Cowgirls Ride Meylan’s Dominance, Hoffman’s Power to 5-0 Shutout of Tulsa
STILLWATER, Okla. — Behind a dominant complete-game performance from Ruby Meylan and a breakout night at the plate from Madison Hoffman, the Oklahoma State Cowgirls softball rolled to a 5-0 victory over Tulsa Golden Hurricane softball on Thursday night.
Oklahoma State improved to 35-13 on the season, continuing its push near the top of the Big 12 standings, while Tulsa dropped to 18-30.
Meylan Silences Tulsa Lineup
Ruby Meylan delivered one of her most efficient outings of the season, tossing a complete-game one-hit shutout. The right-hander worked around four walks while striking out nine across seven innings, throwing 98 pitches.
Meylan (24-6) consistently shut down Tulsa threats, most notably escaping a bases-loaded jam in the third inning by inducing a fielder’s choice at the plate followed by a groundout.
“I just trusted my defense and stayed aggressive in the zone,” Meylan said. “We’ve been building toward games like this.”
Ruby Meylan — Game Stats:
7.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 4 BB, 9 K
Season: 24-6 record
Tulsa managed just one hit all night — an infield single by Madison Garcia in the fifth inning — and struck out nine times as Meylan controlled the pace from start to finish.
Fourth-Inning Breakthrough Sparks Offense
After three scoreless innings, Oklahoma State broke through in the fourth with a three-run rally that, as the game played out, proved to be all they needed.
The Cowgirls played some “get ’em on, get ’em over, get ’em in”, as Rosie Davis worked a leadoff walk and advanced on a sacrifice bunt by Lexi McDonald. Following a single from Tia Warsop, Madison Hoffman delivered the game’s biggest swing — a towering three-run home run to deep center field. Hoffman, who has had only 16 at-bats ALL YEAR, has now hit home runs in back-to-back Wednesday games. Last week put the stamp on Texas, and this week’s blow took down Tulsa.
The blast, her second of the season, gave the Cowgirls a 3-0 lead and complete control of the game.
“I was just looking for something I could drive,” Hoffman said. “That moment felt big, and I wanted to come through for the team.”
Insurance Runs in the Sixth
Oklahoma State added two more runs in the sixth inning to put the game out of reach.
Warsop set the table again, reaching and stealing second before Hoffman struck again — this time ripping an RBI triple down the right-field line. Aubrey Jones followed with an RBI single through the right side to extend the lead to 5-0 and it was Curtains for the Golden Hurricane.
Madison Hoffman — Game Stats:
2-for-3, HR, 3B, 4 RBI, 2 R
Season: 2 HR
Aubrey Jones — Game Stats:
2-for-3, RBI
Tia Warsop — Game Stats:
1-for-2, 2 R, SB
Tulsa Pitching Falters in Key Moments
Tulsa starter Maura Moore (10-16) kept the game scoreless early but couldn’t keep up with the greatness of Ruby Meylan and eventually gave up a 3-spot in the fourth inning. That was the only run she gave up all night, so she did a very good job against a surging and sometimes relentless Oklahoma State offense.
Maura Moore — Game Stats:
4.0 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 3 K
Makenzie Freeman allowed two more runs in the sixth, while Brinly Maples finished the game with a scoreless frame.
Despite limiting Oklahoma State to seven hits, Tulsa’s pitching struggled with timely execution, issuing five walks and allowing multiple extra-base hits. Or, maybe the better way to put that is the OSU hitters came up clutch when they had opportunities to score.
Offensive Trends: Cowgirls Heating Up
Oklahoma State’s offense continues to trend upward, capitalizing on situational hitting combined with a good amount of slug. That balance between the two allows the Cowgirls to overpower teams when they’re hitting the ball out of the yard, but also out-execute other teams, as we saw last night, when they need to win games on the margins. Last night was the perfect example of that as the Cowgirls recorded seven hits, including a home run and a triple, and drove in five runs efficiently.
The lineup has shown improved discipline, drawing five walks and consistently manufacturing runs in key innings — a trend that has fueled their strong push as of late, and their overall good record and standing in the Big 12.
Game Notes
Final Score: Oklahoma State 5, Tulsa 0
Records: OSU (35-13), Tulsa (18-30)
Winning Pitcher: Ruby Meylan (24-6)
Losing Pitcher: Maura Moore (10-16)
What’s Next
The Cowgirls are in 3rd place in the Big 12 standings and will look to carry momentum into this weekend when they host Kansas, who is directly behind them in 4th place.
It’s gonna be a fun and exciting weekend at Cowgirl Stadium.
“We’re playing our best softball right now,” coach Gajewski said. “The goal is to keep building every inning.”
Oklahoma State’s combination of elite pitching and timely hitting, plus a good amount of slug, rose to the top once again, and that is THE formula to make a run at OKC. Easier said than done, but if they keep playing as they have in the last couple of weeks, starting with the win against OU, they are one of the best teams in College Softball, no question.
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