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University of Central Oklahoma Athletics

The Official Site of Central Oklahoma University Athletics Central Oklahoma Athletics
Casady Webb
Casady Webb
11
Winner Central Oklahoma UCO 43-5
4
Central Missouri UCM 34-20
Winner
Central Oklahoma UCO
43-5
11
Final
4
Central Missouri UCM
34-20
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
Central Oklahoma UCO 1 4 0 2 1 0 3 11 11 1
Central Missouri UCM 0 0 0 0 3 1 0 4 8 1

W: McLeod, Sydney (18-3) L: Clark,Shelby (5-1)

Game Recap: Softball |

Puempel, Heath Fuel UCO

EDMOND (May 2) – Hazel Puempel set the tone with a first-pitch home run, JoBi Heath drove in five runs and top-ranked Central Oklahoma battered Central Missouri 11-4 in the second round of the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association Softball Championship Thursday afternoon.

The regular-season league champion Bronchos built an 8-0 lead before UCM made a brief rally and then put the game with a four-run seventh-inning volley in moving into the winner's bracket finals.  UCO improved to 43-5 -- the fourth-most wins in school history -- and will meet Missouri Western at 3 p.m. Friday.

The Central/MWSU winner moves on to Saturday's 1:30 p.m. finals, while the loser would play an elimination game at 8 p.m. Friday.

Puempel went 4-for-5 to lead an 11-hit attack, while Heath had a two-run homer and two-run single in her 2-for-3, five-RBI outing.  Casady Webb also had two hits.

"We came out ready to play and Hazel got us off to a great start," head coach Cody White said.  "We had a little lull toward the end, but finished strong.  It was a good win against a really good team and we're happy to be moving on."

Sydney McLeod picked up the pitching win, giving up six hits and three runs in the first five innings in improving to 18-3.  Lauren Gibson threw the final two innings.

Puempel got UCO off to a terrific start, smoking a line drive over the center field fence on the first pitch of the game for her fifth home run of the season.

The Bronchos had a chance to do even more damage after that, loading the bases with no outs Bailey Thompson's single and consecutive walks to Halley Randolph and Heath, but failed to take advantage.

UCO didn't make that mistake in the second after again loading the bases with no outs, this time when Webb and Puempel had singles around a Brighton Gilbert walk.  Thompson's sacrifice fly plated the first run, with Heath adding an RBI walk, Jones a run-scoring fielder's choice and another run scoring on an error as the Bronchos went up 5-0.

The cushion grew to 7-0 in the fourth when Thompson led off with a walk, went to second on Randolph's sacrifice bunt, took third on a wild pitch and then trotted home on Heath's massive homer to left field.  The moon shot was the 40th career homer for the senior slugger and 12th of the season.

UCO made it 8-0 in the fifth on Puemple's single to center field that scored Webb, who drew a one-out walk and went to second on a groundout before scooting home on Puemple's hit.

The Jennies tried to make things interesting, scoring three runs in the bottom of the fifth and one more in the sixth to pull within 8-4, but UCO put the game away in the top of the seventh.

Three straight one-out hits by Webb, Gilbert and Puempel filled the bases and Randolph drew a walk to force across the first run before Heath ripped a two-run single to right field to make it 11-4.

Central benefitted from some outstanding defensive plays, particularly from Gilbert at shortstop.  The sophomore combined with second baseman Webb to turn a double play in the second on a fantastic relay throw, then had an acrobatic snare of a hard-hit line-drive in the third.
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