Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowgirl Softball Hosts Texas Tech
April 19, 2003 | Cowgirl Softball
COWGIRLS HOST TEXAS TECH
Toting a perfect 4-0 record in conference play, Oklahoma State hosts Texas Tech this weekend at Cowgirl Stadium. The Cowgirls and Red Raiders take the field at 2 p.m. on Saturday and 1 p.m. on Sunday.
Oklahoma State outlasted Tulsa on Wednesday, coming away with a 6-5 win. Lauren Bay fanned 19 batters in nine innings of relief and scored the winning run on a single from Jade Lindly in the bottom of the 11th.
It was the Cowgirls fifth extra inning win of the season and the second in 10 days. The win also extended the Cowgirls undefeated stretch to 13 overall and nine at home.
Texas Tech has lost seven of its last 10 contests, with the lone win coming against Texas A&M in Lubbock.
SERIES WITH TEXAS TECH
Oklahoma State leads the overall series with Texas Tech 16-6 including a 5-1 mark in Stillwater. OSU won the first 11 meetings but in the 11 contests since then, Tech leads the series 6-5. The two teams split last year in Lubbock, with OSU taking the first game and Tech edging by for a 1-0 win in the second contest.
SCOUTING REPORT ON TEXAS TECH
Texas Tech enters the weekend series at 14-28 overall and 1-3 in the Big 12. Freshman Arlene Newton leads Tech at the plate, batting .354 with nine doubles and two home runs. Kelly Rhyne is the only Red Raider that has started all 42 contests all year. Rhyne has a team-leading .585 slugging percentage thanks to nine doubles and six home runs. The sophomore is also second with a .354 batting average. Skiatook, Okla., native Shayne Gipson is one to watch on the bases as she has 13 of Tech's 22 stolen bases. Texas Tech has three pitchers it rotates; Kristina Blair, Erin Crawford and Amie Stines. The trio has a 2.99 ERA and averages 4.1 Ks per game.
OKLAHOMA STATE IN THE POLLS
The Cowgirls are currently ranked in both the NFCA Coaches and the ESPN.com/USA Softball Top 25 polls. The Cowgirls entered the NFCA poll for the first time the week of March 11th ranked 23rd after defeating Northwestern and Stanford to capture the title at the Speedline Invitational. The Cowgirls climbed to 18 this week after starting out conference play 4-0. Oklahoma State is currently ranked 16th for the second consecutive week in the ESPN.com poll, after debuting at 23 in the inaugural listing earlier this spring.
BIG 12 RANKINGS
Oklahoma State's pitching staff currently ranks second in the Big 12 with a 0.96 ERA behind Texas (0.67). Lauren Bay appears in several statistical categories, for both pitching and hitting. At the plate she ranks 12th in the conference with a .333 batting average. In the circle, Bay leads the pack with a 0.43 ERA in and 248 Ks. Sarah Seagraves ranks sixth, carrying the only perfect record (9-0) on a 1.24 earned run average.
