Watson, Meinen Lead Tulsa to Pair of Wins Over Houston on Friday
4/14/2017 7:39:00 PM | Softball
Game One PDF Box Score | Game One HTML Box Score | Game Two PDF Box Score | Game Two HTML Box Score | Season Stats PDF
TULSA, Okla. — Tulsa took the series against Houston with a pair of victories on Friday evening, starting with a 1-0 win in 10 innings to conclude Thursday's suspended game before a 6-5 triumph in game two of the three-game series at Collins Softball Complex.
After recording 19 strikeouts through 8.2 innings on Thursday night, Emily Watson finished off game one with two more punchouts to push her single-game school record to 21. She then nailed down the save with another strikeout in game two to lead the Golden Hurricane (28-13, 7-1 AAC), who now sit alone atop The American standings. Watson's 21 Ks are the second-most for a pitcher in a Division I game this season and she improved to 20-3 in the circle with her eighth shutout of the spring.
Haley Meinen did the job at the plate and in the circle in game two. The sophomore went 3-for-3 with a homer and a career-high three RBIs and she tossed four scoreless innings of relief to improve to 3-1 in the circle.
The day started with two outs and a runner on third for the Cougars (20-19, 5-3 AAC) in the top of the ninth of game one after rain forced a postponement on Thursday night. Watson kept the Cougars off the board in the ninth and recorded her final two strikeouts in the top of the 10th before Tulsa ended the contest in the bottom of the frame.
A Maggie Withee single to start the 10th was followed by a fielder's choice and a grounder to put Morgan Neal on second with two outs. That brought up Tori Stafford, who had Tulsa's only hit against Houston starter Savannah Heebner on Thursday, and the sophomore lined another single to center field. Neal raced around third and beat the throw home to score the game's only run and give the Golden Hurricane a walk-off win.
In game two, Houston jumped out to a 4-0 lead with four unearned runs in the top of the second. However, Tulsa would score the game's next six runs to take the lead for good.
Meinen got the Hurricane rally started in the bottom of the second with a solo homer to center for the first round-tripper of her Tulsa career. Shelby Estocado then walked before Julia Hollingsworth launched a two-run shot, her third blast of the campaign, to pull the home squad within 4-3.
The Hurricane would complete the comeback an inning later as Meinen ripped a two-RBI single up the middle to score Maddie Withee and Stafford, who each walked to start the frame. The hit gave Tulsa a 5-4 lead and that cushion ballooned to 6-4 in the bottom of the fourth on Stafford's run-scoring double.
Meinen entered the circle in the top of the third and she would allow just one hit and a pair of walks over her four scoreless frames. With a two-run lead, Watson came on in the top of the seventh and yielded a run on a pair of hits before notching her third career save.
The Golden Hurricane will go for the series sweep when the teams meet at noon on Saturday, April 15 at Collins Softball Complex.
TULSA, Okla. — Tulsa took the series against Houston with a pair of victories on Friday evening, starting with a 1-0 win in 10 innings to conclude Thursday's suspended game before a 6-5 triumph in game two of the three-game series at Collins Softball Complex.
After recording 19 strikeouts through 8.2 innings on Thursday night, Emily Watson finished off game one with two more punchouts to push her single-game school record to 21. She then nailed down the save with another strikeout in game two to lead the Golden Hurricane (28-13, 7-1 AAC), who now sit alone atop The American standings. Watson's 21 Ks are the second-most for a pitcher in a Division I game this season and she improved to 20-3 in the circle with her eighth shutout of the spring.
Haley Meinen did the job at the plate and in the circle in game two. The sophomore went 3-for-3 with a homer and a career-high three RBIs and she tossed four scoreless innings of relief to improve to 3-1 in the circle.
The day started with two outs and a runner on third for the Cougars (20-19, 5-3 AAC) in the top of the ninth of game one after rain forced a postponement on Thursday night. Watson kept the Cougars off the board in the ninth and recorded her final two strikeouts in the top of the 10th before Tulsa ended the contest in the bottom of the frame.
A Maggie Withee single to start the 10th was followed by a fielder's choice and a grounder to put Morgan Neal on second with two outs. That brought up Tori Stafford, who had Tulsa's only hit against Houston starter Savannah Heebner on Thursday, and the sophomore lined another single to center field. Neal raced around third and beat the throw home to score the game's only run and give the Golden Hurricane a walk-off win.
In game two, Houston jumped out to a 4-0 lead with four unearned runs in the top of the second. However, Tulsa would score the game's next six runs to take the lead for good.
Meinen got the Hurricane rally started in the bottom of the second with a solo homer to center for the first round-tripper of her Tulsa career. Shelby Estocado then walked before Julia Hollingsworth launched a two-run shot, her third blast of the campaign, to pull the home squad within 4-3.
The Hurricane would complete the comeback an inning later as Meinen ripped a two-RBI single up the middle to score Maddie Withee and Stafford, who each walked to start the frame. The hit gave Tulsa a 5-4 lead and that cushion ballooned to 6-4 in the bottom of the fourth on Stafford's run-scoring double.
Meinen entered the circle in the top of the third and she would allow just one hit and a pair of walks over her four scoreless frames. With a two-run lead, Watson came on in the top of the seventh and yielded a run on a pair of hits before notching her third career save.
The Golden Hurricane will go for the series sweep when the teams meet at noon on Saturday, April 15 at Collins Softball Complex.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Watson, Emily (20-3)
L: HEEBNER, Savannah (9-7)
Batting:
2B: HEEBNER, Savannah 1
SH: LEBEOUF, Elise 1 ; GARCIA, Mariah 1 ; VANNOY, Brooke 1

Batting:
RBI: Stafford, Tori 1
SH: Hughes, Shannon 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Neal, Morgan 1
Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
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