CLERMONT, Fla. – (Box Score) (Bracket) No. 2 seed Oklahoma City eliminated top seed Georgia Gwinnett by a 7-2 advantage in an elimination bracket game Tuesday morning at the NAIA Softball World Series. The 38th annual event is hosted by PFX Athletics for the second-straight year.
Up Next:
- Oklahoma City stays alive in the elimination bracket and will face the winner of No. 3 Marian (Ind.) / No. 6 Southern Oregon Wednesday at 10 a.m. EDT.
- With a 1-2 record in its first-ever World Series, Georgia Gwinnett ends its season with a 53-6 record.
Key Turning Point of the Game:
- Oklahoma City’s Brittany Perez broke the game wide open with her bat in the top of the seventh inning.
- With one out, Perez ripped a triple to the right-center gap that scored three Stars. It was Perez’s first triple of the year.
- That hit stretched the Oklahoma City lead to 6-2.
Clutch Performer
- The Oklahoma City team defense backed up starting pitcher Jaden Shores all day.
- One example of this involved third baseman Laci Joyner. She made a diving stab to her left, fielded it cleanly, and threw over to first to end the game.
- Coming into the game, the team was No. 10 in the NAIA in fielding percentage (.967).
Game Notes:
- Oklahoma City’s Jaden Shores improved to 16-2 in the circle with her complete-game, 127-pitch effort. She allowed two runs on six hits. She struck out four and walked six.
- The two teams combined for 12 walks. Shores gave up a season-high six free passes. Georgia Gwinnett hurler Taylor Hansis also gave up six.
- Brittany Perez and Jaci Smith paced the Stars offense with two hits each. Perez added two runs scored.
- Sydney Willhite went 2-for-3 at the plate for the Grizzlies. In three World Series games, Willhite had four hits and three RBI.
- In its NAIA-record 31st World Series event, Oklahoma City now moves to 127-46.
- Georgia Gwinnett finishes its first World Series with a 1-2 record.
- There have been six home runs hit by five different players in this World Series.
- The team scoring first through 13 games now is 9-4.
- The home team stands 5-8.
- The higher seeds now hold a 7-6 record thus far in the World Series.
