OU Softball: Jordy Bahl Silences LSU in Baton Rouge

The Sooner sophomore fired in 13 strikeouts to help lift Oklahoma over its future SEC foes.

Make mistakes and Oklahoma will pounce.

That’s exactly what LSU learned on Tuesday night.

The top-ranked Sooners downed the No. 13 Tigers 3-0 at Tiger Park in Baton Rouge, and the party got started in the second inning.

OU capitalized on an error from LSU first baseman Raeleen Gutierrez, who dropped a routine out that would have retired Jocelyn Erickson and brought Kinzie Hansen up with two outs.

Instead, Erickson took second base and Hansen brought her home five pitches later with an RBI single.

Alynah Torres grounded out — which should have ended the inning — but instead Alyssa Brito got to come to the plate.

The Sooner third baseman delivered, launching a two-out rocket to put OU up 3-0, with all three runs credited as unearned.

𝐁𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐧 𝐑𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐞 𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐨 💥@alyss_33 | 📺 ESPN2 pic.twitter.com/sVRHfzVjWI

— Oklahoma Softball (@OU_Softball) April 12, 2023

Oklahoma rode the second inning wave to extend its winning streak to 29 games, pushing the Sooners to 37-1 overall and dropping LSU to 33-8.

A three-run lead was all right-hander Jordy Bahl needed, as OU’s star pitcher frustrated the Tigers all night long.

"Yeah, Jordy was outstanding," Patty Gasso said. "Definitely needed some big-time help on the mound. And our defense was on point."

LSU center fielder Ciara Briggs got to second base in the first inning, and the Tigers didn’t get another runner in scoring position until the bottom of the sixth.

Unbothered by the extra traffic, Bahl responded by battling back from a 3-1 count to induce a line-out from LSU designated player Georgia Clark and end the inning, which was indicative of her night.

Dominant across seven innings in the circle, Bahl struck out 13 Tigers, allowing just three hits and one walk.

𝐉𝐄𝐀𝐔𝐗 𝐁𝐀𝐇𝐋 ⛽@jordybahl | END 5 | OU 3, LSU 0 pic.twitter.com/NYuqxzQ1nQ

— Oklahoma Softball (@OU_Softball) April 12, 2023

Oklahoma needed every bit of Bahl’s magic to win the contest, as the Sooners again struggled with the quick-change pitching strategy.

Facing four different Tiger hurlers, OU’s lone two hits came in the second inning.

The Sooners hit just 2-of-6 with runners on base, as the LSU pitching staff did a great job containing Oklahoma’s explosive offense.

"Offense sputtered a bit," Gasso said. "And it's been happening for the past couple of weeks. But that's not unlike different parts of the season when you run into that. So this team's gonna have to work hard. We're planning to work hard to get out of this and get back on track offensively."

Jayda Coleman, Haley Lee, Tiare Jennings and Grace Lyons, the top four batters in the OU lineup, combined to go 0-of-11 at the plate, with Coleman drawing the Sooners’ lone walk.

The OU defense silenced the 3,073-person strong LSU crowd for good in the bottom of the seventh.

After almost registering the first out of the inning on a diving play, Lyons turned two with a quick relay by Jennings.

𝐑𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐭 𝐮𝐩 🗣️@grace_lyons5 @_tiarejennings @joceyerickson pic.twitter.com/pFyQ89M1US

— Oklahoma Softball (@OU_Softball) April 12, 2023

Bahl then capped the performance off with one more strikeout to close out the victory over the Sooners’ future SEC foe.

Oklahoma’s reprieve from Big 12 play will continue into the weekend.

The Sooners will head to Oxford, OH, to participate in the Miami Tournament, with contests against Oakland, Louisville and host Miami on the docket.

Action will start Saturday at 10 a.m. against Oakland. 

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