(May 11, 2024) Ardmore, Oklahoma - After a win earlier in the day over SAU Tech, the ladies squared off against Western Oklahoma State on Saturday evening with their season on the line. The match-up could be considered the rubber match. Both teams split during the regular season, with each winning on their home fields.
With both teams playing close games during the season, this one would be no different. The ladies found themselves in a 1-0 hole after an inning, but the Bucks came back scoring a pair of runs in the second and third innings to take a 4-1 lead. In the second, JJ Bass (Joaquin, TX) hit a 2-RBI double to left centerfield. Next inning, back-to-back doubles led things off. First, Emma Reynolds (Cayuga, TX) led off, followed by a RBI double for Lilli Williams (Granbury, TX). After an out, Madie Rohre (Whitewright, TX) plated a run on a single to right field to give the ladies a 4-1 lead.
No lead was safe in the game, as Western scored 4 in the top of the fourth inning to take a 5-4 lead. Their lead was extended in the top of the fifth with a run that ultimately chased starting pitcher McKenna Bittle (Greer's Ferry, AR) from the game. Olivia Nickson (Bentonville, AR) came on in relief.
The ladies did battle back in the bottom of the fifth to tie the contest at 6-6. After Williams led off with a double, Olivia Nickson helped her own cause with a 2-run bomb over the right centerfield fence to tie the contest.
Both teams continued to battle, and the game went into extra innings. Nickson stranded a pair of Western runners in the top of the eighth to bring the Bucks to the plate. After a lead off walk and a pair of fielder's choices, Madison Heller (Hughes Springs, TX) faced an 0-2 count with a runner on second base. She would drive the next pitch she saw down the right field line. The ball hit the chalk, allowing the winning run to score to advance the Bucks to Sunday.
Olivia Nickson (8-4) picked up her second win of the day, pitching 3.2 innings in relief.
The ladies will now face an early morning and potential rain on Sunday. The Bucks are set to take on National Park College at 10 am at Regional Park in Ardmore.
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