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Kendall Wells, Nelly McEnroe-Marinas Leads Oklahoma to Run-Rule Victory Over Duke

The Sooners' freshman catcher has homered in three consecutive games.
Ryan Aber|
Oklahoma's Nelly McEnroe-Marinas
Oklahoma's Nelly McEnroe-Marinas | BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Kendall Wells stayed red hot Friday, belting a first-inning home run to set the tone in Oklahoma’s 11-1 six-inning win over Duke in the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic in Cathedral City, CA.

Nelly McEnroe-Marinas blasted a grand slam to left with no outs in the bottom of the sixth to clinch the run-rule victory.

It was the third consecutive walk-off victory for the No. 5 Sooners.

Wells got the Sooners started quickly, blasting a two-run home run just two batters into the bottom of the first after Kasidi Pickering drew a leadoff walk.

The home run was the team-leading eighth of the season for Wells, who hit three home runs over Oklahoma's two games Thursday.

Wells had her first career multi-home run game in the Sooners' late win over San Diego State on Thursday.

Oklahoma (11-1) has won 10 consecutive games.

The Sooners added three more in the first — all unearned.

An error in the outfield allowed Sydney Barker and Gabbie Garcia to come across.

Then Ailana Agbayani drove an RBI single to left to score McEnroe-Marinas, who reached on the error.

The 20th-ranked Blue Devils got on the board in the fourth thanks to a trio of hits, including Layla Lamar's RBI double that narrowly stayed fair down the right-field line.

Duke threatened to add another, bringing the runner from third home on Kairi Rodriguez's hard grounder to short, but Garcia quickly fielded the ball and fired it home to Wells for the second out of the inning.

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OU added another run on Ella Parker’s two-out bases-loaded single to right in the fourth.

Audrey Lowry continued her hot start to the season in the circle.

The sophomore wasn’t overpowering, striking out just one in four innings, but forced plenty of weak contact.

The Blue Devils managed six hits and just one run against her, with Lowry (8-0) not issuing any walks.

Miali Guachino came on in relief in the fifth, striking out two and walking none in two innings.

The Sooners put the game away fairly quickly in the sixth, with Garcia's leadoff double, Parker's walk and Kai Minor's single loading the bases.

Allyssa Parker followed with a single to short left to make it 7-1, before McEnroe-Marinas followed with a towering homer to left on a 1-0 pitch.

Garcia, Isabela Emerling and Agbayani had two hits each for Oklahoma.

The Sooners continue play in Cathedral City when they take on Long Beach State, Patty Gasso's alma mater, at noon Saturday.

They'll follow that with a matchup against Cal at 2:30 p.m.

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Ryan Aber
RYAN ABER

Ryan Aber has been covering Oklahoma football for more than a decade continuously and since 1999 overall. Ryan was the OU beat writer for The Oklahoman from 2013-2025, covering the transition from Bob Stoops to Lincoln Riley to Brent Venables. He covered OU men's basketball's run to the Final Four in 2016 and numerous national championships for the Sooners' women's gymnastics and softball programs. Prior to taking on the Sooners beat, Ryan covered high schools, the Oklahoma City RedHawks and Oklahoma City Barons for the newspaper from 2006-13. He spent two seasons covering Arkansas football for the Morning News of Northwest Arkansas before returning to his hometown of Oklahoma City. Ryan also worked at the Southwest Times Record in Fort Smith, Arkansas, and the Muskogee Phoenix. At the Phoenix, he covered OU's national championship run in 2000. Ryan is a graduate of Putnam City North High School in Oklahoma City and Northeastern State University in Tahlequah.

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