers Oklahoma State athletics for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Scott? He can be reached at [email protected] or on X at @ScottWrightOK. Support Scott’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com or by using the link at the top of this page.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma State softball tops Arizona for key Big 12 series victory
Continue reading...
When a line drive ricocheted off the throwing hand of OSU pitcher Ruby Meylan, causing the ace to drop her glove and walk immediately toward the dugout, far more than the game was in jeopardy.
“I saw the season flashing in front of me just real quick,” OSU coach Kenny Gajewski said.
But after getting checked by coaches and the athletic trainer, Meylan fought past the pain to record the final out of a 7-5 win over No. 11 Arizona on Sunday afternoon.
“She hit it hard and I’m just glad Ruby was able to persevere through it,” said catcher Audrey Schneidmiller, who provided the winning runs with a two-run homer in the fifth inning.
The win clinched a series victory for the Cowgirls, giving them three wins in the last five days against teams ranked 16th or better in the RPI. With OSU in need of wins like that to improve its case for a top-16 seed in the NCAA Tournament, this has been a valuable week.
But it doesn’t end now. The Cowgirls head south to take on Texas, which holds a No. 5 poll ranking but is No. 2 in the RPI before a three-game series at Baylor.
“I wish I could say ‘Whew, take a breath,’” Gajewski said. “There’s no rest for the weary. But it feels good. I’m gonna sleep good tonight, I can tell you that.”
Cowgirls provide critical response
Gajewski said he sensed poor energy around his team prior to Saturday’s game, a 9-1 run-rule win by Arizona.
Then the Wildcats struck for four runs in the top of the first inning, and Gajewski wasn’t quite sure what to expect.
“I initially thought, ‘Well, we’re gonna have to dig in. We’re gonna find out where we’re at,’” Gajewski said. “I was a little concerned, but seven innings, Ruby’s good.”
When leadoff hitter Claire Timm reached on a bunt single in the bottom of the first, Gajewski felt the mood rise, and his nerves settled. A walk and a single loaded the bases and Lexi McDonald continued her hot hitting with a two-run single.
Amanda Hasler singled in a run and another scored when Tia Warsop grounded into a double play, tying the game at 4.
From there, the offense was dialed in and Meylan rebooted, allowing one run on three hits over the final six innings to earn her 20th win of the year.
The responses to both the Saturday loss and Sunday’s early deficit were comforting for Gajewski.
“A great response by this program and this team,” he said. “When we answered back, I thought we were in a good spot. Ruby was more mentally fatigued than physically.
“We knew it was gonna be a grind, especially against a good, well-coached team. Good weekend.”
More: Big 12 softball power rankings: Keep an eye on upstart Kansas
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Audrey Schneidmiller with another clutch hit
Some of OSU’s biggest wins this season have included key hits by Schneidmiller.
She forced extra innings against Nebraska with a two-out, RBI single in the bottom of the seventh of an eventual OSU win. She put the Cowgirls up in the fourth inning of the Bedlam win on Wednesday night.
And after Arizona had answered to tie Sunday’s game at 5 in the top of the fifth, Schneidmiller drilled her third home run of the season for what turned out to be the game-winning runs.
But it wasn’t without a bit of drama.
As Schneidmiller came down the third base line, a teammate touched her before her foot hit home plate, which is not allowed. Arizona coach Caitlin Lowe argued for an out, but umpires issued a warning to OSU, as the rulebook calls for.
It led to a long delay as umpires confirmed the ruling and showed the rulebook to Lowe — and that left Schneidmiller feeling a bit nervous.
“I mean, wouldn’t anybody?” she said. “That was a crazy moment when you think what I just did for my team might be taken away. I’m really glad that it didn’t happen, but yeah, in the moment, I was pretty nervous.”
Scoring ahead of Schneidmiller on the play was outfielder Tia Warsop, who reached base on a bunt single, and advanced to third on a throwing error. The hit was the 100th of her career.
“I didn’t even know I was getting close to it, so that’s really fun,” Warsop said. “I just do it for the people behind me, so that feels good to do that for everyone.
“This was a super-important response for us today, especially from that first inning. We had a little talk about putting everything in, especially for Ruby. She’s thrown her butt off this entire series and we want to do it for her. And we responded.”
Scott Wright covers Oklahoma State athletics for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Scott? He can be reached at [email protected] or on X at @ScottWrightOK. Support Scott’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com or by using the link at the top of this page.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma State softball tops Arizona for key Big 12 series victory
Continue reading...
