OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — Southern Nazarene picked up a much needed win and did it coming from behind with a 3-2 win over No. 11 Oklahoma City in eight innings in the first game of a doubleheader before falling 9-0 in the second.
The Crimson Storm (38-11, 15-7 SAC) rallied after giving up two runs in the first with two home runs in the sixth and got a couple of breaks in the eighth to get the win in the opener. The OCU bats came to life in the nightcap as it ended the game in six innings.
The Stars didn't waste much time in the opener as Lily LaVelle led off the first with a home run to left center to take a 1-0 lead before LeeAnn Lopez hit a sac fly to center to give OCU the 2-0 lead. SNU had been held to just one hit heading into the sixth and LaVelle retired the first two batters of the top of the sixth when Aubrey Jones and Amy Madden hit back-to-back home runs to knot the game at 2-2.
Jordan Simmons then retired six straight batters to force extra innings and started the international tiebreaker. The Storm got a break on the first pitch of the eighth when LaVelle let a wild pitch fly to allow Katie Turner to move over to third. Katie Hale then laid down a perfect suicide squeeze and nearly beat the throw out at first as Turner scored and put SNU up 3-2.
OCU held off SNU the rest of the eighth and put Chelsey Eddy on second to start the bottom half. The Storm got another break when Katie Proffitt fouled off an attempted sac bunt that was quickly snagged by Madden behind the plate. SNU then walked LaVelle and got a ground ball to third for the second out. Simmons then got Nathalie Timmermans to pop out to second to end the game.
Simmons (18-4) picked up the complete game win after she went the full eight innings. She gave up just one earned run on four hits and struck out eight.
Jones went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored.
In the nightcap, Kaci Crawford had retired the first seven OCU batters in order before giving up a one-out single in the third. She was able to pick up a fly out in foul territory before giving up three straight two-out base hits and that drove in three runs. The junior hurler then just gave up one base hit through the fourth and fifth.
OCU led off the sixth with a single and then put runners at first and second when Crawford hit her third batter of the night and was lifted for Tiffany Gossett. Crawford finished the night with five runs on six hits in five innings of work. Gossett retired the first batter she faced, but gave up an RBI single before a three-run jack to give the Stars a 7-0 lead. OCU put it away just three batters later with another two-run home run to score the mercy rule.
Crawford fell to 18-5 on the year with the loss. SNU was held to just two hits as LeVelle threw the final 5.2 innings as she moved to 20-6 on the year.
The Crimson Storm will now host Hillsdale Free Will Baptist, Friday, for a 2 p.m. doubleader.
