Cowgirls beat No. 1 OU to win Big 12 Championship

OKLAHOMA CITY — No. 1 ranked and topseed Oklahoma Softball dropped its second game of the season in the Big 12 Championship game Saturday, losing 4-3 in eight innings to two-seed and No. 7/8 Oklahoma State.

It marks the Sooners first loss in the Big 12 tournament title game since 2009 and the first time OU has not been the regular season or tourney champs since 2010.

This marked Oklahoma State’s first conference title since the Cowgirls won the Big * regular season crown in 1995 and was the Cowgirls’ first time winning a conference tournament since OSU claimed the 1992 Big Eight crown.

The teams exchanged runs throughout the third, fourth and fifth innings before the Cowgirls plated the game-winning run via bases-loaded walk in the top of the eighth when Kiley Naomi took a fourpitch walk from Nicole May.

Oklahoma got on the board first in the third courtesy of an RBI single from Tiare Jennings and a Cowgirl error on a ball hit to the outfield by Grace Lyons that allowed Jennings to race home.

At the top of the fourth, OSU plated two on a RBI single from Hayley Busby and sac-fly RBI from Taylor Tuck. The Cowgirls went up one in the fifth on an RBI single from Chyenne Factor.

Big 12 Player of the Year Jocelyn Alo knotted the game back up with a solo homer, her 25th of the season and 113th of her career, in the bottom of the fifth.

After a pair of scoreless innings, the game went to extras where OSU plated the go-ahead run on a bases-loaded walk to Naomi.

The Sooners managed a two-out baserunner in the bottom of the eighth by way of another OSU error on a ball hit by Alyssa Brito, but a groundout ended OU’s chances of a walk-off win.

Alo paced OU at the plate with a 2-for-4 performance, while Hope Trautwein took her first loss of the season in the circle, moving to 16-1. Trautwein entered in relief and went 3.1 innings, allowing two runs on five hits and three walks.

Starter Nicole May went 4.2 innings and allowed two runs on three hits and three walks to three strikeouts.

It was OSU’s first win over OU of the season, as the Sooners swept the three-game series over the Cowgirls in Norman a week ago to win the Big 12 regular season title.

OSU pitcher Morgan Day, who was credited with wins over Texas in the semifinals and OU in the finals, was honored as the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament.

OU advanced to Saturday’s Big 12 Championship Game with a 5-0 win over four-seed Iowa State in Friday’s semifinals.

The win was highlighted by a 14-strikeout, shutout performance from redshirt senior Hope Trautwein and a first-inning grand slam from senior captain Lynnsie Elam.

OSU defeated No. 16/16 Texas, 6-1, Friday at Hall of Fame Stadium to advance to the Big 12 championship game.

OU has been tabbed the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Division I Softball Championship and will host the NCAA Norman Regional at Marita Hynes Field from Friday to Sunday.

It marks the third straight season the Sooners have been the No. 1 seed.

OU starts its regional on Friday against Prairie View A&M at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN+.

The winner of this weekend’s regional will advance to the NCAA Super Regional round against the winner of the Orlando regional, hosted by 16seed Central Florida, the following weekend with the winner reaching the Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City.

In 2021, OU reached its 14th WCWS in program history, culminating in the program’s fifth national championship. The Sooners have won three of the past five WCWS crowns.

OSU was announced as the No. 7 national seed.

In each of the two previous seasons, OSU advanced to the Women’s College World Series.

This marks the third consecutive season in which OSU earned the right to host a regional and the second straight season in which the Cowgirls secured a top-eight national seed.

Should OSU (41-12 overall) advance through the regional, then the Cowgirls would host the winner of the Clemson regional that includes No. 10 seed Clemson, Louisiana, Auburn and UNC Wilmington, in a best-ofthree super regional to be played at Cowgirl Stadium the following weekend with a spot at the Women’s College World Series on the line.

The schedule for the Stillwater regional:

Friday, May 20

Game 1: Nebraska vs. North Texas 5 p.m. (ESPN+)

Game 2: Fordham vs. OSU 7:30 p.m. (ESPN+)

Saturday, May 21

Game 3: Winner G1 vs. Winner G2 Time TBD

Game 4: Loser G1 vs. Loser G2 Time TBD

Game 5: Winner G4 vs. Loser G3 Time TBD

Sunday, May 22

Game 6: Winner G3 vs. Winner G5 Time TBD

Game 7: Winner G6 vs. Loser G6 (if necessary) Time TBD