Sooners, now No. 2, drop weekend series to Texas

The second-ranked Oklahoma Sooners softball team dropped its road Big 12 weekend series against No. 5 Texas in Austin, only winning the opener 5-2 on Friday before losing by identical 2-1 scores on Saturday and Sunday.

In Friday’s win, OU (36-3 overall, 13-2 in Big 12 play) saw graduate left-hander Kelly Maxwell strike out 10 batters and limit Texas (31-6, 11-4) to just three hits.

In Saturday’s loss, Nicole May struck out six in a hard-luck loss, allowing just two runs on five hits and a walk across 4.2 innings of work. Three Sooner relievers combined to hold Texas scoreless following May’s exit.

In defeat, Kenzie Hansen was 2-for-3, Rylie Boone doubled and Tiare Jennings went was 1-for-3 with a run batted in for OU.

In Sunday’s rubber game, Maxwell struck out six over 4.2 innings of tworun ball, scattering three hits and a walk. The left-hander allowed a tworun home run in the fourth for the lone blemish on her line.

Freshman designated player Ella Parker, who was 2-for-3, provided the lone Sooner run with a towering solo homer in the third inning.

Sophomore left-hander Kierston Deal struck out nine over 5.1 innings of onehit ball as No. 2 OU shut out Wichita State 7-0 on Tuesday evening in Wichita, Kan., snapping its two-game losing skid.

The Sooners plated all seven runs over the game’s first two innings, drawing five walks off the Wichita State (18-15) starting pitcher. OU received multihit performances from Kinzie Hansen (2-for-2, two doubles and three RBIs), Alyssa Brito (2-for-3, two doubles and two RBIs) and Avery Hodge (2-for-4) and stole a season-high five bases on the night.

Deal spun a gem to improve to 8-0 on the season, permitting just two Shockers to reach on a single and a hit batsman.

OU was slated to return to Love’s Field on Thursday to open a three-game conference series against Brigham Young University.