No. 9 Tennessee snapped No. 2 Oklahoma's 19-game home winning streak on Friday night at Love's Field, defeating the Sooners 5-2 in eight innings.
Tied 2-2 heading into the eighth, Tennessee (28-6, 4-3 SEC) took control after
McKenna Gibson roped a one-out single to set the stage for
Sophia Nugent to be one of several heroes for the Lady Vols.
Nugent delivered the go-ahead blow, launching a two-run homer—her ninth of the season—into right-center field to give UT a 4-2 lead. Nugent, a former Sooner, now has 10 multi-RBI games this season.
Tennessee added an insurance run later in the inning when a wild pitch allowed
Laura Mealer to score from third, making it 5-2.
Nugent's heroics wouldn't have been possible without an incredible defensive play from sophomore
Gabby Leach in the bottom of the seventh. With runners on first and second and one out, Leach fielded a single in right field and threw a perfect strike to home plate, cutting down Oklahoma's base runner by five steps and preventing the Sooners from walking off with a win.
The Lady Vols struck first in the second inning when freshman
Amayah Doyle blasted a two-run homer to center field, her third of the season.
Oklahoma (30-2, 8-2 SEC) responded in the third with a sacrifice fly to cut the lead to 2-1 but couldn't capitalize further. The Sooners tied the game in the fifth with a solo home run.
IN THE CIRCLE
Sage Mardjetko started for Tennessee, throwing 2.1 innings and allowing one run on two hits with four walks and three strikeouts.
Karlyn Pickens relieved her in the third and tossed 5.2 strong innings, giving up one run on six hits while striking out six. Pickens worked a 1-2-3 inning in both the fourth and eighth frames, including fanning the final two batters to seal the win.
NOTABLE PERFORMERS
Junior
Laura Mealer was a key contributor, going 3-for-4 with a run scored. The Chapel Hill, Tennessee, native also turned an inning-ending double play in the first, fielding a ball up the middle, stepping on second, and firing to first for the final out.
DUE UP
Tennessee and Oklahoma will return to Love's Field for Game 2 of the series at 2 p.m. ET. The game will air nationally on ESPN.