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OU Softball: Sam Landry Blanks Arkansas, Oklahoma Takes Series Opener

Veteran pitcher Sam Landry starred for the Sooners, as quieted Arkansas' offense until the offense could inflict major damage late.

Ryan Chapman

Oklahoma pitcher Sam Landry
Oklahoma pitcher Sam Landry / John Hoover / Sooners on SI

Oklahoma and Arkansas had to wait an extra day to officially start the series, but that didn’t disrupt the rhythm of either pitching staff. 

Sam Landry starred for the Sooners opposite of Razorbacks left-hander Robyn Herron. 

Landry struck out four Arkansas hitters, including star first baseman Bri Ellis twice, in a complete game shutout. 

Herron allowed just one hit through the first six innings, but it was costly.

Nelly McEnroe-Marinas’ first inning solo bomb opened the scoring, and OU finally opened things up in the seventh to roll to a 7-0 win at Bogle Park to remain perfect in 2025. 

The No. 1-ranked Sooners moved to 24-0 on the year and 4-0 in SEC contests, while No. 12 Arkansas fell to 20-4 overall and 1-3 in league play. 

Final Box Score
Final Box Score / OU Stats

Saturday’s start was the first for Landry since OU beat Kansas on Feb. 28, as the veteran pitcher dealt with an injury. 

She returned to the lineup on Wednesday in a relief appearance against Tulsa, and her start against Arkansas signaled she wasn’t battling much rust despite the absence. 

McEnroe-Marinas’ homer in the first came off the second pitch she saw, as she powered the ball to left center to put the visitors up 1-0.

Oklahoma third baseman Nelly McEnroe-Marinas
Oklahoma third baseman Nelly McEnroe-Marinas opened things up with a solo shot in the first inning. / John Hoover / Sooners on SI

Ailana Agbayani almost added more with runners on first and second and two outs, but Arkansas center fielder Reagan Johnson covered plenty of distance to haul in the final out of the frame at the warning track. 

Johnson then drew a leadoff walk, and after Kailey Wyckoff’s single, Ellis stepped in. 

Landry leaned on her changeup for a pair of strikes, and then fired back at Ellis with a dropball to get a swing-and-miss on strike three, which was only the third time this season Ellis struck out. 

Oklahoma then turned a double play to get out of the jam and maintain its one-run lead as the game headed to the second inning. 

McEnroe-Marinas’ first inning bomb wasn’t an indication of how the game would go for OU’s offense, however. 

The Sooners went without another hit until the seventh inning, and though they were able to put a single runner aboard in each of the second, third and fourth innings, Oklahoma was unable to advance the runners to provide much of a threat to Herron in the circle. 

But Landry matched Herron’s efforts in the circle. 

The OU right-hander sat the side down in order in the second, worked around a two-out single in the third and struck Ellis out again in the fourth before allowing a two-out double, which amounted to nothing. 

A pair of nice plays in the infield insured a hit batter wouldn’t threaten the Sooners’ lead in the fifth, either, and then Landry again retired the side in order in the sixth. 

Oklahoma’s offense rewarded Landry’s excellent showing with some insurance runs in the seventh. 

Hannah Coor drew a leadoff walk for the Sooners, then Isabela Emerling finally added OU’s second hit of the day. 

Abby Dayton bunted to move both runners in to scoring position, then Ella Parker walked to load the bases with one out. 

McEnroe-Marinas hit a slow dribbler that immediately dove into the dirt off the bat and died halfway up the line to third, but Arkansas’ defense was too slow to make a play and Coor scored. 

In the next at-bat, Cydney Sanders doubled down the left field line to plate a pair and put OU up 4-0.

Kasidi Pickering reloaded the bases with a walk, Oklahoma’s third of the inning, and Gabbie Garcia’s two-RBI single drove Herron out of the game with one out.

Agbayani added another with an RBI-single before back-to-back strikeouts ended the six-run seventh for OU.

Landry closed out the win with three straight outs in the seventh.

Oklahoma and Arkansas will both now regroup and meet again for Saturday’s second contest, which will begin at approximately 3:55 p.m. at Bogle Park. 

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Ryan Chapman
RYAN CHAPMAN

Ryan is managing editor at Sooners On SI and covers a number of sports in and around Norman and Oklahoma City. Working both as a journalist and a sports talk radio host, Ryan has covered the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma City Thunder, the United States Men’s National Soccer Team, the Oklahoma City Energy and more. Since 2019, Ryan has simultaneously pursued a career as both a writer and a sports talk radio host, working for the Flagship for Oklahoma sports, 107.7 The Franchise, as well as AllSooners.com. Ryan serves as a contributor to The Franchise’s website, TheFranchiseOK.com, which was recognized as having the “Best Website” in 2022 by the Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters. Ryan holds an associate’s degree in Journalism from Oklahoma City Community College in Oklahoma City, OK. 

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