It was a tight battle between Oklahoma City (12-11) and Carolina (8-15) through the first seven frames until the Spark offense overpowered the Blaze in the eighth inning for a 12-4 victory.
Maya Brady forced extras with her second home run of the game, a solo home run to lead off the seventh inning, tying the score at 4-4. With the blast, Brady broke the Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL) single-season home run record and reached double-digit HRs.
Morgan Zerkle set the mark last year during the inaugural season with nine homers. Brady was 3-for-5 on the day at the plate with a double and a home run back in the fourth. That long ball earlier in the game was contagious, and the OKC lineup hit three in a row—first Brady, then Sydney Romero, and Delanie Wisz.
The floodgates opened for OKC’s offense, which put up eight runs in the eighth. In that inning alone, Haley Lee, Sydney McKinney, Romero, Wisz, Amari Harper, and Sydney Sherrhill all recorded RBIs.
The victory keeps the Spark’s playoff hopes alive; this was the first of two (possibly three) critical games the Spark must win to earn the last spot remaining in the postseason.
OKC will face Carolina again on Sunday, July 19, at 12 p.m. ET on ESPN.
Savanna Collins is the Senior Reporter for the AUSL. You can follow her on Instagram @savvyco.
