OCU Sports
Rich Tortorelli, Assistant Athletic Director for Communications
BARTLESVILLE – The top-ranked Oklahoma City University softball team continued its winning ways with a non-conference doubleheader sweep of Oklahoma Wesleyan University Thursday 6-0 and 9-0 at the OKWU Softball Complex.
Oklahoma City, 40-0, 12-0 in Sooner Athletic Conference play, recorded shutouts in both games of a doubleheader for the fifth time this season and pushed their school-record winning streak to start a season to 40 wins.
In game one of the twin billing, OCU scored first the top of the second inning on a single up the middle from Kali Pugh.
The game remained 1-0 until the fifth inning when the Stars struck for three runs on two fielding miscues by the Eagles.
OCU added single runs in both the sixth and seventh innings on RBI singles by McRae Cayton and Samantha Stallbaumer.
Jaci Smith and Georgia Wall led the way offensively for the Stars, each going 2-for-3 with a run scored.
Wall, a sophomore from Marlow, Okla., also recorded the win in the circle for the Stars as she pitched seven innings while allowing four hits, no runs and striking out five.
The Stars jumped ahead early once again in game two with two runs in the top half of the second inning thanks to a two-RBI single from Bailey Whitmore.
Oklahoma City struck for one run in each of the next two innings on RBI singles from Madison Ellis and Pugh to extend their lead to 4-0.
Pugh, a senior out of Vista, Calif., then provided the big blow in the game when she lifted a three-run home run of the season over the center field wall. The homer was her 12th of the season and was part of a five run sixth inning for the Stars. Pugh finished game two 3-for-4 with four RBIs and a run scored.
Abby Meador was spectacular in the circle once again for Oklahoma City. The junior from Midwest City, Okla., threw six scoreless innings while striking out 13 batters and allowing just four hits. In her last two outings, Meador has struck out 25 hitters in just 11 innings of work.
The Stars return to conference play Monday with a doubleheader against Southwestern Christian starting at 2 p.m. in Bethany, Okla.
• Editor’s Note: OCU won the final five games of the 2016 season to push the current winning streak to 45.