Dominant Pitching Leads Softball To Split

HOUSTON, Texas -- The No. 12 Oklahoma softball team (3-4) split two games in the opening day of action at the Houston Hilton Plaza Invitational. Freshman Stacy Braddock tossed a one hitter but was the hard luck loser as OU fell by a score of 2-0 in its opener against No. 13 Alabama (8-0).

In the second game of the tourney double header, OU edged Sam Houston State (2-4), 1-0, thanks to a clutch double by Jessica Leslie and a dominant performance by Kami Keiter.

Freshman Stacy Braddock got the start for the Sooners in their first meeting with a ranked team this season. Braddock did not disappoint as she tossed a one hitter and struck out eight batters.

The one hit Braddock allowed turned out to be a costly one. She had a no hitter and was outdueling Alabama ace Jessica VanBrakle, who had allowed just one hit, through three innings.

Box Scores: Alabama 2, OU 0 | OU 1, Sam Houston State 0

Braddock was dominating early, but VanBrakle earned the last laugh with a one-two punch . The junior's two-run homer in the fourth inning accounted for all the scoring and the sole Bama hit. In the circle, VanBrakle struck out nine OU batters and allowed three hits in route to the shutout.

OU struggled at the plate for the fourth consecutive game (all losses). Two of OU's three hits didn't leave the infield, while the Sooners never moved a batter past second base.

Braddock is 1-2 on the year despite allowing just one earned run (0.47 ERA) in 15 innings of work.

Oklahoma's pitching remained strong in the second game against Sam Houston State, while the offense remained in neutral.

Keiter improved to 2-1 by tossing a three-hit shutout. Sam Houston State never threatened against OU's ace and didn't move a runner past second base.

OU's offense snapped a streak of 13.2 innings without scoring a run in the bottom of the sixth. Senior Christina Enea laced a two-out single up the middle to begin the mini rally. Enea came all the way around one batter later when Jessica Leslie pelted the left field wall with a RBI double.

OU head coach Patty Gasso needs just three more wins to earn the 500th victory of her Sooner coaching career. Her record in 11 seasons at OU is 497-166-1.

With the opening day split the Sooners stand at 3-4 on the season. They return to Hilton Invitational play tomorrow morning when they face Sam Houston State at 11 a.m. OU also is scheduled to play Houston at 1 p.m. Possible rain showers are in the forecast for Saturday afternoon.

Dominant Pitching Leads Softball To Split

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Dominant Pitching Leads Softball To Split

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