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Oklahoma Softball: Sooners Dominate Baylor Behind Jennings' Grand Slam

Oklahoma continued its quest for perfection Friday night starting off the series with Baylor with another run rule victory.
Ross Lovelace|
Oklahoma Softball: Sooners Dominate Baylor Behind Jennings' Grand Slam
Oklahoma Softball: Sooners Dominate Baylor Behind Jennings' Grand Slam

NORMAN — The Bears struck first, and Oklahoma took it personally the rest of the game.

The No. 1 ranked Sooners (27-0) returned home Friday night, dominating Baylor (17-11) 9-1 in just five innings.

Despite the run-rule, it was just another ordinary day at the office for Sooners head coach Patty Gasso.

"Today was just kind of slow for me," said Gasso. "There wasn’t much pow. I’m proud of what they accomplished today, but my expectations are just insurmountably high."

Tiare Jennings scored the play of the night for the Sooners, crushing a grand slam with the bases loaded and two outs. She finished the night 1-for-2 with four RBIs. Lynnsie Elam also got in on the action, notching her 10th homer of the season.

The Sooners are now up to 73 home runs this year.

Jocelyn Alo was business as usual, delivering a high-flying shot over the left field fence for a two-run homer in the first inning. She finished the night 1-for-1 with two walks.

"I just feel really good about Jocelyn right now," said Gasso. "Through this entire home run series ... all of the events and how stressful it was. She's free and it looks fun for her."

OU starting pitcher Jordy Bahl gave up an early run to the Bears and responded with complete dominance. She finished with eight strikeouts and only surrendered two hits in 5 innings pitched. Despite the strong performance, Gasso still expects better.

"I think sometimes when Jordy's not at a 10, she gets a little frustrated," said Gasso. "Today I felt a little bit of that with more balls out of the zone than usual. She's gonna be just fine, if she doesn't like her performance."

For the Sooners, it’s only their second time playing in front of the home fans. The stretch also marks the start of Big 12 play for the Sooners.

In the top of the first inning, Bahl threw a wild pitch at the plate to Baylor shortstop Aliyah Binford. Binford struck out swinging, but the ball couldn’t find the catcher's mitt, leaving the Sooners scrambling. The miscue at the plate allowed the Bears to take a surprising 1-0 early lead.

In response, the Sooners got down to business quickly in their first at bat. To nobody’s surprise, Alo launched the first home run of the game and drove Jennings home in the process. Two batters later, Elam sent one bombing past center field for a solo shot.

After a relatively quiet second inning, Oklahoma exploded in the fourth. After Jayda Coleman was walked, Jennings stepped up to the plate with the bases loaded. The pressure clearly didn’t get to her head, as she clobbered one over the fence for a grand slam.

In the fourth inning, OU was once again able to load the bases. A wild pitch brought Taylon Snow home, extending the Sooners' lead to 9-1.

The Snow run paved the way for Bahl to pack up shop early once again, as the Sooners kept the Bears off the board in the fifth inning. This marks the Sooners' 12th straight run rule.

The dominating win over Baylor gives Oklahoma its first conference win of the year as the Sooners are looking for a repeat of last season.

In 2020-21, OU escaped the Big 12 gauntlet with a near-perfect 16-1 record, and defeated Oklahoma State 10-2 in the Big 12 Championship. The Sooners have compiled a conference record of 42-1 over the past three seasons.

The Sooners will continue their series with Baylor on Saturday at 2 p.m. and Sunday at noon. After Baylor, Oklahoma takes a week off from conference play, beginning with a home battle against Wichita State on Tuesday at 6 p.m.

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Ross Lovelace
ROSS LOVELACE

Ross has covered the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Oklahoma Sooners since 2018. He's made guest appearances on various radio stations and the Sooners On SI podcast. Ross enjoys public speaking and has done so at multiple churches and high schools across the OKC metro area. In addition to writing, Ross has been the Play-by-Play announcer for Crossings’ basketball and football programs since 2020. In high school, Ross started with Thunder Digest, where he discovered his passion for writing. From there, he worked for the OU Daily as a women's basketball reporter and worked for Sooners On SI and Thunder On SI. Ross holds a bachelor's degree in Public Relations and a minor in Communication from the University of Oklahoma. Born and raised in Oklahoma City, Ross played basketball and wrote for his own Thunder blog at Crossings High School in OKC. He enjoys reading, New York Jets football and a week at the beach. Ross and his wife live in New Orleans, where he is a Marketing and Volunteer Coordinator at the Greater New Orleans Sports Foundation and the New Orleans Super Bowl Host Committee. His Twitter handle is @Rosslovelace.

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