Oklahoma State University Athletics
Softball at Hilton Houston Plaza Classic
February 17, 2011 | Cowgirl Softball
Feb. 17, 2011
Stillwater, Okla. — Oklahoma State's 20th-ranked Cowgirl Softball team travels to Houston, Texas, this weekend to compete in the Hilton Houston Plaza Classic, hosted by the University of Houston. The Cowgirls will play five games Friday through Sunday at the Cougar Softball Stadium.
Oklahoma State is 4-1 this season after competing in the Kajikawa Classic in Tempe, Ariz., last weekend. OSU is batting .308 as a team and is led by freshman Ari Morrison's .500 batting average. Morrison is 8-for-16 at the plate with four runs batted in. Junior Julie Ward had eight RBIs last weekend along with two home runs and two doubles.
In the circle, the Cowgirl pitching staff has a 1.44 team earned run average and is led by sophomore Kat Espinosa. The All-Big 12 hurler is 2-0 with a 0.98 ERA. Freshman Simone Freeman is 2-1 with a 1.50 ERA and 12 strikeouts in 14 innings.
Oklahoma State will open the tournament on Friday at 1 pm against 18th-ranked LSU. The Cowgirls will play Houston immediately following at 3 pm. On Saturday, the OSU will play Southern at 9 am and Nicholls at 11 am. The Cowgirls will wrap up the tournament on Sunday when they play Nicholls at 11 am.
Oklahoma State is 2-4 all-time against LSU, including a pair of losses last year at the Tiger Classic in Baton Rouge. The Cowgirls are 0-1 all-time against Houston, having lost a 9-2 decision in 2001. OSU is 1-0 all-time against Nicholls, having defeated the Colonels 2-0 in the 1989 New Mexico State Tournament. The Cowgirls have never played Southern on the softball diamond.
