— BASEBALL

Cowboys blank Sooners at Tulsa

TULSA — Oklahoma State’s Andrew Heaney outdueled Oklahoma’s Jordan John in a 3-0 victory on Friday night at ONEOK Field in Tulsa as both starters went the distance.

The difference in the game came down to what OU did in the top of the second inning and what the Cowboys did in the bottom of third.

The Sooners had Max White standing at third base and Cody Reine at second base with two outs in the second with Dylan Neal at the plate, who grounded out. The Cowboys got runners in scoring position in the third inning and Robbie Rea, who went 2-for-4, and Jared Womack both were able to get tough pitches to fall for base hits.

There’s still two more games to go. The series shifts to Oklahoma City’s Bricktown Ballpark at 7 tonight for the middle game of the series. The Cowboys (27-17, 12-7 Big 12) have a chance to wrap the series up. The Sooners (29-18, 9-9) are in a must-win situation of, they’re going to win the series.



SOFTBALL

OU homers beat Texas

NORMAN — Three home runs, including a three-run, walk-shot by Georgia Casey in the eighth inning, did the scoring work for the fourth-ranked Sooners in a 5-3 eight-inning victory over No. 8 Texas. It was the first of a three-game series between the Big 12’s top two teams that will likely decide the fate of the conference.

After allowing Texas (40-9, 14-7) two runs on wild pitches, Oklahoma (41-7, 15-4) ace Keilani Ricketts stepped to the plate in the sixth inning with the mistakes still on her mind. She was able to funnel her frustration into a game-changing at-bat, blasting a 0-2 pitch deep over center field to put the Sooners on the board.

The two teams will meet at 2 p.m. today and noon on Sunday.



Connors splits, remains alive

OKLAHOMA CITY – Connors State pounded out three home runs in the opener of the Region II Softball Tournament double elimination play Friday en route to a 15-4 run-rule win over Northern Oklahoma-Tonkawa and then fell to NJCAA No. 5-ranked Seminole 6-0 in the second game at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium.

The loss drops the Cowgirls (25-27) into an 11 a.m. elimination contest against Rose State today. Rose advance by defeating Carl Albert State College 4-3, knocking the Vikings out of the tournament.

It was a 9-run explosion by CSC in the third inning of the first game that pushed the Cowgirls to the win, highlighted by three-run homers by Brandi Schuler, her ninth of the year, and Jerelyn Long, her third, that powered the Cowgirls to the victory. Long also came on in relief of starter Jordan Jones, who lasted only 1/3 of an inning, to earn the win.

Connors was held to just four hits in the second game, missing scoring opportunities in the second and seventh innings. The game was scoreless until the top of the fifth when the Belles scored three runs before adding one in the sixth and two in the seventh.

Lauren Robertson went six innings for the Cowgirls and sustained the loss, giving up five hits, and hitting a batter.