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OU Softball: Kelly Maxwell Notches First Oklahoma Win Against No. 11 Duke

A big third inning was all the Oklahoma offense needed to to power past No. 11 Duke at the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge on Thursday.

Ryan Chapman

OU Softball: Kelly Maxwell Notches First Oklahoma Win Against No. 11 Duke
OU Softball: Kelly Maxwell Notches First Oklahoma Win Against No. 11 Duke /

Kelly Maxwell shined in her Oklahoma debut as the No. 1-ranked Sooners won a highly anticipated matchup with No. 11 Duke on Thursday.

The left-handed transfer from Oklahoma State clipped a pair of batters across the opening two innings, but dialed in to silence the talented Blue Devils’ lineup.

Maxwell allowed just one hit, striking out a pair of Duke batters and allowing no runs in five innings of action.

The work in the circle gave the Sooners plenty of time to get the offense going as OU downed Duke 3-0 at the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge in Mexico.

Final Box Score
Final Box Score / OU Stats

While Maxwell held off the Blue Devils (0-1), Oklahoma (2-0) figured out Duke starting pitcher Cassidy Curd on the second trip through the batting order.

OU left four baserunners on through the first two innings, drawing three walks and getting hit by a pitch, but failed to register a hit.

That changed in the third inning.

Tiare Jennings powered her first home run of the season over the fence in straightaway center as her line shot continued to carry off the bat.

From there, Patty Gasso’s offense found life.

Cydney Sanders walked and Alyssa Brito moved her over with a single through the left side, and then Gasso went to the bench.

Alynah Torres was called upon to pinch hit for Avery Hodge, and she rewarded Gasso’s faith.

Torres roped one through the right side, bringing home a run, and then true freshman Kasidi Pickering beat out a throw from Duke third baseman Ana Gold to keep the inning alive and plate another run.

Pickering’s hit extended OU’s lead to 3-0, and it continued her strong start to the season.

She drove in five runs against Utah Valley in the Sooners’ first contest of the day, including a two-out grand slam in her first at-bat for Oklahoma.

The three-run flurry chased Curd out of the game, meanwhile the Sooners were able to continue to lean on Maxwell.

She sat Duke down in order in the fourth inning, quickly bringing OU back to the plate to try and carry the momentum from the bottom of the third inning.

Jennings battled for a two-out single in the bottom of the fourth inning, but that was all the Sooners could get going in the bottom of the fourth inning.

Maxwell didn’t need the luxury of extra run support.

After hitting Duke’s first batter of the second inning and the Blue Devils advanced the leadoff runner to second, Maxwell closed her stint of the game by retiring 11-straight batters.

When the sixth inning rolled around, Gasso turned to Liberty transfer Karlie Keeney in the circle.

Keeney allowed one hit in the sixth inning, but got out of the frame with a double play. 

The seventh inning was far from straightforward, however.

A one-out walk gave way to a single, and then Keeney loaded the bases when she hit Duke’s Kelly Torres.

Under duress, Keeney dug in.

She raced out to an 0-2 count on Jada Baker, striking out the Duke shortstop after Baker fouled off a few balls.

Then Keeney induced a ground ball to Jennings who ended the game to extend OU’s wining streak to 55 games.

Gasso also moved to third on the softball all-time wins list, notching win No. 1,458 in her storied career.

Jennings ended the day 3-for-4, and Pickering was a perfect 2-for-2 at the plate.

OU is done for the day after picking up a pair of wins, but it will return for another marquee matchup on Friday.

The Sooners will take on No. 7 Washington, who finished the 2023 season at the Women’s College World Series, at 8:30 p.m. on Friday. 

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Ryan Chapman
RYAN CHAPMAN

Ryan is deputy editor at AllSooners and covers a number of sports in and around Norman and Oklahoma City. Working both as a journalist and a sports talk radio host, Ryan has covered the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma City Thunder, the United States Men’s National Soccer Team, the Oklahoma City Energy and more. Since 2019, Ryan has simultaneously pursued a career as both a writer and a sports talk radio host, working for the Flagship for Oklahoma sports, 107.7 The Franchise, as well as AllSooners.com. Ryan serves as a contributor to The Franchise’s website, TheFranchiseOK.com, which was recognized as having the “Best Website” in 2022 by the Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters. Ryan holds an associate’s degree in Journalism from Oklahoma City Community College in Oklahoma City, OK. 

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