March 3, 2006

By Rich Tortorelli, OCU Sports Information

NORMAN, Okla. - Oklahoma City University's Lelys Gomez' three-run home run keyed a five-run inning to lead the Stars to a 6-5 win over University of Oklahoma on Thursday at the OU Softball Complex.

Gomez, a 5-foot-3 senior shortstop from Cabudare Estado Lara, Venezuela, smacked the ball over the right-field wall in the fourth inning to give OCU a 6-2 lead.
OCU's Rachel Cope doubled to left center to bring Brittani Ellis home and tie the score 2-2. With two out, Beasley drove in a run with a single to right. With Lacey Neuman and Beasley on and two out, Gomez hit her home run.

"We had things going our way, and she had a big-time hit," OCU coach Phil McSpadden said of Gomez. "Lelys had a clutch hit, but a lot of girls hit well. The girls are proud of how they played."

The Stars beat OU for the first time since 1999. OU had a six-game winning streak against OCU.

McSpadden said OCU matched up well with OU recently, but this year, the pitching did, too. Dasha Shembereva improved to 7-0 and rung her season strikeout total to 64.

"She did her job," McSpadden said of Shembereva. "She put herself in some situations that got her in trouble. She apologized, but all you can do is say thanks for allowing us to compete tonight. We stayed in the game, but it wasn't all Dasha.

"We've got the talent to win another national title. I hope they handle success well. We can have a special season here as long as we keep working hard."

The Stars, ranked third in NAIA, improved to 8-0 this season. OU entered the game ranked 10th in the ESPN.com/USA Softball and USA Today/NFCA NCAA Division I rankings with a win over No. 22 Oregon. The Sooners fell to 13-4-1.

Cope and Ursula Lundberg hit back-to-back doubles to get the Stars' first run in the second.

Beasley, a senior left fielder from Norman, Okla., went 3-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored. Cope, a junior infielder from Jenks, Okla., was 3-for-4 with two runs scored and an RBI.

"I was very proud of how we swung the bats," McSpadden said. "We faced better pitching than we have. We were still putting the ball in play and hitting the ball with authority. We were making good contact against pretty good pitching."

OU mounted a seventh-inning rally. Norelle Dickson hit a sacrifice fly to drive in a run. OU's three-hole hitter Kristin Vesely grounded out to the pitcher's mound for two outs. Samantha Ricketts hit a run-scoring double to right on a 1-2 count to cut OCU's lead to 6-5. Susan Ogden fell behind 0-2 and flied out to center field to end the game.

The Stars play next in the Central Oklahoma Classic at Wildhorse Park in Mustang, Okla. OCU plays Tarleton State (Texas) at 3 p.m. and Pittsburg State (Kan.) at 5:30 p.m.