Oklahoma State University Athletics
Softball Set For Second Half Of Bedlam Series
April 28, 2004 | Cowgirl Softball
at OKLAHOMA (35-16-1, 9-6)
Wednesday, April 28 • 7 p.m.
Norman, Okla. • Marita Hynes Field
Gametracker: okstate.com
Radio: KGFY 105.5 FM or okstate.com
TV: Cox Cable Channel 7 (KSBI)
ON TAP
Oklahoma State heads south for the second installment of 2004 Bedlam on Wednesday. The Cowgirls and Sooners take the field for a 7 p.m. contest in a game televised locally on Cox Cable. Check your local listings for viewing information. Dave Hunziker will handle the play-by-play duties and Nancy Teehee will serve as the color analyst for the broadcast.
The Cowgirls are currently sixth in the conference standings, trailing Oklahoma by three games. Oklahoma won the first meeting of the year, 2-1, in Stillwater. Since that time OSU is 6-3 and OU is 6-2. Oklahoma is undefeated at 8-0 during the conference season at Marita Hynes Field.
Oklahoma State split with Texas last weekend. The Longhorns took the first contest 9-4 despite a grand slam from Cowgirl Jade Lindly. The Cowgirls came out on top on Sunday, downing the Longhorns 7-4 to spoil Senior Day. Oklahoma picked up two wins against Kansas, besting the Jayhawks 10-1 and 2-1 in Norman.
OSU leads the all-time series 68-54 but has won just two of the last 20 meetings.
HEAD COACH MARGARET REBENAR
Margaret Rebenar is in her 25th season season as a softball coach at Oklahoma State and third as a head coach. Rebenar joined the Cowgirl softball program in 1980 after serving as a pitching coach at UCLA for one season. After filling the assistant coach role for 22 seasons, Rebenar was named the head coach in 2001. Rebenar led the 2003 Cowgirls to a second-place finish in the Big 12 regular season race and their first NCAA Regional appearance in five years. Under her guidance, 23 players have earned All-American status 29 times, including Olympians Michele Smith, Melanie Roche and Lauren Bay. Rebenar brings a 94-62 record as a head coach into Wednesday's game at Oklahoma.
SCOUTING OKLAHOMA
Oklahoma is 35-16-1 overall and enters Wednesday's contest having won seven of its last 10 outings. The Sooners lead the conference with a .289 batting average and rank third with a 1.56 team ERA. Heather Scaglione leads the Sooners and the Big 12 with a .413 batting average. The junior also leads the league in home runs (13), RBI (42) and slugging percentage (.740). Norelle Dickson is hitting at a .358 clip and has a team-high 24 stolen bases. After fighting injury for the first part of the season Kami Keiter has returned to lead the pitching staff. Keiter, a 2003 All-American, is 12-9 on the season with a 1.02 ERA in 150.2 innings. Jessica Johnson sees limited action in a reserve role, tossing 33.0 innings for a 5-0 record and 2.33 ERA.
Series snapshot
longest winning streak: 14 by OU, snapped on April 23, 2003
largest margin: OU won 16-0 on April 19, 2001; OSU won 11-0 in 1976
1-run games: OU leads 22-21
2-run games: OSU leads 15-5
5+run games: series tied 12-12
IN THE POLLS
The Cowgirls were ranked 21st in the preseason NFCA Coaches poll and 22nd in the preseason ESPN/USA Today Softball poll. It marked the first time since 1999 that the Cowgirls were ranked to start the season. The Cowgirls fell out of both polls following a 2-3 start to the season at the San Diego State Tournament. Oklahoma State will face seven opponents ranked in the NFCA preseason Top 25; Arizona, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Texas, Cal State Fullerton, Stanford and Texas A&M. Four of those, UA, OU, NU and UT were ranked in the Top 10. In the most recently released poll, nine OSU opponents made the cut.
LOOKING AHEAD
Oklahoma State closes out the regular season at home against Baylor this weekend. The Cowgirls will honor their four seniors; Alliya Anderson, Calli Behmer, Crystal Lee and Jade Lindly, prior to Sunday's contest.
COWGIRL SOFTBALL ON THE AIR
Oklahoma State's home conference games, as well as the OU game in Norman, the TU game in Tulsa and all postseason contests will be broadcast live on Stillwater Radio. Bill VanNess will provide the play-by-play for the sixth consecutive season. Any game starting prior to 5 p.m. will air on KSPI 780 AM. Any game starting at 5 p.m. or later will be broadcast on KGFY 105.5 FM.
COWGIRL SOFTBALL ON THE WEB
For the latest information on 2004 Cowgirl Softball visit the official web site of Oklahoma State Athletics at www.okstate.com. Live stats will be available online for all home events and selected games will be broadcast via a live video feed on the web site as part of the MVP package.
