Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowgirls Host Wichita State On Wednesday
May 01, 2001 | Cowgirl Softball
May 1, 2001
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COWGIRLS HOST SHOCKERS IN FINAL GAME
Oklahoma State (24-21) hosts Wichita State in the Cowgirls' final game of the regular season on Wed., May 2, at 6 p.m. at Cowgirl Stadium. It will also be the final home game for two seniors: Amanda Hayes and Lezli Leathers. WSU is 23-25 overall this season, and defeated OSU, 3-0, earlier this year.
SENIOR NIGHT
Oklahoma State says goodbye to three seniors as they play their final game at Cowgirl Stadium tonight. Amanda Hayes (Clyde, Texas), Lezli Leathers (Stroud, Okla.) and April Bradford (Tulsa, Okla.) will be honored in a pregame ceremony prior to the WSU contest. All three transferred to Oklahoma State at one time. Hayes came to OSU three years ago after a one-year stint at Louisiana Tech. Leathers returned to her home state after two years with the Kansas Jayhawks. Bradford became a Cowgirl this season after spending time at Hutchinson Community College. All three have become an integral part of the Cowgirl Softball program.
COMING UP
The Cowgirls' next action will be at the Big 12 Tournament, which begins on May 9 at Hall of Fame Stadium in OKC. OSU will finish the regular season as either the No. 4 or 5 seed, depending on what Kansas does in its final three games. If KU loses all three, OSU will move up to the No. 4 seed and play the Jayhawks. If KU wins at least one game, OSU will enter the tourney as the No. 5 seed, and play either Texas Tech or KU. Either way, the Cowgirls will play the 11 a.m. game on Thursday, May 10, on the North Field.
LAST TIME OUT
Oklahoma State took a 2-1 decision from the No. 23 Texas A&M Aggies, sweeping A&M and finishing at .500 for the conference season. The Cowgirls struck for a run in the third on Jenny Kipp's RBI double. Casey O'Neill led off by reaching on an error by Aggie third baseman Jennifer Davis. After Lezli Leathers popped out, Danielle Thomas reached on a fielder's choice, advancing O'Neill to second. Kipp then smashed a double off the left-field fence to score O'Neill and move Thomas to third. The Aggies held OSU to only one run in the inning as Amanda Hayes followed with a line drive to center field that was caught by a diving Angie Shetler. Shetler then got up and doubled off Thomas who had run home, not realizing that Shetler had made the catch. The Cowgirls tallied their final run in the top of the fourth when catcher Ryan Realmuto led off with her sixth home run of the season. Realmuto finished the weekend going 4-for-6 in the series with two home runs, two RBIs and two runs scored. A&M scored an unearned run in the fifth to pull within a run of the Cowgirls. Tiffany Esters reached on a one-out single and after Shetler popped out, Lisa Klam reached on an error by Cowgirl leftfielder Hayes. Hayes tracked Klam's fly to left, but dropped the ball when it hit her glove, and Esters scored all the way from first. Lauren Bay (13-10) pitched a complete game for the Cowgirls, striking out six, walking three, allowing three hits and no earned runs. Senior Amy Vining (11-6) started for the Aggies, throwing three innings and surrendering two hits, two runs - one earned - and three strikeouts. Lindsay Wilhelmson relieved Vining after Realmuto's home run in the fourth and went the rest of the way, giving up only one hit and striking out five.
SCOUTING REPORT ON WICHITA STATE
Wichita State is 23-25 overall this season and 11-12 in the Missouri Valley Conference. The Shockers are led by Patti Oleson, who is batting .318 with a team-leading 29 runs, 10 home runs and 27 RBIs. On the mound, Sarah Chamberlain is 9-17 with a 2.35 ERA and 160-2/3 innings pitched. Amanda Cave is 10-7 with a 2.54 ERA and 132-1/3 innings pitched.
SERIES WITH WICHITA STATE
Oklahoma State leads the all-time series with Wichita State, 58-2, including 57-consecutive wins from 1979 until last year. WSU won, 3-0, in the game earlier this season in Wichita. There have been 34 shutouts in the series, with the Cowgirls owning 33 of those. Since 1997, eight of the 10 contests have been decided by three runs or less, including three extra-inning contests.
MISCELLANEOUS NOTES
Sophomore Lauren Bay leads the team in two-out RBIs with 11, followed by freshman Jade Lindly and senior Amanda Hayes, who each have eight ... Oklahoma State has scored 21 of its 114 runs this season in the first inning, 25 in the third and 21 in the fourth ... OSU has 54 multiple-hit games this season as a team, including a 4-for-4 performance by junior Angela Veronesi vs. Utah in the Red Desert Classic ... Freshman Jade Lindly leads the Cowgirls in pinch-hitting, going 2-for-3 this season ... The Cowgirls have 90 called strikeouts, or 33.5 percent of their total strikeouts ... Sophomore catcher Ryan Realmuto has thrown out 18-of-68 attempted base stealers, or 26.5 percent.
HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE
Oklahoma State is 10-5 at home this season, an advantage that is evident in the statistics. On the mound, sophomore Lauren Bay is 8-2 in home games with a 1.17 earned run average and three shutouts. She has 74 strikeouts in 65-2/3 innings pitched, 7.9 Ks per home outing. Freshman Jade Lindly is batting .333 in home contests, leading the team, with two doubles and a home run. Sophomore Ryan Realmuto has four doubles and two home runs in her 12 hits.
OSU IN NON-CONFERENCE GAMES
The Cowgirls are 16-13 in non-conference games this season. Senior Amanda Hayes leads the offensive surge with a .326 batting average and 18 RBIs. The team is batting .270 vs. non-conference competition, while the pitching staff has a 1.76 ERA in those games. Lauren Bay is 7-4 with a 1.16 ERA and 103 strikeouts in 78-1/3 innings.
HEAD COACH SANDY FISCHER
Sandy Fischer is in her 23rd season at the helm of the Oklahoma State Cowgirls, and enters Wednesday's game with a career record of 896-371-3. Her NCAA record is 848-355-3, making her the third-winningest active coach among NCAA coaches. She just moved into fourth place on the all-time victories list, surpassing UCLA's Sharon Backus, who had 847 wins in her career. Coach Fischer has led OSU to nine conference championships, eight regional championships and nine Women's College World Series appearances. Under her guidance, 62 players have been named first-team all-conference, while 28 have gone on to earn All-America status. Here is a look at where Fischer sits in the all-time coaching ranks in NCAA Division I history, ranked by victories ...
ASSOCIATE HEAD COACH MARGARET REBENAR
In her 22nd year as the top assistant coach for Oklahoma State is Margaret Rebenar. Since her naming as the Associate Head Coach for the Cowgirls, Rebenar has accumulated a 328-163 record at Oklahoma State. Last season, she was inducted into the NFCA/ Easton '300-win' club. Rebenar guided the Cowgirls to a regional championship and a College World Series appearance in 1998.
COWGIRL SOFTBALL ON THE AIR
Oklahoma State's final game vs. Wichita State, as well as all postseason games, will be broadcast live on Stillwater Radio. Bill VanNess will provide the play-by-play for the third-consecutive season. The game vs. Wichita State on April 2 will be on 780 AM, as will all games in the Big 12 Tournament.
