Cowgirls Prepare For Big 12 Opener

*PDF Game Notes*

The Basics

Oklahoma State Softball and second-year head coach Kenny Gajewski return to action for the start of conference play against Texas. The Cowgirls are set to play a three-game series starting Mar. 24 at 6:30 pm and will continue Saturday at 2:00 pm. The two foes will conclude the series at 1:00 pm on Sunday.

Following The Action

Fans can catch all three games on the Fox Sports family of networks. Friday's game will be on Fox Sports Plus, with the remaining two being broadcasted on Fox Sports Oklahoma. Arizona Wildcat legend Alison McCutcheon (Color) and Casey Kendrick (Play-By-Play) will be on the call for all three games. Fans can also listen on 105.5 FM with Bill Van Ness on the call or follow with live stats on okstate.com or on Twitter (@CowgirlSB).

Oklahoma State Snapshot

Oklahoma State comes into the Texas series coming off a 1-1 week against North Texas and Missouri State. Between the two games, the Cowgirls scored 13 runs on 21 hits, nine of which went for extra bases. Rylee Bayless led the way at the plate batting .625 on five hits and four RBIs. Bayless reached base six times in the pair of games on her way to a .667 on-base percentage. Brandi Needham earned the win in the circle against North Texas. The senior threw her sixth complete game of the year, allowing just two runs and five hits as she earned her ninth win of the year.
After a 19-11 non-conference start the Cowgirls now turn their attention to the Big 12, where the schedule should help OSU in the RPI rankings. Oklahoma State is set to face four ranked teams, two who are receiving votes and six within the RPI Top 50.
Taylor Lynch continues to lead the Cowgirl effort at the plate. She's batting a team-best .393 on 35 hits and 24 RBIs. Lynch has proven to be a running threat on the bases as she has stole five bases through 28 games played. In Big 12 standings she has the fourth-best batting average, seventh-most hits, ninth-most doubles (7) and seventh-most RBIs. In OSU's last 10 games, she's batting .423 on 11 hits, eight RBIs and eight runs scored.
Rylee Bayless has shined in her first year in Stillwater. The transfer from NEO is batting a cool .373 on 31 hits with 25 RBIs and 29 runs scored. She leads the team in runs scored, doubles (11), walks (32) and stolen bases (11). In the Big 12, she has the 10th-best batting average, most walks, second-most runs scored, most doubles, sixth-most RBIs, second-best on-base percentage and seventh-best slugging percentage (.578).
Maddi Holcomb has quietly had a solid streak going during the Cowgirls' last 10 games. While playing in eight, Holcomb has hit .565 on 13 hits with five RBIs and five runs scored. Showing she can be a threat from the bottom of the order, she's hitting .391 in 2017 with 27 hits and 13 runs scored. Holcomb has also been a threat on the bases, stealing five-of-six attempted stolen bases. With her impressive stretch this month, Holcomb has moved up to the fifth-best batting average in the Big 12.
Vanessa Shippy has once again stepped up for the Cowgirls in more than one way. At the plate, Shippy is batting .391 on 34 hits with 19 RBIs and 28 runs scored. Shippy leads the team with her .621 slugging percentage. In the Big 12, she holds the sixth-best batting average, has the eighth-most hits, most triples (4), second-most walks (24), fourth-most runs scored, third-best on-base percentage (.543) and second-best slugging percentage. In the field, Shippy has played a team-high six positions (right, center, left, catcher, first and short).
Brandi Needham has stepped up in the circle to replace 20-game winner Kacy Freeze, who graduated after last season. Needham has jumped out to a 9-4 record with wins over McNeese State, Penn State, Saint Joseph's, Long Beach State, New Mexico State, Abilene Christian, Wichita State, No. 22 Ole Miss and North Texas. On the year she has struck out 34 batters while walking just 15. Oppossing batters are hitting just .280 on the senior pitcher.
Home has been home sweet home once more for the Cowgirls as OSU has jumped out to a 6-3 record.

Scouting The Opponent: Texas

2017: Comes into the series with a 16-11 record, including a 4-5 record away from Austin. The record doens't paint the whole picture, as the Longhorns have faced 10 ranked teams already this year. Devon Tunning has led the way at the plate for the Longhorns, batting .349 on 30 hits with 16 RBIs. In the circle Texas is led by Paige von Sprecken and Brooke Bolinger, who have combined for half of the team's wins this year. Texas has seven players batting .300 or better thus far.
2016: Texas finished the 2016 season with a 38-16 record, including a 7-8 record on the road. In the Big 12, the Horns went 10-7 with a 3-5 record away from Austin. Texas went to the postseason as the No. 2-seed in the Louisiana-Lafayette Regional, where the Horns went 1-2 with losses to ULL and Texas A&M.
2016 Oklahoma State/Texas Series: Texas won all three games by a combined five runs in Austin. The series was Oklahoma State head coach Kenny Gajewski's first chance to see the Longhorns.

Inside The Texas Series

Texas has found success recently in the series as the Longhorns have won the last eight games.
Oklahoma State's last win over Texas came in 2014 when the Cowgirls defeated the Longhorns, 5-3, in Austin.
The last OSU win in Stillwater came on May 4, 2013, in a 2-1 game.
OSU last won the season series in 2013 when the Cowgirls took two of the three games.

Big 12 Notes

Oklahoma State finished 6-11 in conference play last season in Kenny Gajewski's first year. The Cowgirls earned their first series sweep over a Big 12 opponent since 2011 (Iowa State) and its first conference road series win since 2012 (Kansas).
Four of the 10 best batting averages in the conference come from OSU hitters (Lynch, Shippy, Holcomb and Bayless). No other team has more than three.
As a team, OSU has the second-best batting average in the Big 12 at .325. The team leads the conference in on-base percentage, walks and triples.
This is the first year since 2013 OSU has opened conference play at home and only the second time since 2010.

A Cowgirl Win Friday Would...

Be the fastest OSU has reached the 20-win mark since 2011 when the Cowgirls did so in 25 games. Oklahoma State went on to reach the WCWS that year.
Be the first win over the Longhorns since 2014.
Be the first time OSU has started 1-0 in Big 12 since the Cowgirls beat Baylor, 7-4, in Stillwater on Mar. 27, 2010.
The Cowgirls' eighth win in their last 10 games dating back to a 21-2 win over Evansville on Mar. 7.

Streaks And Trends

Maddi Holcomb has a hit in each of her last six games, the longest-active streak for the Cowgirls. Vanessa Shippy's 13-game streak earlier in the year is the team's longest in 2017.
Jessi Haffner has been reaching base a lot, including each of the last 10 games. That's the longest active streak for Cowgirl batters.
Rylee Bayless (third) is the only Cowgirl to have started all 30 games at the same position this year. On the other end Vanessa Shippy has played the most positions (six) this season.
As a team, the Cowgirls have at least two walks in each of the last 12 games.

Cowgirl Quick Hitters

The win against Ole Miss was the Cowgirls' fourth against the SEC this year. OSU is 1-3 against the conference with losses to No. 4 LSU and Arkansas. Oklahoma State went 5-3 last season against the SEC with wins over Arkansas, Ole Miss and Georgia. The Cowgirls will play four more games against the SEC in 2017.
The Cowgirl pitching staff has been true to its name this year with all five pitchers earning at least four starts so far. Four of the five have wins while Brandi Needham has led the way with nine. On the year, the squad has struck out 101 batters while picking up eight complete games. Showing anyone can come in at any time, two different Cowgirls (Logan Simunek and Whitney Whitehorn) have saves on the year.
Big 12 Play starts up once more for the Cowgirls this week. OSU opens up conference play when it host Texas Mar. 24-26. The Cowgirls will also host Kansas (Mar. 31-Apr. 2) and Texas Tech (Apr. 21-23) for three-game series in Stillwater. OSU will travel to Iowa State (Apr. 14-15) and Baylor (Apr. 28-30) in 2017. The Cowgirls close the year with two home games against OU with one in Norman before the Big 12 Tournament in Oklahoma City. Oklahoma State finished 6-11 in Big 12 play last year in head coach Kenny Gajewski's first year in Stillwater.
OSU has outscored its opponents 90-28 in its last nine games on its way to a 7-2 record.

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Players Mentioned

Rylee Bayless

Kacy Freeze

Jessi Haffner

Maddi Holcomb

Taylor Lynch

Brandi Needham

Vanessa Shippy

Logan Simunek

Whitney Whitehorn

Oklahoma State University Athletics