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Oklahoma's Power on Display in NCAA Regional Opening Victory

Kasidi Pickering, Kai Minor, Ella Parker, and Kendall Wells each homered to help the Sooners cruise.
Ryan Aber|
Oklahoma greets Ella Parker at the plate after hitting a home run in the NCAA Tournament against Binghamton.
Oklahoma greets Ella Parker at the plate after hitting a home run in the NCAA Tournament against Binghamton. | Carson Field / Sooners on SI

NORMAN — Oklahoma blasted four home runs, jumping on Binghamton from the start to start its postseason run with an 11-0 win over the Bearcats on Friday in front of 4,036 at Love's Field.

After dropping their SEC Tournament opener to Georgia in stunning fashion, Sooners coach Patty Gasso had worked her team — particularly her hitters — hard in the week since.

The Sooners responded by going 12 of 21 with four walks and just one strikeout.

“They answered,” Gasso said. “I couldn’t have asked for anything really better. It was almost to perfection.”

The home run barrage included the 37th home run of the season from Kendall Wells, tying the NCAA record of Arizona's Laura Espinoza that had stood for more than 30 years.

UCLA's Megan Grant broke Espinoza's record last weekend, entering the regionals with 38 home runs.

The third-seeded Sooners (49-8) will take on the Kansas-Michigan winner at 2 p.m. Saturday for a berth in Sunday's regional final. The Bearcats will play the Kansas-Michigan loser at 4:30 p.m. Saturday in an elimination game.

Oklahoma scored four in the first and had multiple runs in

Kai Minor extended her hitting streak to six quickly, driving Olivia Kennedy's second pitch into the gap in left-center for a double.

After Ella Parker drew a walk, Gabbie Garcia delivered a single up the middle to score Minor.

Wells then drew a walk to load the bases with no outs, before Isabela Emerling hit a hard line drive to left to score a run on the sacrifice fly.

Garcia was thrown out trying to advance to third on an overthrow. Sooners coach Patty Gasso challenged the call, but it was upheld upon review.

Kasidi Pickering then drove a 252-foot home run to left center to make it 4-0 Oklahoma.

The home run was Pickering's 18th of the season.

Minor's recent hot streak continued in the second with a two-run home run to center to make it 6-0.

The 248-foot home run was Minor's 10th of the season.

Parker then followed with a 236-foot home run to left for her 50th career home run. Parker now has 22 home runs on the season.

With the big offensive output early, Gasso changed pitchers to start the third.

Audrey Lowry gave up a leadoff single to Binghamton's Rachel Carey, the America East Player of the Year, then retired the other six hitters she faced.

After Carey's single, Lowry struck out the next three to escape the first. Lowry then worked a seven-pitch second.

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Freshman Berkley Zache then came on in the circle for the Sooners, settling in after walking the first batter she faced and then allowing a single.

Zache then retired the next three hitters she faced to retire the side before working a 1-2-3 fourth.

After Garcia's leadoff single in the fourth, Wells crushed a 289-foot home run to make it 11-0.

The home run was Wells' first since April 25 vs. Georgia.

Allyssa Parker then came on to close the game out in the fifth, majing the final out herself with a leaping stop and a spinning throw to first to finish off the 1-2-3 inning.

“They were just throwing with great intention behind every single pitch,” Ailana Agbayani said of OU's pitchers.

Gasso has made a habit of using her ace right out of the box at regionals instead of holding them back.

With Lowry having thrown just 27 pitches, she's plenty fresh for the rest of the weekend.

Minor went 2-for-3, and is 11-for-3 during her hitting streak.

Pickering finished 2 for 3, her first multi-hit game since April 31 vs. Wichita State. Garcia, Abby Dayton and Agbayani also had two hits each.

Oklahoma now has 178 home runs on the season.

The Sooners have won 17 consecutive regional games, with their last loss coming in 2019. OU hasn't dropped a regional opener since 2017.

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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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