Oklahoma State University Athletics
Bases Loaded: Cowgirls Halfway Through Road Run
March 19, 2019 | Cowgirl Softball
STILLWATER – The Oklahoma State softball had an up and down first half of its 10-game road swing this past week, as the Cowgirls won three of five games, but never quite clicked on all cylinders during an exhausting weekend of action.
OSU (21-7; 0-0 Big 12) lost twice to Ole Miss during its visit to Oxford, Mississippi, over the weekend, but defeated Central Arkansas, Samford and Memphis to post a sixth-straight above-.500 weekend. Now, let's take a quick look back at the five-game week that was, and the five contests that await the Pokes this week:
First Base: Reaping the Rewards in the RPI
The Oklahoma State coaching staff wholeheartedly believes in the moniker 'to be the best, you've got to beat the best.'
For proof of this, one has to look no further than OSU' 2019 schedule, which has been nothing short of a gauntlet for the Cowgirls through 28 games.
During the first six weeks of the season, coach Kenny Gajewski and his team have faced 15 teams ranked in the top 50 of Monday's first RPI rankings release, picking up eight victories in that time. OSU itself was slotted No. 13 in the initial rankings, which is the top mark for a Cowgirl squad in either the RPI or national polls since being ranked No. 8 in the USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll at the end of the 2011 season.
Oklahoma State's eight wins over top-50 RPI teams is the 11th-best total of any team in the country currently. Washington leads the country with 14 top-50 wins through six weeks.
The Pokes' schedule currently ranks as the 16th-most difficult slate for any team in the country so far. A stacked Big 12 schedule will only add to that number, as the league features five top-50 teams, four of which were slotted in the top 15 of Monday's unveiling.
Second Base: 'Tired is not a word in our vocab'
Softball season is a grind.
It's filled with countless hours of prep work on the field, in the cages and training room. It involves more time on buses and airports than actually playing competitively. Add to that being a student-athlete having to deal with a full load of classwork, and it becomes easy to understand why some teams might blink when staring success in the eye.
This year's Cowgirls have no intentions of breaking stride or letting fatigue get to them.
After Monday night's win at Memphis – the Cowgirls' fifth game across five days in three different states - coach Kenny Gajewski told his team to power through. He told them that tired is not a word in the Oklahoma State vocabulary.
His team understood the message.
Greatness is only achieved through a consistent pursuit of more. It's a result of getting out of bed when the first alarm goes off instead of hitting the snooze button once or twice. Greatness comes from finding 20 minutes of free time to watch extra film or take a few more swings in the cages, and this year's team has every expectation of fulfilling the greatness they are capable of.
Tired is not a word in Oklahoma State's vocabulary.
While just nine words in length, that statement is one that showcases the mentality that the 2019 squad has in Stillwater. It's a group of 21 players, coaches and staff that is willing to sacrifice for success, and that is what it takes to build a great team and a great program.
Third Base: Factor Cementing Her Place
Monday night's matchup at Memphis didn't go exactly as Chyenne Factor was hoping on an individual level.
The freshman went 0-for-4 at the plate with two strikeouts against the Tigers, bringing an end to her team-best 12-game hitting streak. It was the longest streak by a Cowgirl this season and the longest by a Pokes since Madi Sue Montgomery's 12-game effort a year ago.
During those 12 games though, Factor was almost impossible for opposing pitchers to get out.
Batting primarily out of the cleanup spot, Factor went 18-for-30 over the 12-game stretch. She drove in 18 runs, scored 12 times, hit five home runs, logged five doubles and also walked five times. Her numbers were astronomical and helped the Cowgirls go 10-2 during that run.
The Yukon, Oklahoma, native has sealed up her spot in the four-hole for the time being, and she will be a key piece in whatever success the Cowgirls achieve during the second half of the season.
Home Plate: Halfway Home
One of the often overlooked pieces of being a baseball or softball player is just how much travel takes place.
Everyone knows that Major League Baseball plays 162 games in its regular season. Collegiate softball teams often play between 50 and 60 games during a 12-week span, all while tackling schoolwork as well.
Those 50-plus games all don't happen at home, though.
There are countless hours of travel involved in scheduling out when and where teams will play, and, at times, you can run into stretches like what the Cowgirls are enduring right now.
Currently, OSU is halfway through a 10-game road swing that will take the Cowgirls to six different states over a 14-day span. The Pokes are 3-2 thus far, as mentioned above, and the second half of the road trip will present its own unique challenges similar to the first.
The road trip's sixth game is the only one in the state of Oklahoma for the Cowgirls, as they travel to Tulsa Wednesday night for a matchup against the Golden Hurricane. After that, the Pokes slide down to Waco, Texas, where they will open Big 12 play with a three-game set at Baylor before finally concluding the long road run with a midweek matchup at Wichita State next week.
It's a strong run of matchups and familiar foes for the Cowgirls, who will look to continue to build toward playing their best softball in the weeks ahead.
OSU (21-7; 0-0 Big 12) lost twice to Ole Miss during its visit to Oxford, Mississippi, over the weekend, but defeated Central Arkansas, Samford and Memphis to post a sixth-straight above-.500 weekend. Now, let's take a quick look back at the five-game week that was, and the five contests that await the Pokes this week:
First Base: Reaping the Rewards in the RPI
The Oklahoma State coaching staff wholeheartedly believes in the moniker 'to be the best, you've got to beat the best.'
For proof of this, one has to look no further than OSU' 2019 schedule, which has been nothing short of a gauntlet for the Cowgirls through 28 games.
During the first six weeks of the season, coach Kenny Gajewski and his team have faced 15 teams ranked in the top 50 of Monday's first RPI rankings release, picking up eight victories in that time. OSU itself was slotted No. 13 in the initial rankings, which is the top mark for a Cowgirl squad in either the RPI or national polls since being ranked No. 8 in the USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll at the end of the 2011 season.
Oklahoma State's eight wins over top-50 RPI teams is the 11th-best total of any team in the country currently. Washington leads the country with 14 top-50 wins through six weeks.
The Pokes' schedule currently ranks as the 16th-most difficult slate for any team in the country so far. A stacked Big 12 schedule will only add to that number, as the league features five top-50 teams, four of which were slotted in the top 15 of Monday's unveiling.
Second Base: 'Tired is not a word in our vocab'
Softball season is a grind.
It's filled with countless hours of prep work on the field, in the cages and training room. It involves more time on buses and airports than actually playing competitively. Add to that being a student-athlete having to deal with a full load of classwork, and it becomes easy to understand why some teams might blink when staring success in the eye.
This year's Cowgirls have no intentions of breaking stride or letting fatigue get to them.
After Monday night's win at Memphis – the Cowgirls' fifth game across five days in three different states - coach Kenny Gajewski told his team to power through. He told them that tired is not a word in the Oklahoma State vocabulary.
His team understood the message.
Greatness is only achieved through a consistent pursuit of more. It's a result of getting out of bed when the first alarm goes off instead of hitting the snooze button once or twice. Greatness comes from finding 20 minutes of free time to watch extra film or take a few more swings in the cages, and this year's team has every expectation of fulfilling the greatness they are capable of.
Tired is not a word in Oklahoma State's vocabulary.
While just nine words in length, that statement is one that showcases the mentality that the 2019 squad has in Stillwater. It's a group of 21 players, coaches and staff that is willing to sacrifice for success, and that is what it takes to build a great team and a great program.
Third Base: Factor Cementing Her Place
Monday night's matchup at Memphis didn't go exactly as Chyenne Factor was hoping on an individual level.
The freshman went 0-for-4 at the plate with two strikeouts against the Tigers, bringing an end to her team-best 12-game hitting streak. It was the longest streak by a Cowgirl this season and the longest by a Pokes since Madi Sue Montgomery's 12-game effort a year ago.
During those 12 games though, Factor was almost impossible for opposing pitchers to get out.
Batting primarily out of the cleanup spot, Factor went 18-for-30 over the 12-game stretch. She drove in 18 runs, scored 12 times, hit five home runs, logged five doubles and also walked five times. Her numbers were astronomical and helped the Cowgirls go 10-2 during that run.
The Yukon, Oklahoma, native has sealed up her spot in the four-hole for the time being, and she will be a key piece in whatever success the Cowgirls achieve during the second half of the season.
Home Plate: Halfway Home
One of the often overlooked pieces of being a baseball or softball player is just how much travel takes place.
Everyone knows that Major League Baseball plays 162 games in its regular season. Collegiate softball teams often play between 50 and 60 games during a 12-week span, all while tackling schoolwork as well.
Those 50-plus games all don't happen at home, though.
There are countless hours of travel involved in scheduling out when and where teams will play, and, at times, you can run into stretches like what the Cowgirls are enduring right now.
Currently, OSU is halfway through a 10-game road swing that will take the Cowgirls to six different states over a 14-day span. The Pokes are 3-2 thus far, as mentioned above, and the second half of the road trip will present its own unique challenges similar to the first.
The road trip's sixth game is the only one in the state of Oklahoma for the Cowgirls, as they travel to Tulsa Wednesday night for a matchup against the Golden Hurricane. After that, the Pokes slide down to Waco, Texas, where they will open Big 12 play with a three-game set at Baylor before finally concluding the long road run with a midweek matchup at Wichita State next week.
It's a strong run of matchups and familiar foes for the Cowgirls, who will look to continue to build toward playing their best softball in the weeks ahead.
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