Thursday, May 11
Tampa, Fla.
9 AM
Tulsa
24-27
3
vs
2
Houston
20-30
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
R
H
E
Houston
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
2
2
1
Tulsa
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
3
7
0
Photo by: Mary Holt/American Athletic Conference
Bearpaw Hits Walk-Off Single to Beat Houston 3-2
5/11/2023 2:04:00 PM | Softball
Golden Hurricane advances to face top-seed Wichita State in semifinals
Box Score (PDF) | Photo Gallery
TAMPA, Fla. – Kailyn Bearpaw's RBI single with one out in the bottom of the seventh lifted No. 4 Tulsa to a 3-2 win over No. 5 Houston in the first game of the 2023 American Athletic Conference Softball Championship Thursday at the USF Softball Stadium.
"One of the things we talked about is, 'make big plays, don't give up big plays,' and we had two big plays in that seventh inning," Tulsa head coach Crissy Strimple said. "We had [MacKenzie] Denson's great baserunning and then Bearpaw driving the ball through the right side for the winning run. That was the difference in the game.
Tulsa (24-27, 9-9 AAC) will advance to Friday's semifinal game against the No. 1 seed, Wichita State. Houston finishes its season with a 20-30 record. This was the third first round meeting in a row between the two schools, and final as the Cougars will move on to the Big 12. Tulsa won the first and last of those three matchups.
Bearpaw entered the postseason with a team-leading 33 RBI and added two in Thursday's win. She also drove in the first run with a sacrifice fly in the fifth. Her game-winning single brought in MacKenzie Denson from second. Denson led the inning with a single and took advantage of the Houston defense relaxing to put herself in scoring position. The Cougar pitcher briefly stepped out of the circle between pitches and Denson stole an unattended second base.
For most of the game, it was a battle between the opposing pitchers and defenses. Neither team scored until the fifth inning. Maura Moore (14-12) got the win against the Cougars, tossing a complete game while allowing just two runs on two hits. Houston's first hit off the sophomore didn't come until the first batter in the fourth frame.
The top four batters in the Tulsa lineup all got hits. Haley Morgan singled to lead the game. In the fifth, she was hit by a pitch and came around to score on Bearpaw's sacrifice fly. Imani Edwards dropped down a perfect sacrifice bunt in the fifth to get Morgan to third. She also had a highlight play on defense, robbing Houston of a hit in the top of the third.
Rylee Keith came through in a big way for Tulsa in Thursday's matchup. The Hurricane had fallen behind in the top of the sixth, and the senior catcher stepped up and doubled to lead off the bottom of the inning. Kennedy Cramer came on as pinch runner and scored the tying run after Abby Jones' sacrifice bunt turned into a throwing error to tie the game at two and help set up Bearpaw's heroics.
"I was proud of our team for not getting down," Strimple said. "We came back and got a run right away. And then we had an opportunity in the seventh and we took advantage of it. It's exactly what you want to see from your team. We preach, 'fight and be tough,' and that's exactly what the players did.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Neither team got on the board until the bottom of the fifth inning, but there were few clean frames. Houston went down in order twice, the second and fifth innings, but Tulsa had a base runner in every inning played.
Tulsa broke through in the bottom of the fifth inning. Morgan was hit by a pitch to put the leadoff runner on. Denson walked and then Edwards dropped down a sacrifice bunt to move both into scoring position. Bearpaw stepped in and hit a sacrifice fly to center, bringing Morgan home to give TU the 1-0 lead. Kylee Nash, who had singled earlier, nearly had a hit of her own with a line drive that looked destined for the gap. However, the center fielder made an amazing leaping grab to rob a sure hit and RBI.
The lead didn't last long as Houston quickly recovered in the top of the sixth. In reverse order from the bottom of the fifth, Houston had a leadoff walk and then a hit batter to put two on. Just like Tulsa, the Cougars moved both into scoring position with a sacrifice bunt. Another walk loaded the bags with just one out. Houston's Ja'Naiya Thomas then hit a high chopper to second. The throw home was not in time to catch the tying runner, and the ball got to the backstop. Thomas decided to run for second but was caught in a pickle as nobody else advanced after the ball got away. Emma Vickrey applied the tag for the second out, but Houston advanced and took a 2-1 lead in the process.
Keith led off Tulsa's sixth with a double to left center. She was subsequently removed for Cramer as a pinch runner. Jones laid down a sacrifice bunt to move Cramer to third. Jones hustled down the line and made the throw difficult for the third baseman, which scooted past the first baseman into right, bringing in Cramer to tie the game.
The Cougars walked and singled with two outs in the seventh, but Moore got a flyout to left to end the top of the inning tied 2-2 and give Tulsa a chance to win the game.
Denson singled up the middle to start the bottom of the seventh. As Houston worked an 0-2 count on Edwards, Denson watched the Houston pitcher step outside the circle and stole second while the defense was unprepared. A nice catch in center took away a possible winning hit from Edwards and brought Bearpaw up. The right fielder offered at the first pitch she saw and drove a hard ground ball through the right side. The throw came home from the right fielder but had no chance of catching the speedy Denson as she slid in to give Tulsa the 3-2 win.
NOTES
» Tulsa improves to 12-4 in American Athletic Conference Championship games and 27-12 all-time in conference tournament play.
» The Golden Hurricane moves to 33-24-1 against Houston and 7-1 in neutral site games ... Tulsa finishes the 2023 season with a 4-0 record against the Cougars.
» With the win, Tulsa is 4-1 this season in games tied after six innings.
» This was the third game in a row where Maura Moore only allowed two hits ... she held the Cougars to a .094 batting average on Thursday.
» Tulsa got the leadoff hitter on base in five innings, while Houston accomplished this feat in three.
NEXT UP
The Golden Hurricane will be back in action on Friday morning in the semifinal of The American Softball Championship against the top-seeded Wichita State Shockers. First pitch is set for 11 a.m. (CT) and will air on ESPNU.
"We're excited to keep playing," Strimple said. "We talked about how we swept ECU last weekend and we're going to have to get another sweep this week. We knew we were going to face a great team no matter what. We're fighting to stay alive, and we have a lot to play for."
Wichita State brings a 43-9 record to the conference tournament. The Shockers were largely dominant in league play this season, rolling to a 16-2 record in The American. WSU swept Tulsa when the Hurricane hosted them the last week of April.
The first game was postponed in the fifth inning of a 2-2 ballgame thanks to inclement weather. On Saturday, the Shockers took control of the resumed game and won 8-2 before taking game two 17-2 in five innings. The finale saw Tulsa fail to take advantage of a couple of bases loaded opportunities as Wichita State scored twice in the sixth to win 2-1.
Friday marks the 65th meeting between the longtime rivals. Wichita State holds a 34-27 advantage and have won seven straight in the series, including nine of the past 10 matchups. Tulsa does enjoy a 5-2 record in neutral site games. The teams last met in the conference tournament on May 14, 2021, in Tulsa, Okla. The Shockers ended Tulsa's season with a 9-4 win in the semifinal of the tournament. The only other meeting in AAC Tournament play was in 2018, when TU knocked of the Shockers 3-1 in the opening round. Tulsa went on to win the title.
Updated Tournament Schedule (All Times Central)
May 11-13 | USF Softball Stadium | Tampa, Fla.
Thursday, May 11 – First Round
Game 1: No. 4 Tulsa - 3, No. 5 Houston - 2
Game 2: No. 2 UCF vs No. 7 Memphis – 11:30 a.m. (ESPN+)
Game 3: No. 3 South Florida vs No. 6 East Carolina – 2 p.m. (ESPN+)
Friday, May 12 – Semifinals
Pregame Show – 10:30 a.m. (ESPN+)
Game 4: No. 1 Wichita State vs No. 4 Tulsa – 11 a.m. (ESPNU)
Pregame Show – 1 p.m. (ESPN+)
Game 5: Winner of Game 2 vs Winner of Game 3 – 1:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
Saturday, May 13 – Championship Game
Pregame Show – 9:30 a.m. (ESPN+)
Game 6: Winner of Game 4 vs Winner of Game 5 – 10 a.m. (ESPN2)
TAMPA, Fla. – Kailyn Bearpaw's RBI single with one out in the bottom of the seventh lifted No. 4 Tulsa to a 3-2 win over No. 5 Houston in the first game of the 2023 American Athletic Conference Softball Championship Thursday at the USF Softball Stadium.
"One of the things we talked about is, 'make big plays, don't give up big plays,' and we had two big plays in that seventh inning," Tulsa head coach Crissy Strimple said. "We had [MacKenzie] Denson's great baserunning and then Bearpaw driving the ball through the right side for the winning run. That was the difference in the game.
Tulsa (24-27, 9-9 AAC) will advance to Friday's semifinal game against the No. 1 seed, Wichita State. Houston finishes its season with a 20-30 record. This was the third first round meeting in a row between the two schools, and final as the Cougars will move on to the Big 12. Tulsa won the first and last of those three matchups.
Bearpaw entered the postseason with a team-leading 33 RBI and added two in Thursday's win. She also drove in the first run with a sacrifice fly in the fifth. Her game-winning single brought in MacKenzie Denson from second. Denson led the inning with a single and took advantage of the Houston defense relaxing to put herself in scoring position. The Cougar pitcher briefly stepped out of the circle between pitches and Denson stole an unattended second base.
For most of the game, it was a battle between the opposing pitchers and defenses. Neither team scored until the fifth inning. Maura Moore (14-12) got the win against the Cougars, tossing a complete game while allowing just two runs on two hits. Houston's first hit off the sophomore didn't come until the first batter in the fourth frame.
The top four batters in the Tulsa lineup all got hits. Haley Morgan singled to lead the game. In the fifth, she was hit by a pitch and came around to score on Bearpaw's sacrifice fly. Imani Edwards dropped down a perfect sacrifice bunt in the fifth to get Morgan to third. She also had a highlight play on defense, robbing Houston of a hit in the top of the third.
Rylee Keith came through in a big way for Tulsa in Thursday's matchup. The Hurricane had fallen behind in the top of the sixth, and the senior catcher stepped up and doubled to lead off the bottom of the inning. Kennedy Cramer came on as pinch runner and scored the tying run after Abby Jones' sacrifice bunt turned into a throwing error to tie the game at two and help set up Bearpaw's heroics.
"I was proud of our team for not getting down," Strimple said. "We came back and got a run right away. And then we had an opportunity in the seventh and we took advantage of it. It's exactly what you want to see from your team. We preach, 'fight and be tough,' and that's exactly what the players did.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Neither team got on the board until the bottom of the fifth inning, but there were few clean frames. Houston went down in order twice, the second and fifth innings, but Tulsa had a base runner in every inning played.
Tulsa broke through in the bottom of the fifth inning. Morgan was hit by a pitch to put the leadoff runner on. Denson walked and then Edwards dropped down a sacrifice bunt to move both into scoring position. Bearpaw stepped in and hit a sacrifice fly to center, bringing Morgan home to give TU the 1-0 lead. Kylee Nash, who had singled earlier, nearly had a hit of her own with a line drive that looked destined for the gap. However, the center fielder made an amazing leaping grab to rob a sure hit and RBI.
The lead didn't last long as Houston quickly recovered in the top of the sixth. In reverse order from the bottom of the fifth, Houston had a leadoff walk and then a hit batter to put two on. Just like Tulsa, the Cougars moved both into scoring position with a sacrifice bunt. Another walk loaded the bags with just one out. Houston's Ja'Naiya Thomas then hit a high chopper to second. The throw home was not in time to catch the tying runner, and the ball got to the backstop. Thomas decided to run for second but was caught in a pickle as nobody else advanced after the ball got away. Emma Vickrey applied the tag for the second out, but Houston advanced and took a 2-1 lead in the process.
Keith led off Tulsa's sixth with a double to left center. She was subsequently removed for Cramer as a pinch runner. Jones laid down a sacrifice bunt to move Cramer to third. Jones hustled down the line and made the throw difficult for the third baseman, which scooted past the first baseman into right, bringing in Cramer to tie the game.
The Cougars walked and singled with two outs in the seventh, but Moore got a flyout to left to end the top of the inning tied 2-2 and give Tulsa a chance to win the game.
Denson singled up the middle to start the bottom of the seventh. As Houston worked an 0-2 count on Edwards, Denson watched the Houston pitcher step outside the circle and stole second while the defense was unprepared. A nice catch in center took away a possible winning hit from Edwards and brought Bearpaw up. The right fielder offered at the first pitch she saw and drove a hard ground ball through the right side. The throw came home from the right fielder but had no chance of catching the speedy Denson as she slid in to give Tulsa the 3-2 win.
NOTES
» Tulsa improves to 12-4 in American Athletic Conference Championship games and 27-12 all-time in conference tournament play.
» The Golden Hurricane moves to 33-24-1 against Houston and 7-1 in neutral site games ... Tulsa finishes the 2023 season with a 4-0 record against the Cougars.
» With the win, Tulsa is 4-1 this season in games tied after six innings.
» This was the third game in a row where Maura Moore only allowed two hits ... she held the Cougars to a .094 batting average on Thursday.
» Tulsa got the leadoff hitter on base in five innings, while Houston accomplished this feat in three.
NEXT UP
The Golden Hurricane will be back in action on Friday morning in the semifinal of The American Softball Championship against the top-seeded Wichita State Shockers. First pitch is set for 11 a.m. (CT) and will air on ESPNU.
"We're excited to keep playing," Strimple said. "We talked about how we swept ECU last weekend and we're going to have to get another sweep this week. We knew we were going to face a great team no matter what. We're fighting to stay alive, and we have a lot to play for."
Wichita State brings a 43-9 record to the conference tournament. The Shockers were largely dominant in league play this season, rolling to a 16-2 record in The American. WSU swept Tulsa when the Hurricane hosted them the last week of April.
The first game was postponed in the fifth inning of a 2-2 ballgame thanks to inclement weather. On Saturday, the Shockers took control of the resumed game and won 8-2 before taking game two 17-2 in five innings. The finale saw Tulsa fail to take advantage of a couple of bases loaded opportunities as Wichita State scored twice in the sixth to win 2-1.
Friday marks the 65th meeting between the longtime rivals. Wichita State holds a 34-27 advantage and have won seven straight in the series, including nine of the past 10 matchups. Tulsa does enjoy a 5-2 record in neutral site games. The teams last met in the conference tournament on May 14, 2021, in Tulsa, Okla. The Shockers ended Tulsa's season with a 9-4 win in the semifinal of the tournament. The only other meeting in AAC Tournament play was in 2018, when TU knocked of the Shockers 3-1 in the opening round. Tulsa went on to win the title.
Updated Tournament Schedule (All Times Central)
May 11-13 | USF Softball Stadium | Tampa, Fla.
Thursday, May 11 – First Round
Game 1: No. 4 Tulsa - 3, No. 5 Houston - 2
Game 2: No. 2 UCF vs No. 7 Memphis – 11:30 a.m. (ESPN+)
Game 3: No. 3 South Florida vs No. 6 East Carolina – 2 p.m. (ESPN+)
Friday, May 12 – Semifinals
Pregame Show – 10:30 a.m. (ESPN+)
Game 4: No. 1 Wichita State vs No. 4 Tulsa – 11 a.m. (ESPNU)
Pregame Show – 1 p.m. (ESPN+)
Game 5: Winner of Game 2 vs Winner of Game 3 – 1:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
Saturday, May 13 – Championship Game
Pregame Show – 9:30 a.m. (ESPN+)
Game 6: Winner of Game 4 vs Winner of Game 5 – 10 a.m. (ESPN2)
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Moore, Maura (14-12)
L: WILKEY,K (15-14)
Batting:
RBI: THOMAS,J 1
SH: COLEMAN,T 1 ; BROWN,K 1
Base Running:
RUNS: COLEMAN,T 1 ; FARINA,B 1
SB: THOMAS,J 1
HBP: SHAW,B 1
Batting:
2B: Keith, Rylee 1
RBI: Bearpaw, Kailyn 2
SH: Edwards, Imani 1 ; Jones, Abby 1
SF: Bearpaw, Kailyn 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Morgan, Haley 1 ; Denson, MacKenzie 1 ; Cramer, Kennedy 1
SB: Morgan, Haley 1 ; Denson, MacKenzie 1
HBP: Morgan, Haley 1
Game Leaders
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
2
R
0
H
1
RBI
2
Players Mentioned
IF
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