Keiter One Hits Temple For 5-0 Win In Regional Opener

TUCSON, Ariz. -- A dominating performance by junior ace Kami Keiter paced the No. 21 Oklahoma softball team to a 5-0 win over Temple on Thursday afternoon at the Region I Softball Championships in Tucson, Ariz. Keiter tossed six innings of one-hit ball to improve to 18-12 on the season. The No. 2 seed Sooners advance to play No. 3 seed Northwestern on Thursday at 1:30 p.m. (CST).

“The first win in regionals is always the toughest,” said OU head coach Patty Gasso. “You have to battle nerves and sometimes you come out tentative. I like the way we jumped on them early and held that advantage throughout. This is a good win to get under our belt.”

OU has won 17 consecutive games in regional championships, a streak that dates back to 2000. Gasso's squads are 8-2 in the first game of NCAA Regionals under the Sooner signal caller and have won seven straight dating back to 1997

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Keiter was the story of the game. She was perfect in her final four frames of work after allowing three runners to reach base in the first two innings. Keiter sent 14 Owl batters down in order before being relieved by freshman Jessica Johnson. Johnson struck out two of the final three TU batters to finish off the one-hit shutout.

“They were aggressive at the plate,” said Keiter who improved her career record to 13-7 in postseason play. “I was working on putting good movement on my ball. I wasn't trying to blow it by them, rather hit my spots and let my infield do the work.”

Keiter struck out six batters and did not walk anyone. It is the fourth time (two solo) that Keiter has been involved in postseason shutout for OU.

The OU offense jumped on Temple early. After going down in order in the first inning, the Sooners exploded for four runs in the bottom of the second. One-out singles by Christina Enea and Jamie Fox began the rally. A double to left field by Mariee Mena plated the Sooners first two runs.

OU's final two runs of the inning were manufactured on fielder's choices from Kami Keiter and April Valdez. Keiter and Valdez also picked up stolen bases in the inning.

Mena picked up her third RBI of the afternoon with single in the third inning to put OU up 5-0.

TU starter Richelle Villescas took the loss and fell to 17-13. No. 7 seed Temple will play No. 6 seed UC Santa Barbara tonight at 9 p.m. (CST).

OU will face Northwestern for the ninth time in program history tomorrow afternoon . The Sooners own a 7-1 all-time record against the Wildcats. NU reached the postseason with an at-large birth after finishing in fourth place in the Big 10.

“I know Northwestern hits the ball well,” said Gasso. “We'll need a good game plan in the circle to keep their offense at bay.”