Oklahoma State Softball Up to No. 4 in DI Softball Poll
Oklahoma State is on the climb in the DI Softball poll.
After a stellar 5-0 start to the season, the Cowgirls have moved up to No. 4 in the Week 1 edition of the rankings.
OSU started out at No. 12 in the preseason poll, but after four run-rule victories, including a 9-1 victory over UCLA, the Cowgirls now find themselves in the top five for the first time this season.
The Big 12 is well-represented in the rankings. Three teams are ranked inside the top five, including Oklahoma at No. 1 and Texas at No. 2 in the poll.
OSU's win over the Bruins on Sunday was a historic one, for it was the first time in program history that OSU has gone on the road and run-ruled a top-ten team.
Kenny Gajewski and his crew started the season on Thursday, and the Cowgirls came away with a commanding 8-0 run-rule victory over Cal State Northridge.
After a 1-0 win over Loyola Marymount on Friday, Oklahoma State picked up two more run-rule victories, with wins over Utah State and UC Riverside.
Several players had their individual moments last weekend, but no one had a better start to the season than catcher Caroline Wang.
The senior was hot from the start, posting a .615 batting average with eight hits, two home runs and six RBIs.
Wang was the difference maker on Friday against LMU. Her solo shot in the seventh inning was the lone run of the contest, helping the Cowgirls prevail over the Lions.
From a pitching standpoint, OSU was dominant, to say the least. Out of the five games, the Cowgirls gave up only five runs and recorded 29 strikeouts in 28 innings of work.
Lexi Kilfoyl was the star of the position group, giving up zero runs on two hits and seven strikeouts in eight innings pitched.
The senior was terrific against UCLA, collecting three strikeouts and securing the victory on Sunday against the Bruins.
Oklahoma State heads to Florida, where it will participate in the Clearwater Invitational, playing five games in three days.
The Cowgirls' first game is on Friday at 9 a.m. against Georgia, and the contest can be seen on ESPNU.
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