Jordy Bahl pitches gem as OU softball shuts out Baylor, avenges lone loss of season

Top-ranked Sooners rout No. 16 Baylor in series opener

Jordy Bahl had 10 strikeouts and allowed just three hits in 5 2/3 innings pitched Friday as top-ranked Oklahoma avenged its lone loss of the season with a 7-0 win against No. 16 Baylor at Getterman Stadium in Waco, Texas.

Bahl improved to 13-1 on the season. Nicole May pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings of relief as the Sooners extended their winning streak to 32 games.

The Sooners (40-1, 10-0 Big 12) had 11 hits with two each from Alyssa Brito, Grace Lyons and Cydney Sanders.

Shaylon Govan had two hits for the Bears (34-10, 4-5).

The Sooners and Bears will wrap up the series with a doubleheader, starting at 2 p.m. Saturday.

More: OU softball set for rematch vs. Baylor with 'idea of never letting anybody beat us twice'

Oklahoma State softball falls short at Texas

Reese Atwood singled home Ashton Maloney in the bottom of the eighth inning to lift seventh-ranked Texas to a 1-0 win against No. 3 Oklahoma State in rain-delayed series opener Friday at McCombs Field in Austin, Texas.

Lexi Kilfoyl dropped to 12-3 on the season, but allowed just one run and four hits in 7 2/3 innings for the Cowgirls (39-6, 8-2 Big 12).

Atwood had two hits for the Longhorns (37-9-1, 9-4).

The series will conclude with a doubleheader starting at noon Saturday.

NFL suspends 5 players for violating gambling policy

Three NFL players were suspended indefinitely Friday for betting on NFL games in the 2022 season, while two other players, including the 12th overall draft pick a year ago, received six-game suspensions for betting on non-NFL games at a league facility.

Detroit Lions wide receiver Quintez Cephus, Lions safety C.J. Moore and Washington Commanders defensive end Shaka Toney are sidelined for the entire 2023 season and may petition for reinstatement afterward.

Lions wide receivers Stanley Berryhill and Jameson Williams each received a six-game suspension, though they will be able to participate in all offseason and preseason activities, including preseason games. Their suspensions will start at the final roster cutdown.

The NFL said that a “league review uncovered no evidence indicating any inside information was used or that any game was compromised in any way.”

Gambling incidents have been relatively rare for the NFL. Most recently, wide receiver Calvin Ridley was suspended for the entire 2022 season for gambling on NFL games; he was later traded from Atlanta to Jacksonville and was reinstated. In November 2019, Arizona Cardinals cornerback Josh Shaw was suspended for gambling on an NFL game; he has not played in the league since.

The Lions immediately released Cephus, who caught 37 passes in three seasons, and Moore, who started one game in four years.

NCAA rules panel approves keeping clock running on 1st downs

The NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel has approved rules changes that are expected to reduce the number of plays in football games, notably one that will keep the clock running when a team makes a first down except in the last two minutes of a half.

The panel on Thursday approved recommendations forwarded last month by the Football Rules Committee. Since 1968, the clock had stopped on a first down until the referee gave the ready-for-play signal.

The new clock rule affects only Divisions I and II. The Division III Management Council requested the proposal be referred back to the Football Rules Committee due to opposition within its division.

Two other changes were approved. Penalties accepted at the end of the first and third quarters will now be enforced at the start of the following quarter rather than having an untimed down. Also, back-to-back timeouts during the same dead-ball period are no longer allowed.

Extra points

COLLEGE TENNIS: No. 4-seed Oklahoma battled back to take the 4-3 victory over No. 5-seed Baylor in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 men's tennis championships on Friday afternoon. The Sooners will face top-seeded Texas at noon Saturday in Lawrence, Kan.

OKC DODGERS: In a script similar to the night before, the Oklahoma City Dodgers built a sizable lead through the first half of the game before having to fend off the Albuquerque Isotopes in a tight win, 8-6, Thursday afternoon at Rio Grande Credit Union Field at Isotopes Park. The Dodgers (13-5) scored three runs in first inning, with each of the game’s first four batters reaching base, capped with a bases-clearing double by Hunter Feduccia. OKC led, 3-2, in the fifth inning before adding a run on a sacrifice fly to deep right-center field, as Drew Avans scored all the way from second base on the play. In the sixth inning, Michael Reed and Jahmai Jones hit back-to-back homers to give the Dodgers their biggest lead yet at 7-2. The Dodgers were in front, 8-5, entering the bottom of the ninth inning, and Albuquerque (10-8) proceeded to load the bases with none out. Following a strikeout, a RBI single trimmed the Dodgers’ lead to two runs. Dodgers reliever Adam Kolarek then induced a ground ball double play to end the game.

—Staff and wire reports

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OU softball: Jordy Bahl, Sooners beat Baylor, avenge lone loss of year