No. 2 Texas softball bounced back from being shut out for the first time all season to beat the Cowgirls 2-1. On Thursday, No. 8/10 Oklahoma State defeated Texas 5-0.
Texas came away with the win, but it didn’t look that way when the night started.
In the top of the first inning, sophomore pitcher Citlaly Gutierrez found herself in a pretty deep hole. With just one out, Oklahoma State managed to load the bases, sophomore right fielder Claire Timm popped one to center field and sophomore third baseman Tallen Edwards tagged up for the first run of the game.
“She was pretty close to, you know, thinking about a pitching change,” head coach Mike White said. “I like to see people work their way out of it, and she did that tonight.”
On the next at bat, sophomore shortstop Viviana Martinez missed on her throw to first base, allowing for the Cowgirls to load the bases again, this time on two outs.
But Gutierrez forced a grounder back to Martinez, and, this time, she connected with first baseman Joley Mitchell and Texas was out of the inning. It would be the only run the Cowgirls would get, as Gutierrez and the Longhorns showed that their defense had finally arrived in Stillwater.
“You can tell when she’s confident because she’s not rattled,” White said. “I never felt any nerves from her at all. She just felt all business, and she wasn’t pointing fingers. … (Just) being a real team leader on the mound and that’s what we needed.
In the third inning, sophomore right fielder Ashton Maloney walked on four balls, and, after two wild pitches by Oklahoma State pitcher Kyra Aycock, she found her way to third with no outs. Senior left fielder Bella Dayton also walked on four balls, and freshman outfielder Kayden Henry reached on a fielder’s choice. With one out, Dayton stood on third with Henry on first. Junior third baseman Mia Scott then ripped a grounder to third base, bringing Dayton home.
Scott’s RBI would be the first run by the Longhorns in 9.1 innings of softball in Stillwater.
“This is always a tough place to come play,” White said. “They play really tough, they (play) great defense.”
In the sixth inning, Texas would finally find its lead. In her only hit of the game, Henry singled, allowing for fellow freshman Katie Stewart to score. Texas would hold onto this one run lead for the rest of the night.
But it wasn’t easy. Gutierrez found herself in a 10-pitch bout in the bottom of the seventh, but found a way out of it as she caught Cowgirl Katie Lott looking. It only took eight pitches for the player from Stamford, Texas to close out the seven-inning complete game.
“She really gutted it out, worked hard, got the big outs when she needed it and closed the door, something that’s the hardest thing to do sometimes,” White said.
Texas still has one more game to play in Stillwater, Oklahoma, as it will take on the Cowgirls at 1 p.m. on March 30. Once this series concludes, Texas will look ahead to its next series against No.1/1 Oklahoma, which will be played April 5-7 at Red & Charline McCombs Field.
