TU Opens Wooo Pig Classic with Two Wins on Friday

Friday, March 16

Fayetteville, Ark.

9:30 AM

Tulsa

16-10

Omaha

12-15

Omaha

Tulsa

Photo by: Dave Crenshaw

TU Opens Wooo Pig Classic with Two Wins on Friday

3/16/2018 3:23:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

Game One Box Score (.pdf) | Game Two Box Score (.pdf) | Season Stats (.pdf)

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Tori Stafford combined to hit for the cycle as The University of Tulsa softball team picked up a pair of wins to start the Wooo Pig Classic on Friday. The Golden Hurricane run-ruled Omaha, 8-0, before a 7-1 victory over Iowa State.

Stafford hit a double and a triple in the opener against the Mavericks (12-15) before a single and three-run homer en route to a career-high-tying four RBIs versus the Cyclones (15-14). Sarah Briers homered against Omaha, while Haley Meinen and Rylie Spell each went yard against Iowa State.

Meanwhile, the Tulsa pitching staff allowed just one run over 12 innings with 16 strikeouts.

Additionally, Julia Hollingsworth extended her hitting streak to 18 games with hits in both contests.

In the opener, Briers went 2-for-3 with her first collegiate homer and a season-high three RBIs to back a strong outing in the circle from fellow freshman Samantha Pochop as TU topped Omaha, 8-0, in five innings.

Tulsa quickly got on the board in the bottom of the first as Hollingsworth walked and then scored on Shelby Estocado's one-out double to left. Stafford then made it 2-0 with just the second triple of her career.

Pochop rolled through the first four innings, where she recorded seven of her eight strikeouts, including striking out the side in the top of the third.

With the Mavericks offense stalled, TU went back to work and scored six runs over the final two frames to end the contest early.

In the fourth, Stafford doubled before Briers launched a two-run homer over the wall in left to make it 4-0. An inning later, Hollingsworth extended her hitting streak with an infield single and after Morgan Neal reached with a hit, the pair scored on Estocado's hit up the middle.

Haley Meinen doubled home Estocado for a 7-0 lead and Briers closed the game with an RBI-single up the middle for the 8-0 run-rule victory.

In all, five of the team's nine hits went for extra-bases and the top six batters in the order each had a hit and scored a run. Pochop improved to 6-3 with just two hits and a walk allowed along with eight strikeouts in her five innings of work.

Again, Tulsa wasted no time in getting on the scoreboard against the Cyclones, scoring two runs in the top of the first. Neal and Estocado walked before RBI hits from Meinen and Stafford for the quick 2-0 lead.

Spell extended the cushion to 3-0 with a solo shot, her second of the week, in the top of the fourth and Stafford's three-run blast in the fifth made it 6-0.

Watson scattered four hits over the first four innings, but the Cyclones broke up the shutout with a solo homer in the bottom of the fifth. However, that's all the senior would yield and Meinen got that run back with another solo homer for the 7-1 cushion.

Watson then shut the door on Iowa State in the bottom of the seventh with a pair of strikeouts to improve to 9-4 on the season. She scattered 10 hits on the day to go along with a walk and eight strikeouts.

Tulsa will matchup again with the Cyclones at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, March 17, before closing the Wooo Pig Classic at 2:30 p.m. against Saint Francis (Pa.).

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