Oklahoma State University Athletics
Honoring Our WCWS Heritage - 1989
May 30, 2020 | Cowgirl Softball
Seven years removed from its first ever NCAA Women's College World Series appearance in 1982, Oklahoma State advanced to its second world series in Sunnyvale, Calif., in the spring of 1989. Finishing the regular season with a 39-4 record and ranked No. 1 in the nation throughout most of the season, the Cowgirls captured the Big Eight title en route to sweeping Wichita State in the Stillwater Regional.
The Cowgirls fared better the second time around in the WCWS. In their first game against Toledo, the game remained scoreless until the bottom of the sixth inning when, with the bases loaded, OSU centerfielder Dee Brewer singled through the middle, scoring LeeAnne Ketcham and Dena Carter to take a 2-0 lead. Later in the inning, Deborah Mobius singled in Smith to give OSU a 3-0 advantage. Toledo took back a run in the top of the seventh, but it was too little, too late. The Cowgirls took game one 3-1, and starter Michele Smith improved her record to 25-2 on the season by holding Toledo to one run on just three hits and one walk.
The next night, the Cowgirls took on Arizona, a team they had defeated twice earlier in the season. The game was once again a pitching duel, this time taking 7-1/3 innings before a run was scored. With two outs in the top of the eighth inning, Ketcham and Smith scored on a bloop single by Mobius to take a 2-0 lead.
During the next at bat, Michelle Shean scored on a wild pitch by Ginnie Scheller. During the same plate appearance, Scheller threw another wild pitch on a 3-2 count that allowed Mobius to score to give the Cowgirls a 4-0 lead. That score would stand as the final. Smith recorded the win, going eight innings, giving up no runs on six hits, walking two and striking out seven.
Game three was the next afternoon against UCLA. As had been the pattern all season, pitching took over. The game remained scoreless until the bottom of the fifth inning when OSU took a 1-0 lead when Smith scored on a single to center by Shean. Unfortunately, that lead did not hold up. UCLA went on to score two runs in the top of the seventh to take a 2-1 lead, which would be the eventual final.
Game four would come only a few hours later on the same day and it would prove to be the Cowgirls final game of the 1989 Women's College World Series. They would fall to Fresno State, 7-0, ending the Cowgirl's title hopes.
The end of the season would leave OSU in third place nationally. However, the 1989 team still stands as one of the best teams in Cowgirl Softball history, finishing the season 46-6 and it wouldn't be long until the Cowgirls received another shot at the title.
The Cowgirls fared better the second time around in the WCWS. In their first game against Toledo, the game remained scoreless until the bottom of the sixth inning when, with the bases loaded, OSU centerfielder Dee Brewer singled through the middle, scoring LeeAnne Ketcham and Dena Carter to take a 2-0 lead. Later in the inning, Deborah Mobius singled in Smith to give OSU a 3-0 advantage. Toledo took back a run in the top of the seventh, but it was too little, too late. The Cowgirls took game one 3-1, and starter Michele Smith improved her record to 25-2 on the season by holding Toledo to one run on just three hits and one walk.
The next night, the Cowgirls took on Arizona, a team they had defeated twice earlier in the season. The game was once again a pitching duel, this time taking 7-1/3 innings before a run was scored. With two outs in the top of the eighth inning, Ketcham and Smith scored on a bloop single by Mobius to take a 2-0 lead.
During the next at bat, Michelle Shean scored on a wild pitch by Ginnie Scheller. During the same plate appearance, Scheller threw another wild pitch on a 3-2 count that allowed Mobius to score to give the Cowgirls a 4-0 lead. That score would stand as the final. Smith recorded the win, going eight innings, giving up no runs on six hits, walking two and striking out seven.
Game three was the next afternoon against UCLA. As had been the pattern all season, pitching took over. The game remained scoreless until the bottom of the fifth inning when OSU took a 1-0 lead when Smith scored on a single to center by Shean. Unfortunately, that lead did not hold up. UCLA went on to score two runs in the top of the seventh to take a 2-1 lead, which would be the eventual final.
Game four would come only a few hours later on the same day and it would prove to be the Cowgirls final game of the 1989 Women's College World Series. They would fall to Fresno State, 7-0, ending the Cowgirl's title hopes.
The end of the season would leave OSU in third place nationally. However, the 1989 team still stands as one of the best teams in Cowgirl Softball history, finishing the season 46-6 and it wouldn't be long until the Cowgirls received another shot at the title.
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