Cowgirl Softball Extends Winning Streak to Nine

Saturday, March 10

Oklahoma City, OK

6:30 P.M. CT

Oklahoma State University

18-6

Saint Francis

13-12

Saint Francis

Oklahoma State

Photo by: Charles Taylor

March 10, 2018 | Cowgirl Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

PDF Box Score - UConn
PDF Box Score - Saint Francis

OKLAHOMA CITY – The No. 24 Oklahoma State softball team defeated UConn, 8-0, and Saint Francis, 7-1, on Saturday at the ASA Hall of Fame Stadium to extend its winning streak to nine games.

The Cowgirls' nine-game winning streak is the longest for the squad since a 12-game run in March 2013.

"It's good, but it's short lived," head coach Kenny Gajewski said. "We have to come back out tomorrow, and if you don't play well you will be 9-1. I'm excited and I want to be there at the end and we are building toward that. I am excited about they way we are playing, that's the most important thing. It was a long day today. We had a game early and a long break. It's tough. It's tough on these kids, but I'm excited about their energy."

Early offense continued to be a key factor in OSU's success, as freshman Sydney Pennington provided a three-run home run during the Cowgirls' first trip to the plate against Saint Francis. She skied a 1-1 pitch over the fence to record her sixth home run of the season, which trails only Jessi Haffner for the lead among the Cowgirls this year.

The Pokes continued to swing hot bats throughout the clash with the Red Flash, scoring three more runs in the home half of the third and one in the sixth.

In the circle, Samantha Clakley improved to 7-3 with a strong seven-inning performance. The junior from Carthage, Texas, struck out three and walked none on Saturday. She has now allowed two walks or less in her last seven appearances.

Prior to the win over the Red Flash, Oklahoma State began Saturday's competition with an 8-0 run-rule victory over UConn. It was the Cowgirls' third-straight shutout victory, marking the first time they had achieved that feat since a three-game stretch in March 2014.

Logan Simunek was the ace behind OSU's fifth shutout of the year, as she struck out four and allowed just one hit over five innings of work. The one-hit performance comes on the heels of her no-hitter one week ago in Stillwater and it helped her improve to 4-0 on the year.

"I feel like I have been very successful lately with Jeff (Cottrill) calling my pitches and I just felt like I was really on point with my game," Simunek said. "Everything has been working and this year compared to last year is night and day. Jeff has helped me a ton. Now when I throw, I don't have to worry about where they are going because I know they will be executed."

The Cowgirl bats continued to heat up quickly behind Simunek, scoring four runs in the opening frame.

Vanessa Shippy started the first inning with a leadoff walk. Shippy opened both of Saturday's contests with a leadoff walk for the Cowgirls and she has reached base as the leadoff batter in seven of the last nine contests for OSU, walking on five of those occasions.

Taylor Lynch followed Shippy with a single through the right side before Madi Sue Montgomery brought the senior around with a single to deep right-center field. OSU scored three more times in the inning thanks to Jessi Haffner's sacrifice fly and Whitney Whitehorn's two-RBI single back up the middle.

Shippy would take part in more of OSU's offensive success later on in the contest when she laced a two-run home run to center field. It was her fourth of the season and first since a leadoff shot against USF on Feb. 17.

Randee O'Donnell also got in on the deep-fly action, launching a solo shot to left field in the third inning. It was the second home run of the year for the senior and helped OSU bring its season total to 35 home runs in 2018.

The Cowgirls's 35 home runs and 1.46 HR/G average both rank second in the country. Both marks also have Oklahoma State on pace to shatter the team's current single-season home run records (53 HR, 0.91 HR/G - 2016).

Gajewski and the Cowgirls will be back in action on Sunday when they conclude the OSU Hall of Fame Classic against Pacific. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m. in Oklahoma City with two games preceding the Cowgirls' contest.