Oklahoma
OU Softball: No. 4 Oklahoma State Dismantles No. 2 Oklahoma, Takes Bedlam Opener
NORMAN — Love’s Field sat in stunned silence.
Oklahoma State freshman Karli Godwin hammered a two-run shot in the fifth inning, her fourth RBI of the night, to put the Cowgirls up by four runs.
Oklahoma’s warts of the past month were on display.
Oklahoma only brought one run around in the first inning despite having the bases loaded, and stranded runners all night.
In the other dugout, Kenny Gajewski’s Cowgirls delivered clutch hit after clutch hit to stun the Sooners and take Game 1 of Bedlam for the first time since 2021.
OSU won Friday’s contest 6-3, pulling No. 1 Texas level with the Sooners at the top of the Big 12 standings and putting OU’s 11-year regular season conference title streak in jeopardy.
“Not good enough. Give Oklahoma State credit. They swung it really well. They pitched really well,” OU coach Patty Gasso said after the loss. “… Our bats were not timely. Our defense was great. Our pitchers gave up too much, too many hard-hit balls. They’re good, and we knew it. We have to pitch more competitively. That’s the word we were talking about is competitive. More competitive swings, competitive pitches, athletic that way.”
No. 2 Oklahoma (45-5, 21-4 Big 12) stranded eight baserunners in the loss to No. 4 Oklahoma State (43-8, 20-5), and was out-hit 7-3.
WATCH: Oklahoma’s Bedlam Postgame Press Conference
Friday was OU’s first defeat to the Cowgirls at home since 1997 and OSU’s six runs were the most the team had scored in Norman since a 6-2 Bedlam win on May 2, 1985.
The Cowgirls nearly took the lead from the jump.
Kelly Maxwell fired a pair of strikeouts, but she walked Tallen Edwards to put a runner on first.
Godwin doubled to the wall and Gajewski knew exactly what he wanted. He waved Edwards home, setting up a play at the plate.
Rylie Boone hit Tiare Jennings on the cutoff, and she fired home for a bang-bang play. Edwards slid under Kinzie Hansen’s tag and was called safe, drawing a ferocious fist pump from Gajewski and putting OSU on top — or so the Cowgirls thought.
After review, Edwards’ move to avoid Hansen took her wide enough for the Sooner catcher to apply the tag before Edwards’ hand caught a piece of home. The call was overturned, ending the top of the first with both teams still scoreless.
The Sooners carried that momentum into the bottom half of the inning.
Jayda Coleman, Jennings and Alyssa Brito all drew walks to load the bases with one out.
Hansen drew the fourth walk of the inning putting Oklahoma up 1-0, but the Sooners struggled to turn the screws on Oklahoma State right-hander Kyra Aycock’s shaky start.
Despite only throwing 12 of her 30 first inning pitches for strikes, Aycock got Ella Parker and Alynah Torres to fly out and limit the damage in the frame.
Oklahoma capitalized on a mistake in the second inning.
Kasidi Pickering dribbled a grounder toward the gap in the right side of the infield with two outs and Boone on second. OSU second baseman Rosie Davis covered the ground to field the ball, but mishandled the exchange to her throwing hand as she moved to try and toss the ball.
Boone rounded third and sped home as soon as she saw to ball hit the dirt to double OU’s advantage.
A walk and a hit batter came back to bite Maxwell in the third, as Godwin produced again with a two-out double to clear the bases and tie the game up for the Cowgirls at 2-2.
OSU took the lead in the fourth.
Micaela Wark hammered a one-out delivery to dead center, putting the Cowgirls in front 3-2.
Kierston Deal came on in relief to end Maxwell’s outing to start the fifth. Maxwell allowed four hits and two walks while striking out three batters in her first start against her old team.
“I am extremely proud of Kelly because it’s a very tough situation,” Gasso said of Maxwell. “Even if you’re playing at home, it’s a tough situation for her. So I was proud of her competing. But there’s too many walks.
“There’s hit batters. … I thought Kelly came out and was a little bit nervous, and then she started to settle in a bit, but this is a day that she was knowing was coming, and if you’ve ever been in a situation like that, your heart beats a little bit differently that day.”
The change didn’t slow down the Cowgirls, as Jilyen Poullard greeted Deal with a solo shot to extend OSU’s lead to 4-2.
Godwin continued to torment the Sooners, belting a two-run shot to put the visitors up four.
Gasso went to Karlie Keeney two batters after Godwin’s bomb, ending the night for the back-to-back Big 12 Pitcher of the Week.
Though a small sample size, Deal entered the night with a 4.85 ERA when entering games out of the bullpen, a stark contrast from her form when she starts games. Gasso didn’t put the struggles at the feet of any mental disconnect from starting games to entering in relief, however.
“KD has been our hottest pitcher as of late,” Gasso said. “So if I felt like (if) she wasn’t ready to come in, I wouldn’t put her in. It’s just, she had an off night, she left the ball over the plate too many times and she’ll tell you that herself.”
Hansen didn’t see any difference out of the sophomore left hander, either.
“They executed on good pitches really,” Hansen said. “That’s all you can really say. I think that the ones that we were trying to get them to chase on, they didn’t and then the ones that were over the plate they got the barrel on it, so tip the cap to them.”
Over the past three seasons, the fifth inning is typically where Oklahoma turned the tide, pulling a dramatic comeback victory out of the fire.
With runners on first and second, Boone popped up her first pitch to record the second out, but Coleman helped get one run back for OU.
Her hard-hit ball to third turned into a run off a bad throw, allowing Coleman to reach base and a run to score, but Pickering flew out with runners at the corners, ending the sixth with the Cowgirls up 6-3.
Still, OU was held without a hit from the second inning until the sixth.
“They pitched really well,” Jennings said. “But at a certain point we got to adjust. We had little spurts of it here and there. Just not enough to execute.”
Keeney stopped the bleeding in the circle to give Oklahoma one final chance. The Sooners had Jennings, Brito and Hansen due up in the seventh to erase the three-run deficit.
This time, there was no magic.
Jennings flew out to the warning track and Brito and Hansen both grounded out to end the contest.
“We gave ourselves a chance late in the game, but we were just kind of in a lull in the middle,” Gasso said. “Against a good team, you can’t give up innings. You can’t sit back and wait. There have been times when we used to be able to do that pretty easily. We’re not made that way this year.
“We can’t take innings off. We have got to grind, work better at passing the bat on that side. And we have to make competitive pitches. We keep trying to catch up but then giving up a lead, then what does that help? We talked a lot more about being competitive and fearless. Fearless.”
Game 2 between the Bedlam rivals will start at noon Saturday, and will be broadcast on ESPN.
NORMAN — The Oklahoma Sooners liked their wide receiver room a year ago. They want 2026 to be even better.
Isaiah Sategna’s return helps that desire. Earning experienced pass catchers Trell Harris and Parker Livingstone via the transfer portal gives you added play makers. But after the Sooners Spring Game on Saturday, an unlikely hero emerged.
When Jahsiear Rogers flipped from Penn State to Oklahoma last December, he drew the usual excitement that comes with a new commitment. But few expected him to climb the depth chart this quickly, even with the injuries that hit Emmett Jones’ room.
Rogers did just that and more on Saturday. He led all pass catchers with five receptions for 70 yards in Oklahoma’s annual Red/White game.
“I knew it was time to showcase,” Rogers said after the game. “It was amazing to see the fans and get used to the OU way. I’m a playmaker. They really want to put the ball in playmakers hands. I pretty much knew I had to lead the white team.”
Rogers got the ball rolling early. On the second offensive play for the white team, backup quarterback Whitt Newbauer rolled to his right wide, then stopped and looked towards the middle of the field where he saw Rogers running open. Newbauer connected with Rogers for a 39-yard gain.
Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X for the latest news.
With Rogers on the white team, he is running against (most of) Oklahoma’s starting defense. As fate would have it, on that 39-yard reception, Rogers beat his favorite teammate to compete against — Reggie Powers.
“He is just a leader, good guy,” Rogers said of Powers. “Me and him go after it every day in practice. Reggie is strong. When I come at him, I have to really come at him.”
Rogers’ big play over Powers was the second-longest catch of the spring game — Sategna’s 50-yard reception that appeared to be a touchdown before coaches pulled it back to set up a red-zone rep. The other four catches weren’t flashy, but they were important in their own way, and Rogers looked like he belonged on the field.
“I love it. As long as I can get the ball, I can be me. I love it,” Rogers said. “When I am on the field, I am ready to go. I am ready to be a playmaker.”
The season is still months away, and Rogers hasn’t earned a spot high on the depth chart yet. A strong spring and an encouraging Red/White Game can only lead to early playing time if he carries that momentum into summer and fall camp.
More experienced players will return from injury and receivers who’ve been in the program for a few years will have an extra leg-up.
But Rogers is taking everything in stride and leaving no stone unturned in his development.
“Just learning from the older guys,” Rogers said. “Manny Choice, Isaiah Sategna, Trell Harris, Mackenzie Alleyne. Really all of them. We lean on each other, learn from each other. That is kind of how our room is.”
Follow
The Oklahoma baseball team is back in the mix and trending upward.
After a rough few weeks in Southeastern Conference play, the 14th-ranked Sooners have won three of their last four games to get to .500 at just beyond the halfway point of the league slate. Friday’s 9-6 win over Missouri allowed Oklahoma to move to 8-8, tied with three other teams for eighth in the standings.
Friday’s win wasn’t truly that close, even. OU took a 9-3 lead into the ninth before Mizzou made it somewhat interesting with three runs in the frame. Two of them came with two outs, though, and Mason Bixby induced a groundout with the bases empty to hold on.
The large edge came via a home run-happy night. The Sooners popped four over the wall at Kimrey Family Stadium, including three in a four-run seventh inning that gave OU a four-run lead.
Jason Walk, who hit one of the four homers, had the best day at the plate. He went 2 for 5 with the shot, three RBIs and a run. Camden Johnson, who also homered, went 2 for 3 with a walk, a double and two runs, and Dasan Harris went 2 for 4 with a home run, two RBIs, and three runs. Trey Gambill hit the Sooners’ other jack.
Oklahoma jumped out to a four-run lead in the second behind four hits and a walk. Missouri helped the Sooners out with an error that resulted in a bases-loaded situation and three unearned runs registered to Tigers starter Josh McDevitt.
The runs were more than enough for Oklahoma’s LJ Mercurius, who pitched six strong innings, giving up three runs on six hits with no walks and nine strikeouts.
Game 2 in the series is set for 4 p.m. Saturday and the finale will be played Sunday at 2 p.m., weather permitting.
Just miles off Route 66 in Rogers County stands one of Oklahoma’s most unusual roadside attractions: a 90-foot concrete totem pole built largely by one man over more than a decade.
Ed Galloway’s Totem Pole Park is home to what is widely described as the world’s largest concrete totem pole, created by Oklahoma folk artist Nathan Edward Galloway during his retirement years.
The park sits near Chelsea and continues to draw visitors traveling Oklahoma’s stretch of Route 66.
A project decades in the making
Credit: Rogers County Historical Society
According to the National Park Service, Nathan Edward Galloway was born in 1880 in Springfield, Missouri. He later worked as a manual arts teacher at Sand Springs Home before retiring in 1937 to property near present-day Chelsea in Rogers County.
After retiring, Galloway began building what would become Totem Pole Park. Using concrete, steel rebar, wood, and red sandstone, he created a series of colorful, highly decorated totems and structures across the property.
Atlas Obscura reports that Galloway began construction in 1938 with the goal of building durable totem poles from sturdy materials, and he surrounded his land with tapered concrete monuments and decorative features.
Between 1937 and 1948, Galloway constructed the park’s centerpiece: a 90-foot-tall totem pole carved with bas-relief designs. Travel Oklahoma describes it as a Route 66 icon and a state landmark.
Eleven years and 90 feet of concrete
Credit: Rogers County Historical Society
The main totem took roughly 11 years to complete, according to Atlas Obscura. The structure is made of red sandstone framed with steel and wood, then covered with a thick concrete exterior.
The tower features more than 200 carved images, including representations of birds and Native American figures facing the four cardinal directions. Near the top are four nine-foot figures representing different tribes.
Galloway’s version differs from traditional totem poles of the Pacific Northwest, which are generally carved from red cedar.
The structure rises from the back of a large, three-dimensional turtle. The turtle base was carved from a broad sandstone outcrop on the site and painted in bright colors.
The totem is hollow and rises about nine stories, with the ground level measuring about nine feet in diameter. Inside, plastered walls feature painted murals of mountain-and-lake scenes and bird totems, along with Native American shields and arrow points. At the top, the cone is open to the sky.
Picnic tables supported by small concrete totems, a totem barbecue fireplace, and gate structures designed to resemble fish fill the park grounds.
The Fiddle House
Credit: Rogers County Historical Society
Beyond the towering pole, Galloway’s artistic interests extended into music and woodworking.
An 11-sided structure known as the “Fiddle House” sits on the property and resembles a Navajo hogan, according to the National Park Service. The building houses many of Galloway’s hand-carved fiddles and other creations.
The Rogers County Historical Society says the Fiddle House Museum retains many of Galloway’s handcrafted violins and artifacts.
From neglect to restoration
Credit: Rogers County Historical Society
Galloway continued working on the park until his death in 1961. After he died, the site gradually fell into disrepair.
In 1989, the Rogers County Historical Society acquired the property. A major restoration effort took place from 1988 to 1998, with art conservators and engineers studying the structures and repairing damaged materials.
Additional repainting and preservation projects began in 2015.
Today, Totem Pole Park is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It remains open year-round with free admission and is managed by the Rogers County Historical Society.
-
Sports5 minutes agoAfter 55 years as a broadcaster in L.A., Randy Rosenbloom is leaving town
-
World17 minutes agoBulgaria votes in eighth election in five years
-
News47 minutes agoReal estate investors are buying up long-term care facilities. Residents can suffer
-
Detroit, MI3 hours agoFormer Piston shows Detroit what they’re missing as he dominates next to LeBron
-
San Francisco, CA3 hours agoEastbound I-80 closure in San Francisco snarls traffic, slows business
-
Videos3 hours agoCan Keir Starmer survive the latest Mandelson revelations? | BBC News
-
Dallas, TX3 hours agoPetar Musa’s Brace Not Enough as FC Dallas Draws LA Galaxy 2-2
-
Miami, FL3 hours agoMLS: Messi double helps Inter Miami slay Rapids in front of huge crowd