OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. ā Senior shortstop
Tiare Jennings broke the Oklahoma softball team's program record for career doubles as the top-ranked Sooners defeated No. 19/22 Baylor 8-1 in front of 8,798 fans at Hall of Fame Stadium on Friday evening in Oklahoma City.
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Jennings moved ahead of Sydney Romero with her 59th career double, leading off the home half of the third by lacing the historic two-bagger down the left field line. The shortstop finished a triple shy of the cycle, going 3-for-3 with a home run and a walk as the Sooners (29-1, 7-0 Big 12) continued their unbeaten start to conference play with the win over Baylor (17-9, 1-6 Big 12).
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OU remains a game up on Texas in the Big 12 standings and moved to 2.0 games ahead of Oklahoma State.
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Kelly Maxwell spun a gem in the circle, improving to 9-0 on the season with 5.1 innings of one-run ball. The left-hander struck out four while scattering three hits and a walk, improving her conference numbers to 3-0 with a 0.38 ERA.
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Oklahoma opened the scoring in the bottom of the second courtesy of some "Sooner Magic," with
Rylie Boone (3-for-3, 2B) legging out an infield single that saw Baylor's fielder throw the ball away, allowing
Cydney Sanders (1-for-2, BB, 2 R) to score all the way from first base. Baylor would draw things even at one two frames later in fourth.
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A seven-run fifth inning blew the game open for Oklahoma as Jennings launched a go-ahead two-run opposite-field home run to begin the fracas. A bases-loaded walk issued to
Riley Ludlam (0-for-2, BB, R, RBI) made it 4-1 OU before pinch-hitter
Alynah Torres (1-for-1 R, HR, RBI) blasted a grand slam to deep left field.
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Right-hander
Paytn Monticelli closed the door on Baylor, retiring five of six batters with the lone runner reaching on a single.
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Jennings and Boone each provided three-hit games for Oklahoma with
Ella Parker (2-for-4, R) adding a two-knock performance in the win. OU extended its winning streak to 11 games and recorded its fifth consecutive game with double-digit hits. Jennings also moved into second in program history in total bases, pushing her career mark to 589 with seven on the night to pass Lauren Chamberlain's 583.
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Up Next
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Game two of the series is set for a 2 p.m. CT start on Saturday at Love's Field. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+, 107.7 FM The Franchise and 1560 AM/103.3 FM The Franchise 2.
For updates and more information on Oklahoma Softball, follow the Sooners on Twitter/X and Instagram (
@OU_Softball) and likeĀ
Oklahoma SoftballĀ on Facebook.
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