Oklahoma State University Athletics
Bases Loaded: Brooms, Bat Flips and Bus Rides
March 11, 2019 | Cowgirl Softball
STILLWATER -Â Week five of the 2019 regular season brought forth two familiar, and challenging, opponents for the No. 19 Oklahoma State softball team. The four-game set was no match for a growing team though, as the Cowgirls blanked Wichita State, 3-0, Wednesday in Stillwater before sweeping No. 24 Oregon in a three-game road set over the weekend.
OSU (18-5) is off to its best start since 2011, when the Cowgirls posted the same 23-game record before making the program's seventh appearance in the Women's College World Series at the season's end. The Pokes are currently riding an eight-game winning streak, and with that we take a look back at the week that was and what lies ahead:
First Base: Snapping the Skid and a Series Sweep
Oklahoma State faced its week five opposition on five occasions in 2018, and were defeated in each of those matchups. After four losses to Wichita State, and one to Oregon, the Cowgirls had this past week circled on the calendar as a measuring stick for the current team.
The Pokes passed their test with flying colors.
OSU tackled its four-game week in dominant fashion, opening with a pair of 3-0 shutouts - the first against the Shockers at Cowgirl Stadium and the second the series opener in Eugene against the 24th-ranked Ducks.
The wins took some of the sting away from last year's losses and sparked a wild Saturday in the Pacific Northwest, which saw the Cowgirls sweep a doubleheader, and the series, with two high-scoring victories. OSU first beat the Ducks 7-6, and followed with a 9-6 win immediately after.
It was the first time that OSU has swept a ranked opponent in a three-game series since best then-No. 16 Baylor on three-straight occasions last year at Cowgirl Stadium.
There's still work to be done, especially with the remainder of the schedule still presenting plenty of tall tasks for the high-flying Cowgirls, but this past week showcased how the mentality of this year's team differs from those of years past.
Second Base: A Milestone Victory
Saturday's series finale with No. 24 Oregon was more than just a chance to sweep one of the nation's preeminent programs. It also was OSU's first crack at reaching the 1,500-win mark.
Oklahoma State wasted no time in achieving its milestone victory, as the Pokes toppled the Ducks, 9-6, at Jane Sanders Stadium in the second half of a doubleheader sweep.Â
The Cowgirls' 1,500 wins rank as the second most of any current program in the Big 12 Conference. And while it is an achievement that the 2019 squad can lay claim to, it would not have been possible without the countless coaches and Cowgirls that came before this year's group.Â
Names like Michele Smith, Melanie Roche, Pam Harper, Vanessa Shippy and others built a program into one of the nation's best. Brick-by-brick, they laid the groundwork for this year's team to be in the position it is.Â
Their contributions are not forgotten by the Cowgirls or coach Kenny Gajewski, and all those who have come before will remain a key part of the program's success moving forward.
Third Base: The Greatest Show-man
Samantha Show knows how to captivate an audience.
While her name isn't pronounced the same, it's fitting that it's spelled the same as 'show' because she is a true performer and a true showman on the field. For evidence of this, one has to look no further than the first half of Saturday's doubleheader against No. 24 Oregon.
That game is when Show sent social media in a frenzy after tattooing a ball and unleashing a ferocious bat flip in front of the Cowgirl dugout when her game-tying home run bounced off the left-field netting beyond the wall and back onto the field it had just quickly escaped from.Â
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By the next morning, video of Show's monstrous home run and subsequent bat flip had more than 160,000 views on Twitter, 50,000 on Facebook and many, many more through various other outlets. Several prominent accounts, such as @NCAAsoftball, retweeted and shared the video, adding fuel to the flames coming off Show's bat.
The senior's effort was enough to earn her the leading spot in Softball America's Top Performances from March 9. Show's light-tower blast was described as "a bomb heard around the softball world" by Ed Strong in Sunday morning's article.
She also was a dynamic presence in the circle for OSU throughout its sweep of No. 24 Oregon, as she pitched a complete-game shutout - her third of the season - in Friday's opener, then earned a save in the first half of Saturday's doubleheader before earning her seventh win of the year with a three-inning, no-hit relief effort in the series finale.
With more than 30 games remaining on the Cowgirls' schedule this year, there are going to be plenty more chances for Show to put on a show for the softball world and beyond.
Home Plate: The Long Road (Trip) Ahead
Oklahoma State enters week six with its focus solely on a Wednesday evening matchup with Central Arkansas at Cowgirl Stadium. Behind that, however, is an nine-game road swing that will take the Cowgirls to Mississippi, Tennessee, Texas and Tulsa, Oklahoma.
The road trip opens Saturday in Oxford, Mississippi, where the Pokes will face Ole Miss twice and clash with Samford over the weekend. On their way home, the Cowgirls will stop off for a Monday-night meeting with Memphis at the Tigers' home park.
An off day on Tuesday will be followed by a Tuesday-night trip to Tulsa and then the next day OSU heads to Waco, Texas, to open Big 12 play with a three-game series at Baylor. The nine-game stretch finally comes to its end on March 27, when Coach Gajewski and Co. make the return trip to Wichita, Kansas, to face the Wichita State for the second time this season.
The softball season is a long, winding and sometimes grueling road. OSU will get the full taste of what this is like over the next two weeks, but this year's team has already shown that it's more than capable of overcoming whatever adversity is put in front of it.
OSU (18-5) is off to its best start since 2011, when the Cowgirls posted the same 23-game record before making the program's seventh appearance in the Women's College World Series at the season's end. The Pokes are currently riding an eight-game winning streak, and with that we take a look back at the week that was and what lies ahead:
First Base: Snapping the Skid and a Series Sweep
Oklahoma State faced its week five opposition on five occasions in 2018, and were defeated in each of those matchups. After four losses to Wichita State, and one to Oregon, the Cowgirls had this past week circled on the calendar as a measuring stick for the current team.
The Pokes passed their test with flying colors.
OSU tackled its four-game week in dominant fashion, opening with a pair of 3-0 shutouts - the first against the Shockers at Cowgirl Stadium and the second the series opener in Eugene against the 24th-ranked Ducks.
The wins took some of the sting away from last year's losses and sparked a wild Saturday in the Pacific Northwest, which saw the Cowgirls sweep a doubleheader, and the series, with two high-scoring victories. OSU first beat the Ducks 7-6, and followed with a 9-6 win immediately after.
It was the first time that OSU has swept a ranked opponent in a three-game series since best then-No. 16 Baylor on three-straight occasions last year at Cowgirl Stadium.
There's still work to be done, especially with the remainder of the schedule still presenting plenty of tall tasks for the high-flying Cowgirls, but this past week showcased how the mentality of this year's team differs from those of years past.
Second Base: A Milestone Victory
Saturday's series finale with No. 24 Oregon was more than just a chance to sweep one of the nation's preeminent programs. It also was OSU's first crack at reaching the 1,500-win mark.
Oklahoma State wasted no time in achieving its milestone victory, as the Pokes toppled the Ducks, 9-6, at Jane Sanders Stadium in the second half of a doubleheader sweep.Â
The Cowgirls' 1,500 wins rank as the second most of any current program in the Big 12 Conference. And while it is an achievement that the 2019 squad can lay claim to, it would not have been possible without the countless coaches and Cowgirls that came before this year's group.Â
Names like Michele Smith, Melanie Roche, Pam Harper, Vanessa Shippy and others built a program into one of the nation's best. Brick-by-brick, they laid the groundwork for this year's team to be in the position it is.Â
Their contributions are not forgotten by the Cowgirls or coach Kenny Gajewski, and all those who have come before will remain a key part of the program's success moving forward.
Third Base: The Greatest Show-man
Samantha Show knows how to captivate an audience.
While her name isn't pronounced the same, it's fitting that it's spelled the same as 'show' because she is a true performer and a true showman on the field. For evidence of this, one has to look no further than the first half of Saturday's doubleheader against No. 24 Oregon.
That game is when Show sent social media in a frenzy after tattooing a ball and unleashing a ferocious bat flip in front of the Cowgirl dugout when her game-tying home run bounced off the left-field netting beyond the wall and back onto the field it had just quickly escaped from.Â
Â
ICYMI: @SamanthaShow03 has 80-grade power and 80-grade bat-flip skills. ?????? #okstate pic.twitter.com/Kq14Zgf08D
— Cowgirl Softball (@CowgirlSB) March 9, 2019
By the next morning, video of Show's monstrous home run and subsequent bat flip had more than 160,000 views on Twitter, 50,000 on Facebook and many, many more through various other outlets. Several prominent accounts, such as @NCAAsoftball, retweeted and shared the video, adding fuel to the flames coming off Show's bat.
The senior's effort was enough to earn her the leading spot in Softball America's Top Performances from March 9. Show's light-tower blast was described as "a bomb heard around the softball world" by Ed Strong in Sunday morning's article.
She also was a dynamic presence in the circle for OSU throughout its sweep of No. 24 Oregon, as she pitched a complete-game shutout - her third of the season - in Friday's opener, then earned a save in the first half of Saturday's doubleheader before earning her seventh win of the year with a three-inning, no-hit relief effort in the series finale.
With more than 30 games remaining on the Cowgirls' schedule this year, there are going to be plenty more chances for Show to put on a show for the softball world and beyond.
Home Plate: The Long Road (Trip) Ahead
Oklahoma State enters week six with its focus solely on a Wednesday evening matchup with Central Arkansas at Cowgirl Stadium. Behind that, however, is an nine-game road swing that will take the Cowgirls to Mississippi, Tennessee, Texas and Tulsa, Oklahoma.
The road trip opens Saturday in Oxford, Mississippi, where the Pokes will face Ole Miss twice and clash with Samford over the weekend. On their way home, the Cowgirls will stop off for a Monday-night meeting with Memphis at the Tigers' home park.
An off day on Tuesday will be followed by a Tuesday-night trip to Tulsa and then the next day OSU heads to Waco, Texas, to open Big 12 play with a three-game series at Baylor. The nine-game stretch finally comes to its end on March 27, when Coach Gajewski and Co. make the return trip to Wichita, Kansas, to face the Wichita State for the second time this season.
The softball season is a long, winding and sometimes grueling road. OSU will get the full taste of what this is like over the next two weeks, but this year's team has already shown that it's more than capable of overcoming whatever adversity is put in front of it.
Players Mentioned
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