Muskogee Phoenix
Friday, May 5, 2023
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State title for the Tigers Oktaha shut down the Red Devils’ offense until the fourth, when Tessa Cooper led off with a single and eventually scored on a single by Kinsey Rice that pulled Prague within 2-1. One-out singles by Scott and Focht preceded a three-run homer to center field by Peyton Bryan, extending Oktaha’s lead to 5-1. Those extra runs proved handy in the top of the sixth, when Prague’s Jadyn Hightower and Lexsey Trevizo smacked back-to-back two-out solo home runs over the centerfield fence. Scott, playing shortstop, leapt to catch a line drive by Kailey Rich to end that threat, and the Red Devils went down in order in the seventh.
Breaks go Oktaha’s way in claiming Class 4A slow pitch championship By Murray Evans Phoenix Correspondent OKLAHOMA CITY — The breaks that always seemed to go against Oktaha when it played in the state slow pitch softball tournament finally went the Tigers’ way on Wednesday. A seventh-inning rally for the ages in a quarterfinal against No. 6 Preston and a taut semifinal win over No. 2 Prague led to one final dramatic act for No. 3 Oktaha, which held on for an 11-10 win over No. 1 Pocola in the Class 4A title game at USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium. The slow pitch softball title is the first for Oktaha (28-7), a program that long has been a state-tournament staple but never came home with the gold trophy — until Wednesday. “We’ve been to the state tournament a lot,” Oktaha coach Kia Holmes said. “I’ve lost count how many times. We’ve been state runner-up a few times. I don’t even know how many times we’ve been beaten in the semis and we’ve been beat a whole lot in the quarters, so it’s nice to finally win it!” Oktaha’s day started with a seven-run bottom-of-the-seventh rally to down Preston 9-8. The Tigers — not necessarily a home-run hitting team — then scored all their runs via the long ball in a 5-3 win over Prague. As the Tigers faced Pocola — the defending champion and a team they’d gone 1-2 against during the regular season — Holmes and her team stuck to two strategies. First, they would allow the Indians’ top power hitters, Allyssa Parker and Kail Chitwood, only one at-bat. After both hit home runs in the first inning, Oktaha issued three straight intentional walks to both. “Everybody else on their team is capable, obviously,” Holmes said. “They’re a really
Class 3A Dale 11, Haskell 4 The Haymakers saw their dream of a state championship The Oktaha Slow Pitch softball team poses with the championship banner and trophies after winning fall by the wayside in the Class 3A quarterfinals, losing to Dale the Class 4A state title Wednesday at USA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City. Wednesday at Integris Field in good team. But we were going After Oktaha eased ahead 6-5 again, representing the poten- Oklahoma City. The game began in favor of to make somebody else beat in the top of the fourth, the tial winning run. She hit anthe Lady Haymakers as they us. (Walking them) was delibIndians went back up 8-6 in other deep fly ball, but Bacon scored twice in the bottom of erate.” the bottom of the inning on settled under it in center field Second, Oktaha would try to a three-run homer by leadoff and caught it for the final out. the first on a sacrifice fly by Cheyanna Morgan scoring avoid the temptation of keephitter Kylee Smith, who went “I thought, ‘Either they’re ing up with Pocola (34-4) by 3-for-4 with two homers, a dou- going to beat us or we’re going RiLee Westmoreland and a single by Shania Burkhalter hitting home runs. The Tigers ble, four RBIs and four runs to win it right here,’” Holmes that plated RayLin Morgan. needed to be reminded of that scored. said. “She got under it a little The 2-0 advantage lasted philosophy after hitting six Oktaha answered with anand it worked out.” until the top of the third when straight fly-ball outs to start other five-run inning in the It was the final break on a the game. Once they adjusted, fifth, recording seven hits (inday the Tigers had many good the Pirates plated seven runs all via home runs. Dale added they finished with 17 hits over cluding doubles by Peyton Bry- ones. Preston (25-8) had Oka run in the top of the fourth the last five innings. an, Kirsten Berry and Ryleigh taha dead to rights heading “The few home runs that Bacon). Cambree McCoy’s into the bottom of the seventh on a home run for an 8-2 lead. Haskell scored once in the we’ve hit this year have been single to right-center scored in the quarterfinal with an 8-2 fourth on a single by Mariah accidents,” Holmes said. “I had Bacon to put the Tigers ahead lead. But Ava Scott hit a twoto get them to remember to get 11-8. run homer and Bryan followed Arterberry plating Burkhalter and pushed another run across back to doing what we do best, From there, it was a matter with a three-run shot to pull in the fifth on a home run which is not hit home runs.” of hanging on. A solo homer the Tigers within 8-7. Berry In the end, all 10 Oktaha by Smith in the sixth made it then delivered a walk-off, two- by Lynzi Kelley, making the Lady Haymakers’ deficit 8-4, starters had at least one hit 11-9. Bryan, Oktaha’s right run double to vanquish the but that was as close as they and all but two of them drove fielder, likely saved two runs Pirates. would get as Dale (34-5) added in at least one run, with no from scoring with a nifty sno“Sometimes it’s better to be player recording more than cone catch of a fly ball by Kylie lucky than good, and that was a run in the sixth and two in the seventh. two RBIs. The station-to-staMerritt. one of those games,” Holmes Kelley led the way for Hastion style paid off in the third The Indians started the bot- said. kell going 3-for-4 with one run inning as the Tigers mixed in tom of the seventh with a pair Oktaha’s momentum from score and one run batted in. five hits — all singles — with of singles and a fielders’ choice that scintillating win carried Westmoreland was 2-for-4 with four errors by Pocola. The last grounder by Dauslyn Brown over into its semifinal against a run scored and Arterberry of those run-scoring singles, by scored Lety Parga to pull Poco- Prague (30-5). The Tigers led was 2-for-3 with an RBI. Brynn Surmont, put Oktaha la within 11-10. Ten-hole bat2-0 after only two batters, as Haskell finishes the season up 5-3. ter Presleigh Riggs flew out to Scott walked and Hannah at 25-13. Pocola tied the game with center field for the second out. Focht homered down the left— Ronn Rowland two sacrifice flies in the third. That brought Smith to bat field line. MURRAY EVANS/Special to the Phoenix
OSU lands reigning Big Baffert won’t be at Derby 2nd year in a row East Freshman of the Year after his 2021 Derby winner Medina Spirit failed a post-race drug The Kentucky Derby is a tradi- test. The horse was later disqualtion that’s never been canceled. ified from that victory in a ruling Postponed once by World War handed down last year. II and again by the coronavirus Medina Spirit tested positive pandemic in 2020, America’s for an anti-inflammatory medigreatest race has rolled on since cation. It’s considered a Class C 1875. drug, with a lesser potential to At Churchill Downs on Satinfluence performance, but any urday, 20 horses will compete level of detection on race day is to wear the garland of red roses a violation. Medina Spirit died in the 149th edition. But the after a workout in 2021. race will again be without the Baffert already has served a sport’s best known and hugely 90-day suspension by the Kensuccessful figure for nearly three tucky Horse Racing Commission decades. because of medication violations Bob Baffert trained American involving his horses. The suspenPharoah to the first Triple Crown sion caused him to miss all of the sweep in 37 years in 2015. He 2022 Triple Crown series. repeated the feat with Justify in 2018. In all, the white-haired DID BAFFERT CHALLENGE HIS trainer has won 16 Triple Crown PUNISHMENTS? races. Yet Baffert is still serving a Yes, on several fronts. two-year suspension from ChurHe made multiple attempts in chill Downs. Kentucky to overturn the track’s “I’ve just moved on,” the ban and his suspension. He also 70-year-old Hall of Fame trainer was unsuccessful in suing Churtold The Associated Press recent- chill Downs Inc. in federal court, ly, declining to elaborate. with a judge denying his injuncHis reverence for the Derby tion. is obvious: “There’s no more exBaffert was suspended for a citing moment when you have a year by the New York Racing horse that has a chance to win Association for repeated medicathe Derby,” he said, having offition violations, although none occially won it a record-tying six curred in that state. That penalty times. expired in January. Baffert will sit out for a second Medina Spirit’s Derby disqualistraight year. Read on to find out fication remains on appeal. why. WHAT WERE THE EFFECTS OF WHY IS BAFFERT STILL BANNED PUNISHMENTS? FROM THE DERBY? Last year, Baffert had purse Churchill Downs Inc. prohibearnings of $9.7 million, which ited him from entering horses ranked him 12th among trainers at any of its tracks for two years nationally according to Equibase. Associated Press
By Jon Walker CNHI Sports Oklahoma STILLWATER — On the heels of a campaign that featured 20 wins, a fourth-place finish in the Big 12 and an NCAA Tournament win, the Oklahoma State women’s basketball program isn’t planning on rebuilding. Instead, the Cowgirls are electing to reload. For the second time in less than a year, Jacie Hoyt has dipped into the transfer portal and found a playmaking guard. A season ago, it was Naomie Alnatas, who spent three years with Hoyt during the coach’s five-year stint at Kansas City. Now, Georgetown transfer Kennedy Fauntleroy shared Thursday via social media that she’s headed to Stillwater, and she’ll have three years of eligibility remaining. The 5-foot-7 guard visited OSU on Monday, a source told News Press. Now, three days later, she’s a Cowgirl. Fauntleroy – the No. 12 transfer in ESPN’s portal rankings and third-best prospect still available – will join the Cowgirls’ backcourt after unanimously being named the Big East Freshman of the
Year in 2022-23. She averaged 10.9 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 2.4 steals this past season to help lead the Hoyas to the second round of the Big East tournament before falling to UConn. A native of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, Fauntleroy scored in double figures in 17 of 30 games (29 starts). She dropped a career-high 28 points during a win over Xavier in early December, and she came close to that mark with a pair of 24-point outings (at Villanova, at Marquette) and 25 against DePaul. As OSU’s fourth transfer this offseason, Fauntleroy will help fill a void left by the departures of Alnatas, who exhausted her eligibility, and Lexy Keys, who entered the portal and signed with Oklahoma. But Hoyt and Co. don’t need Fauntleroy to be what anybody else previously was. They recruited her for the player that she is. And should Fauntleroy be the same hooper she was as a freshman, the Cowgirls have their point guard for the foreseeable future. Jon Walker writes for the Stillwater News Press.
That’s despite missing three months while serving his suspension. “They’ve hurt my reputation,” Baffert testified in federal court in February. “My horses should’ve made much more money. I didn’t run for 90 days, and I had to let people go.” In 2021, his stable earned $14.6 million. So far this year, it has earned $4 million. Several owners have remained loyal to Baffert, entrusting their expensive horses to him in the hopes of winning Triple Crown and Breeders’ Cup races. Horses he turned over to other trainers while suspended have come back to his barn. But Medina Spirit’s failed drug test and Baffert’s punishments generated plenty of unflattering headlines for a sport desperate to appeal to a younger audience and to show it cares for its equine athletes. WHAT ABOUT NEW ANTIDOPING RULES? Horse racing’s new antidoping rules won’t take effect until May 22 — two days after the Preakness, the second leg of the Triple Crown. Under the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act that was created by the federal government nearly three years ago, antidoping and medication rules will be uniform nationwide. Penalties will be doled out to horses and trainers by HISA’s independent enforcement agency with the goal of speedier test results, rulings and appeals.