Oklahoma freshman pitcher Mariah Lopez improved her season record to 8-0 in dramatic fashion on Tuesday. Backed by strong defensive play, Lopez not only tossed seven scoreless innings but also held Long Beach State without a hit. Only one of Lopez’s hitless victims came by way of a strikeout, but her teammates in the field helped in producing nine flyouts and 11 groundouts.
A walk in the sixth inning prevented a perfect game but the no hitter was Oklahoma’s first since Paige Parker blanked BYU last season, and was the 48th in program history.
With Lopez silencing the Long Beach bats, Oklahoma’s offense erupted for fourteen runs off fourteen hits. Seven Sooner batters knocked in at least one RBI, with Nicole Mendes and Nicole Pendley batting in three each. The duo also crossed home plate three times each to share the team-high. A total of eight Oklahoma players scored a run in the game, with four of them doing so more than once.