🥎 Jayhawks Head South For Three-Game Series at No. 4 Oklahoma State

LAWRENCE, Kan. – The Kansas Jayhawks (27-18-1, 11-10 Big 12) head to Stillwater, Oklahoma, to face off against No. 4/4 Oklahoma State in a three-game series from April 26-28 at Cowgirl Stadium. This will be KU’s eighth Big 12 Conference series this season. 

Kansas got off to a hot start last week as it traveled to Springfield, Missouri, where the Jayhawks defeated Missouri State 9-0 in six innings for the 10th shutout victory and seventh run-rule victory of the season. Kansas then fell to No. 1 Texas in three games, before dropping a midweek game to Kansas City 4-1, Wednesday. 

The Jayhawks currently have the No. 37 ranked strength of schedule in the country. This season, Kansas has faced six ranked opponents in 12 games with its seventh matchup against a ranked opponent coming this weekend against No. 4 Oklahoma State. Kansas has earned four ranked wins this season as it has defeated No. 18 Texas A&M and No. 19 Baylor. 

Sophomores Presley Limbaugh, Campbell Bagshaw and Hailey Cripe hold three of the top-four batting averages on the team, and Aynslee Linduff has started in left more than 40 times with 38 hits. Limbaugh leads the team with an average of .360, which sits just outside the top-10 on the all-time single season list. Cripe leads the squad with 10 doubles, 40 hits and 34 RBI, including her first career  multi-home run game at Houston on March 22. She has hit two grand slams this season, most recently at Iowa State, and with her most recent home run against No. 1 Texas, Cripe tied Lyric Moore for the most home runs on the team with six. 

Defensively, Cripe holds down the left side of the infield as the shortstop as she leads the team with 97 defensive assists. Bagshaw  has come into her own this season after only seeing a few innings last season. She has solidified herself in the starting lineup and has amassed a batting average of .310, the second-best average on the squad. She hit her first home run, a grand slam, against Wichita State on March 12 and hit her second career home run in the very next game against Baylor. She scored Kansas’ lone run against Oklahoma on March 28 with a solo blast to right center to put her total at three home runs for the season.

Lyric Moore has also had a stellar season, as she has already topped her home run total from a year ago with six and ranks tied for first in the Big 12 with 10 runners caught stealing. She has led the way in conference play this season, as she has amassed a .333 batting average in 57 at-bats, along with three home runs and nine RBI.

This season, Kansas has been led by its stellar pitching, specifically left-handed pitcher Kasey Hamilton and right-hander Katie Brooks. Hamilton has tossed six shutouts and thrown 17 complete games, the ninth-most in the NCAA and most in the Big 12, in 22 starts this season. Hamilton leads the team with 86 strikeouts in 144.2 innings pitched, the most in the Big 12. Her six shutouts lead the Big 12 and rank 12th in the nation. This season, she has allowed 67 earned runs and an opponent batting average of .236. In her junior season, Brooks has earned a 12-4 record in 99.0 innings pitched. One of her best performances came against UTSA on Feb. 23, when she struck out 10 batters in just five innings of action. She has the best ERA (2.76) among qualified pitchers and has struck out 64 batters while allowing just four home runs this season, fourth-least in the Big 12. After picking up three wins against Wichita State and Baylor, Brooks was selected as the D1Softball National Pitcher of the Week (3/19).

Kansas and Oklahoma State have met 132 times as OSU currently maintains an 84-48 all-time advantage. Last season, the Jayhawks defeated Oklahoma State 8-7 in comeback fashion in the 2023 Big 12 Championship.

HOW TO FOLLOW ALONG
Fans can catch every pitch of every game via Big 12 Now on ESPN+, or can follow along the play-by-play with live statistics. Fans are also encouraged to follow the official Kansas Softball X Account for live updates throughout each contest.

UP NEXT
Kansas will cap off its regular season with a three-game series against Big 12 newcomer BYU at Arrocha Ballpark from May 2-4. Kansas and BYU have met nine times as the Jayhawks hold an all-time lead of 7-2. This will mark the first meeting between Kansas and BYU at Arrocha Ballpark.