‘We were out of the running lane’: Patty Gasso explains controversial out call in Oklahoma’s loss to Louisiana
The Oklahoma Sooners’ loss to the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns on Sunday featured several contentious moments. But one of these moments stood out above the rest.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, the Sooners trailed 3-2. With two outs, freshman Ella Parker batted and hit a groundball. Parker was called out at first base, despite the fact that it appeared he had to jump off the bag to collect the throw.
A thorough review found she was still out, despite the fact that the first baseman clearly came off the bag to make the play. If she had been declared safe, the Sooners would have scored one or two runs to take the lead.
Patty Gasso explained after the game why the call counted as an out.
“We were out of the running lane,” Gasso explained. “The runner caused interference. That is why the encounter occurred. If she had taken one more step in the running lane, she would have been safe. It was an insane game like that. There’s a lot of debate.”
She was then asked about having a safety bag, which is an extra bag on the foul side of the first base line that runners can pass through to avoid contact with the first baseman. Gasso stated that she is not an advocate for the safety bag.
That was just one of many plays that didn’t go Oklahoma’s way, contributing to the loss.