"I had never hit anyone in the face before, so it was extremely devastating to me," Thoke said. "I knew I had to regroup. I had just had to go to the dugout and let out my frustration and anger over what I did to her."

Thoke settled down and pitched out of the inning. The next Oklahoma batter attempted a suicide squeeze, but senior third baseman Crystal Springer managed to run down the ball and toss it to McKendry for the force at home. Thoke then struck out Ring to end it.

Harvard swung their bats aggressively against Big 12 pitcher Lana Moran, but the Crimson managed just two hits. Springer's bunt single to lead off the fourth and McKendry's double deep off of the left-center fence were the only hits Harvard could manage.

Thoke managed to fool a number of the Sooner batters throughout the night. She struck out six and walked just two, but Oklahoma's skilled hitters managed to touch her up for seven runs, including two home runs.

Although the NCAA opener was a tough game for the Crimson, Northwestern--the fourth-place team in the Big Ten--poses much less of a challenge than the No. 3 Sooners. Harvard will attempt to avoid elimination tomorrow afternoon.