OU Softball: For Oklahoma, Jordy Bahl Sealed the Win, But Nicole May Laid the Groundwork
OKLAHOMA CITY — For the third time in four games, Oklahoma was on the ropes.
The Sooners had to battle through adversity again on a steamy Monday afternoon at Hall of Fame Stadium, relying on timely hits and clutch pitching to get the job done against a talent and motivated Stanford squad.
Tiare Jennings’ two-run double in the ninth inning lifted the Sooners over the Cardinal 4-2 to punch the OU's ticket to the Championship Series. On the flip side, Jordy Bahl’s consistency and gutsy style of pitching, this time in relief, held Oklahoma together even when there was little to no momentum from the bats.
In four innings, Bahl recorded six strikeouts and allowed just four hits while throwing 55 total pitches. In addition, Oklahoma’s ace didn’t walk a single batter.
It was the first College World Series game this year that Bahl wasn’t starting on the mound. That honor belonged to Nicole May, who had a stellar day after giving up a first inning bomb. The veteran pitcher rebounded in a big way, holding Stanford in check and setting up Bahl to save the day in the end.
“What a battle today for both teams, very even and just back and forth the whole way,” head coach Patty Gasso said after the game. “Challenging always at the plate, with both pitchers are very good.
“At the same time, Nicole May had a plan, and she executed it to the T to allow Jordy to come in and ultimately — 55 versus 85 (pitches), which is kind of what we were hoping for, is to just keep the pitch count low on Jordy and work our way through this in case we had to go to that 'if' game. Clean game, exciting game, but a great pitching duel. We win a lot, and that's fabulous. But sometimes I think we're so used to taking it for granted, and this means a lot. This means a lot. To get to the championship game means a lot.”
The plan to start May and give Bahl a breather worked to perfection, as it gave the Cardinal a different look throughout the game and kept Stanford on its toes.
In a game that went deep into extra innings, every frame May threw was increasingly important for Oklahoma. In all, May’s afternoon ended after five innings, as she recorded three strikeouts and allowed just four hits. May didn’t walk a single batter, and the only two runs she gave up came on the first-inning home run. She threw 66 pitches throughout her five innings of work before handing the reigns over to Bahl with one on and nobody out in the sixth.
“Nicole was throwing a great game,” Bahl said postgame. “The game plan going in was I was supposed to be hot, ready to go by the fifth. And so by that point I'm just staying loose until then."
Outside of the first inning, May gave up just one hit in her final four frames of action — that on the last batter she faced. Oklahoma’s impressive defensive performance was jumpstarted by her underrated gem. Heading into the sixth inning, May had retired 13 straight Stanford batters, singlehandedly shutting the Cardinal down.
Before Monday’s battle, May was arguably the most effective pitcher on Oklahoma’s roster. Behind an 18-0 record, she had a 0.82 ERA in 102 2/3 innings pitched. May recorded 127 strikeouts, and an opponent's batting average of .159.
With everything on the line this time, it took a total team effort. And in the circle, Bahl won the game for the Sooners, but May laid the groundwork.
- Want to join the discussion? Click here to become a member of the AllSooners message board community today!
- Sign up for your premium membership to AllSooners.com today, and get access to the entire Fan Nation premium network!
- Follow AllSooners on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest OU news!
- Want even more Sooners news? Check out the SI.com OU team page here!
- Listen and subscribe to the AllSooners Podcast!
- Watch more Sooners videos and subscribe on YouTube!