Cowgirl Softball Prepares For Kansas

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The Basics

Oklahoma State Softball and second-year head coach Kenny Gajewski return to action for a three-game series against Kansas starting at 4 p.m. Friday. The Cowgirls return to Big 12 play after a sweep of Texas last weekend in Stillwater.

Following the Action

Fans can watch all three games on okstate.com/live. Bill Van Ness will be on the call throughout the weekend on 105.5 FM in Stillwater. Live stats will be on okstate.com and updates throughout the games on Twitter (@CowgirlSB).

Oklahoma State Snapshot

Oklahoma State comes into the week fresh off its first three-game series sweep of the Texas Longhorns in Stillwater. The Cowgirls won the games by a combined three runs with Brandi Needham, Shea Coats and Christina Biggerstaff picking up wins. Vanessa Shippy led the charge at the plate going 4-for-11 with five RBIs on the weekend.
To find the Cowgirls in the Big 12 Standings this week you'll have to go look at the top as OSU finds itself tied for first after the first weekend of competition. Oklahoma State is tied for first with Texas Tech after both teams finished a perfect 3-0 in Big 12 play. After coming in at No. 49 in the initial RPI rankings, the Cowgirls moved up to No. 41 this week after the sweep of the Longhorns.
Vanessa Shippy continues to lead the charge at the plate for the Cowgirls. The junior is leading the team with a .388 batting average on 38 hits, 31 runs scored and 24 RBIs. Shippy has been an extra-base machine so far with a Big 12-best four triples, eight doubles and three home runs. She has also shown plenty of discipline as she has drawn 24 walks up to this point. In the field, she's been invaluable as she has played six different positions (catcher, first, short, left, center, right) this year with a .948 fielding percentage.
Rylee Bayless has shined in her first year in Stillwater. The NEO-transfer has produced at the plate with a .356 batting average on 31 hits with 30 runs scored and 25 RBIs. Bayles also has a team-best 11 doubles and has shown she's a danger once on base with a team-high 13 stolen bases. The biggest threat she provides is getting on base as she has a .551 on-base percentage, thanks in large part to her 39 walks on the year. The 39 walks is the third-most in the nation and most in the Big 12. In the field she is the only Cowgirl to have played all 33 games at the same position (third) this season.
Maddi Holcomb has quietly had a solid year in 2017. The junior is hitting .382 with 29 hits and 15 runs scored. Hitting in the ninth position, Holcomb has mastered the art of turning the lineup over no matter what it takes. More valuable to the Cowgirls though has been her play in center. Having started 30 games, Holcomb has become known for making incredible catches to take away sure hits. In the Texas series, Holcomb made two great diving catches to take away crucial extra base hits in one-run games. On the year, Holcomb has a .972 fielding percentage on 34 putouts.
Taylor Lynch is off to another good start after an impressive freshman campaign. Lynch is batting .367 on 36 hits with 18 runs scored and 24 RBIs. Lynch has shown the ability to leg out extra-base hits with seven doubles through her 31 games of action. The sophomore has also shown some stealthy speed on the bases, going 5-for-6 on stolen base attempts up to this point. Lynch has stepped up in the field this year in right field, having never played the position before the first game of this season. She has also seen time at second and first with a combined .978 fielding percentage with just one error and 38 putouts.
Brandi Needham has stepped up in the circle to replace 20-game winner Kacy Freeze, who graduated after last season. Needham has led the team with a 10-4 record along with her team-best .271 ERA. Needham has been valuable with her 80 innings pitched, throwing seven-complete games, three of which were shutouts. What's just as impressive is the senior has struck out 41 batters while allowing just 16 walks. Teams are batting a low .273 on Needham up to this point. Needham has also allowed just three free bases her last six appearances in 33.0 innings of work while striking out 15.
Home has been home sweet home once more for the Cowgirls as OSU has jumped out to a 9-3 record. Oklahoma State has 11 more home games left in the 2017 schedule.

Scouting the Opponent: Kansas

Kansas

2017: Comes into the series with a 19-14 record, including a 1-2 conference record after losing 2-of-3 to No. 13 Baylor last weekend in Lawrence. The Jayhawks are 2-2 on the road this year with wins over Lamar and Stetson. Kansas is 0-4 against team in the RPI top 50. Seven batters hitting .300 or better with Jessie Roane leading the way at .369 on 41 hits.
2016: Went 31-20, including an 8-9 Big 12 mark. Kansas swept Iowa State to finish the season in Lawrence but it wasn't enough to make the postseason. Finished the year 17-5 at home but just 5-11 on the road.
2016 Oklahoma State at Kansas Series: OSU took the first two games before the finale was cancelled to secure the series win. In the first meeting, Tiffany Mikkelson and Randee O'Donnell's home runs gave OSU its 49th home run of the year, a program-season record. OSU outscored Kansas 21-13 in the two meetings.

Inside the Series: Kansas

Oklahoma State snapped a six-game losing streak to the Jayhawks with two wins in 2016. The Cowgirls hadn't won in Lawrence since 2012.
The Cowgirls are 20-13 all-time in Stillwater vs. the Jayhawks.
OSU was two innings away from its first ever three-game sweep of KU last season before the finale was called after three innings due to weather. The Cowgirls were leading, 2-0.
Oklahoma State owns the longest-winning streak of the series as the Cowgirls won eight straight from 1987-89.

Big 12 Notes

Oklahoma State completed its first ever three-game series sweep of Texas over the weekend. The wins snapped an eight-game losing streak to the Horns, and gave the Cowgirls their best conference start since starting 3-0 in 2010.
Hayleigh Galvan's home run in the bottom of the seventh to tie the game at 8-8 against Texas on Mar. 26 was the first of her career and the second for a Cowgirl freshman this season.
As a team the Cowgirls are second in the Big 12 with a .318 batting average and lead the conference with an impressive .428 on-base percentage.
Oklahoma State pitchers have allowed the fewest walks in the conference up to this point (49). The next closest is Oklahoma and Baylor (50).

An Oklahoma State Series Win Would...

Be the fourth under head coach Kenny Gajewski and the second-consecutive against Kansas. The Cowgirls are 7-3 at home in Big 12 games under Gajewski.
Move the Cowgirls to no worse than 5-1 in Big 12 play, which would be the best start to conference play since OSU started 9-0 in 2010.
Give OSU back-to-back conference series wins for the first time since 2013 when it took down Kansas and Texas.
Take OSU to no worse than 24-12 overall, which would be the best start since the Cowgirls went 29-7 in 2011. That team went on to reach the WCWS.

Streaks & Trends

Maddi Holcomb and Taylor Lynch have been consistent and solid at the plate this year as they lead the team with 10 multi-hit games.
The Cowgirls have yet to be shutout this year and hold a 4-0 record in shutout games.
Rylee Bayless (third) is the only Cowgirl to have started all 33 games at the same position this year. On the other end Vanessa Shippy has played the most positions (six) this season.
OSU hasn't buckled under the pressure of extra inning games up to this point as the team is a perfect 2-0 in games that go past the seventh inning.

Cowgirl Quick Hitters

The Cowgirls have won 12 of their last 15 games dating back to a win against Tennessee Tech on March 4, including a 14-4 record in March. During this 15 game stretch, the Cowgirls are batting .350 as a team and outscoring teams 120-53. As a unit, OSU pitchers are holding teams to a low .262 batting average with a 2.90 ERA.
Junior Maddi Holcomb has led the charge through this stretch at the plate, batting a team-best .429 on 15 hits with seven runs and five RBIs. Holcomb has been on base a lot, posting a .474 on-base percentage.
The senior pitching duo of Shea Coats and Brandi Needham have combined for an 8-3 record with seven complete games, while Christina Biggerstaff has gone 3-0. Coats and Needham have struck out 57 batters while walking just five.
OSU has reached base a lot during the stretch, drawing 73 walks and 11 hit by pitches. That's 5.6 free bases per game for the Cowgirls. As a team the Cowgirls hold a .461 on-base percentage the past 15 games.

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Players Mentioned

Rylee Bayless

Christina Biggerstaff

Shea Coats

Kacy Freeze

Hayleigh Galvan

Maddi Holcomb

Taylor Lynch

Tiffany Mikkelson

Brandi Needham

Randee O'Donnell

Vanessa Shippy

Oklahoma State University Athletics