OU Softball: Nicole May Dominates as Oklahoma Pulls Away Late in Home Opener
Nicole May was as good as ever, and Haley Lee was good at the right time.
May turned in another sterling pitching performance and Lee solved an unexpected offensive problem with a fifth-inning home run as Oklahoma beat Illinois-Chicago 5-0 on Friday at Marita Hynes Field.
The No. 1-ranked Sooners got a leadoff home run from Jayda Coleman to start the game, but then could not solve UIC pitcher Christina Toniolo. It took Lee’s two-run blast in the fifth off a relief pitcher to make it 3-0.
UIC came in winless on the season but for nearly five innings pressed the Sooners as hard as anyone has over the last two-plus seasons.
OU improved to 14-1 while UIC fell to 0-14.
After three straight weekends on the road to open the 2023 season, the Sooners are back in Norman, where they finally kicked off the home schedule with the first of four straight games at the OU Tournament.
As the hitters struggled, May was the calming force, tying her career-high with 11 strikeouts in a complete game, two-hit shutout.
After May (4-0) threw a perfect first inning, Coleman cracked an opposite field home run over the fence in left-center field, a flaming line drive that put the Sooners up 1-0.
May, a junior making her sixth appearance and fourth start, still hasn’t yielded an earned run in 28 innings this season, but gave up an infield single, a sacrifice bunt and a four-pitch walk to start the second inning.
But May also got a couple of swinging strikeouts to end the Flames’ mini threat.
Alyssa Brito walked to lead off the second inning, but she was picked off and the Sooner bats fell quiet until Coleman came ups with two out in the third.
Coleman banged a first-pitch fastball off the right field wall for a double, then scooted to third on a wild pitch. Grace Lyons grounded out, though, leaving Coleman stranded at third.
In the fourth, Kinzie Hansen came in to pinch hit and reached on a fielder’s choice, but was stranded at second as Tiare Jennings (also pinch-hitting) popped up and Alynah Torres grounded out to second.
Toniolo finished four innings by allowing just two hits (both by Coleman) and two walks as the Sooners produced just one run against her.
Rylie Boone led off the fifth with a bunt single off UIC reliever Carlee Jo Clark, bringing up Lee, the Sooners’ hard-hitting transfer from Texas A&M. Lee took a ball, then hammered an opposite-field shot just over the outfielder’s glove and past the wall in right for a 3-0 Sooner lead.
After May watched a spinning bunt die on the first-base chalk for a leadoff single by Anna Walker, the OU defense rose up in the sixth.
Brito charged hard to throw out Maica Ingles’ sac bunt, and Jennings elevated to snag Clark’s hot shot behind the bag at second. May then recorded her 10th strikeout to end the threat.
Boone added to the OU lead when she crushed Clark’s first offering into the field field bleachers
After a brief rest, OU is back on the field Friday evening for a 5:30 game against No. 17 Kentucky.
The Sooners rematch with the Wildcats at 3 p.m. Saturday, then face UIC again Saturday night at 5:30.