Sunday, April 23
Houston, TX
12 PM
Tulsa
20-23, 0
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4
Houston
19-24, 0
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7
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H
E
Tulsa
1
0
0
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6
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Houston
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4
6
4
Tulsa Rallies in Seventh to Sweep Houston
4/23/2023 5:49:00 PM | Softball
Box Score (PDF)
HOUSTON, Texas – Down to its last out, Tulsa put together five singles and a walk to storm back and beat Houston 6-4, completing the series sweep at Cougar Softball Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
Tulsa (20-23, 6-6 The American) had trailed Houston (19-24, 6-6 The American) since the bottom of the second frame and was down 4-2 entering the final inning. After the first two batters were retired, it came down to Kylee Nash. She came through with a single to right to keep the game alive for the top of the order.
Kennedy Cramer came in to pinch run and moved to second on a Haley Morgan single. MacKenzie Denson stepped to the plate. She'd been the provider of a few big hits already this weekend, and Sunday was no different. She hit a hard ground ball that deflected off the glove of a diving shortstop into center. Cramer came in to score and the center fielder chose to try to catch Morgan racing for third. Instead, the ball got away from everyone and Morgan scored to tie the game at four.
Imani Edwards was walked to bring in Kailyn Bearpaw with runners on the corner. She hit a bouncing ball to third, which was misplayed by the third baseman and ended in the outfield, scoring Denson and giving Tulsa a 5-4 lead to complete the comeback. Claira Skaggs singled to make the score 6-4.
Nash (9-11) recorded a win for the second day in a row. She came on in relief in the sixth, throwing one and a third. She struck out two and walked two. Maura Moore had the start in the circle, spinning 5.2 innings while allowing four runs, two earned, on six hits with a strikeout and four walks. She reentered in the seventh and got the save.
For Houston, Kenna Wilkey (14-11) went the distance and was one out away from earning a win, but instead was tagged with the loss. She tossed 7.0 innings and allowed six runs, three earned, on eight hits. She struck out four and walked four.
Skaggs batted 3-for-4 on Sunday, driving in a pair of runs and making a few sharp plays on the defensive end. Morgan finished with a hit and two walks, coming around to score twice. Denson also scored twice and had a two-hit day while Edwards extended her hitting streak to seven with a single.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Golden Hurricane took the lead in the opening frame. Denson singled and promptly stole second. She advanced to third on a single from Edwards and then came in to score on a sacrifice fly from Bearpaw.
Houston took the lead for the first time all series in the bottom of the second. The Cougars had runners on the corners with one out. A single to left drove in the tying run. After a two-out walk, Houston took the lead with a double to left, scoring two to give Houston a 3-1 lead.
The fifth inning saw Houston extend its lead thanks to free bases. The Cougars singled with two outs to put a runner on base. The next two batters walked, ending Moore's spell in the circle and bringing in Nash. She walked in a run, but then got a strikeout to end the inning.
In the top of the sixth, a couple of errors put Tulsa in position to strike back. Morgan walked to lead the inning and then was sacrificed over to second. Consecutive errors loaded the bases for Skaggs. She grounded out to second, but it was enough to bring in Morgan and cut the deficit to 4-2 heading into the seventh.
The first two batters went down for Tulsa in the seventh, bringing up Nash as the final chance. She singled and then Kennedy Cramer came in to pinch run. Morgan came through with a single to left to put the tying run on base. Denson smashed a single up the middle, off the diving glove of the shortstop and into center, scoring Cramer.
Morgan tried to go from first to third, forcing the center fielder to throw in her direction. The ball got away from the third baseman and Morgan came in to score and tie the game at 4-4 while Denson moved to third. After Edwards walked, Bearpaw hit a bouncing ball down the third base line that was misplayed by the third baseman, bringing in Denson and giving Tulsa the lead. Skaggs added an insurance run with another single, scoring Edwards.
Moore reentered the game in the circle to close out the game. She forced to ground outs and a fly out to get Houston in order, earn the save and clinch the sweep.
The Golden Hurricane enters the final homestand of the season with a lot of momentum after taking care of Houston. Tulsa hosts the No. 1 Oklahoma Sooners on Wednesday afternoon before welcoming No. 23 Wichita State for a weekend series at the Collins Family Softball Complex. All four games will air on ESPN+.
GAME NOTES
» The Golden Hurricane moved to 2-16 this season when trailing after six innings.
» TU is 14-5 this season in games where it has scored in the first inning, and 15-5 when scoring first.
» Tulsa outhit the Cougars 8-6 in the win
» Houston committed four errors on Sunday and Tulsa was responsible for two
» This was Tulsa's first conference road sweep since taking care of ECU in a four-game series in 2021.
» Imani Edwards has hit safely in seven straight games, her second longest streak of the season ... she has reached base in 16 consecutive games.
HOUSTON, Texas – Down to its last out, Tulsa put together five singles and a walk to storm back and beat Houston 6-4, completing the series sweep at Cougar Softball Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
Tulsa (20-23, 6-6 The American) had trailed Houston (19-24, 6-6 The American) since the bottom of the second frame and was down 4-2 entering the final inning. After the first two batters were retired, it came down to Kylee Nash. She came through with a single to right to keep the game alive for the top of the order.
Kennedy Cramer came in to pinch run and moved to second on a Haley Morgan single. MacKenzie Denson stepped to the plate. She'd been the provider of a few big hits already this weekend, and Sunday was no different. She hit a hard ground ball that deflected off the glove of a diving shortstop into center. Cramer came in to score and the center fielder chose to try to catch Morgan racing for third. Instead, the ball got away from everyone and Morgan scored to tie the game at four.
Imani Edwards was walked to bring in Kailyn Bearpaw with runners on the corner. She hit a bouncing ball to third, which was misplayed by the third baseman and ended in the outfield, scoring Denson and giving Tulsa a 5-4 lead to complete the comeback. Claira Skaggs singled to make the score 6-4.
Nash (9-11) recorded a win for the second day in a row. She came on in relief in the sixth, throwing one and a third. She struck out two and walked two. Maura Moore had the start in the circle, spinning 5.2 innings while allowing four runs, two earned, on six hits with a strikeout and four walks. She reentered in the seventh and got the save.
For Houston, Kenna Wilkey (14-11) went the distance and was one out away from earning a win, but instead was tagged with the loss. She tossed 7.0 innings and allowed six runs, three earned, on eight hits. She struck out four and walked four.
Skaggs batted 3-for-4 on Sunday, driving in a pair of runs and making a few sharp plays on the defensive end. Morgan finished with a hit and two walks, coming around to score twice. Denson also scored twice and had a two-hit day while Edwards extended her hitting streak to seven with a single.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Golden Hurricane took the lead in the opening frame. Denson singled and promptly stole second. She advanced to third on a single from Edwards and then came in to score on a sacrifice fly from Bearpaw.
Houston took the lead for the first time all series in the bottom of the second. The Cougars had runners on the corners with one out. A single to left drove in the tying run. After a two-out walk, Houston took the lead with a double to left, scoring two to give Houston a 3-1 lead.
The fifth inning saw Houston extend its lead thanks to free bases. The Cougars singled with two outs to put a runner on base. The next two batters walked, ending Moore's spell in the circle and bringing in Nash. She walked in a run, but then got a strikeout to end the inning.
In the top of the sixth, a couple of errors put Tulsa in position to strike back. Morgan walked to lead the inning and then was sacrificed over to second. Consecutive errors loaded the bases for Skaggs. She grounded out to second, but it was enough to bring in Morgan and cut the deficit to 4-2 heading into the seventh.
The first two batters went down for Tulsa in the seventh, bringing up Nash as the final chance. She singled and then Kennedy Cramer came in to pinch run. Morgan came through with a single to left to put the tying run on base. Denson smashed a single up the middle, off the diving glove of the shortstop and into center, scoring Cramer.
Morgan tried to go from first to third, forcing the center fielder to throw in her direction. The ball got away from the third baseman and Morgan came in to score and tie the game at 4-4 while Denson moved to third. After Edwards walked, Bearpaw hit a bouncing ball down the third base line that was misplayed by the third baseman, bringing in Denson and giving Tulsa the lead. Skaggs added an insurance run with another single, scoring Edwards.
Moore reentered the game in the circle to close out the game. She forced to ground outs and a fly out to get Houston in order, earn the save and clinch the sweep.
The Golden Hurricane enters the final homestand of the season with a lot of momentum after taking care of Houston. Tulsa hosts the No. 1 Oklahoma Sooners on Wednesday afternoon before welcoming No. 23 Wichita State for a weekend series at the Collins Family Softball Complex. All four games will air on ESPN+.
GAME NOTES
» The Golden Hurricane moved to 2-16 this season when trailing after six innings.
» TU is 14-5 this season in games where it has scored in the first inning, and 15-5 when scoring first.
» Tulsa outhit the Cougars 8-6 in the win
» Houston committed four errors on Sunday and Tulsa was responsible for two
» This was Tulsa's first conference road sweep since taking care of ECU in a four-game series in 2021.
» Imani Edwards has hit safely in seven straight games, her second longest streak of the season ... she has reached base in 16 consecutive games.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Nash, Kylee (9-11)
L: WILKEY,K (14-11)
S: Moore, Maura (1)
Batting:
RBI: Denson, MacKenzie 1 ; Bearpaw, Kailyn 1 ; Skaggs, Claira 2
SH: Denson, MacKenzie 1 ; Keith, Rylee 1
SF: Bearpaw, Kailyn 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Morgan, Haley 2 ; Denson, MacKenzie 2 ; Edwards, Imani 1 ; Cramer, Kennedy 1
SB: Denson, MacKenzie 1
CS: Jarvis, Gracie 1
Batting:
2B: CANTU,B 2
RBI: COLEMAN,T 1 ; CANTU,B 2 ; LORENZO,B 1
SH: CARDEN, A 2
Base Running:
RUNS: THOMAS,J 1 ; CARDEN, A 1 ; BROWN,K 1 ; LORENZO,B 1
SB: FARINA,B 1
HBP: SHAW,B 1
Game Leaders
AB
4
R
0
H
3
RBI
2
AB
3
R
2
H
2
RBI
1
AB
2
R
2
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
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