An infield single with one out in the sixth inning broke up the no-hitter by Sooner starter Sam Landry, who went the distance in pitching the SEC regular-season champions to their first SEC tournament victory as members of the conference.
Ironically, LSU posted a 5-0 shutout win on Wednesday, allowing just one hit by No. 8 Mississippi State to advance to Thursday's quarterfinal matchup with Oklahoma.
Landry was brilliant in the circle for the Sooners, as she has been all season. The right-handed transfer from Louisiana admittedly may not have had her best control, something she has struggled with in her past few games, but she was able to battle through it and OU is moving on to the semifinals on Friday.
Although allowing just one hit over seven innings, Landry did work from behind the count on a number of LSU batters and issued four free passes, but she was able to make the big pitch when she had to.
Oklahoma (44-7) usually does well in games when it scores first. The Sooners got on the board in their first at-bat without recording a hit. LSU starter Sydney Berzon walked three OU hitters in the opening inning, and a run scored when Cydney Sanders was hit by a pitch. Berzon was able to wiggle out of further damage in the first but gave up a second run in the fourth.
Sanders walked to lead off the fourth. Chaney Helton was inserted to pinch run for Sanders and scored on a one-out single by Sydney Barker. Oklahoma added a couple of insurance runs in the fifth inning on a two-run home run by -- who else? -- Sanders, who was walked, hit by a pitch and homered, driving in three of the Sooners' four runs in three plate appearances.
LSU scored its only run in the sixth inning, but that inning proved to be a turning point in the game. The Tigers loaded the bases against Landry with one out and LSU's main home-run bat coming to the plate in senior Tori Edwards. The redshirt freshman is tied for third in the SEC with 18 home runs and had come to the plate with the bases loaded four times previously this season and delivered a grand slam each time.
Landry got the dangerous Edward to fly out to right field, but that was good enough to drive in the run from third. The next LSU hitter grounded out to second, and the Sooners were able to wiggle out of what could have been a big inning. Landry retired the side in order in the top of the seventh, and that was the ball game.
OU will play Arkansas in the semifinals at 3 p.m. CT Friday on ESPN2. The Sooners swept Arkansas earlier this season.
What stood out from OU's SEC tournament win over LSU
- The win over LSU (41-14) marked Oklahoma's first postseason win outside of the state of Oklahoma in eight years. The Sooners won the 2017 NCAA Super Regional at Auburn and went on the win their second consecutive national championship that season in Oklahoma City.
- The win was Landry's 19th of the season with four losses. She struck out eight and walked four in throwing 125 pitches. It was her 12th appearance of seven or more innings this season. The OU ace threw a combined 262 pitches (148 in nine innings and 114 in 5.1 innings) in two games against Florida last weekend.
- Walks have been an issue for Landry in recent games. Last weekend against Florida, she issued 11 free passes in 14.1 innings, and that doesn't include the number of hitters who worked the Sooners' best pitcher to full counts but ended up making an out or reaching base on a hit.
- Avery Hodge, who plays shortstop for LSU, spent her first two seasons at Oklahoma and played on the Sooners' last two national championship teams.
- Five different Sooners accounted for Oklahoma's five hits in the game.
- LSU starter Sydney Bergon walked five Oklahoma hitters. Two of those walks turned into runs.
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