NORMAN — OU softball star freshman catcher Kendall Wells exited Game 3 of the NCAA Super Regional against Mississippi State in the third inning after a pitch struck her in the jaw before returning in the top of the fourth inning.
Wells stumbled for a brief moment out of the box before walking off the field. It appears she was taken to the locker room before reappearing in the dugout holding a bag of ice to her face and finally, reentering the game.
“It rattled a lot of us here,” Sooners coach Patty Gasso told ESPN. “Unfortunately, it’s part of the game. … We’ve got to not let this stuff affect us.”
Tia Milloy was inserted as a pinch-runner in place of Wells.
The Sooners trail Mississippi State 4-0 in the fourth.
The winner earns a spot in the Women’s College World Series.
Colton Sulley covers the Oklahoma Sooners for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Colton? He can be reached at csulley@oklahoman.com or on X/Twitter at @colton_sulley. Support Colton’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Kendall Wells injury update: OU softball catcher hit in face by pitch