Sydney Pennington sets Oklahoma State home-run record

A version of this story was originally published in the Sand Springs Leader.

Sydney Pennington was already making waves in the softball community long before she donned the orange and black at Oklahoma State University. 

At Charles Page High School she made it to four State Tournaments and saw the finals her junior year. She was an All-State selection in both softball and basketball, and even put on a show as the powderpuff quarterback. She ended her senior season with a .543 batting average, which would be enough to get any college recruiter’s attention. But, recruiting was a nonfactor as she had already committed to the Pokes prior to her sophomore year.

Then-OSU Head Coach Rich Wieligman saw her potential after a .433 freshman year, and her offensive firepower was only part of the equation. Her athletic build and defensive abilities at shortstop and in the pitcher’s circle made it clear she was a future D1 star. When current Head Coach Kenny Gajewski took over in 2015, reaffirming Sydney’s commitment was one of his first big tasks. 

The rest is history, and some of it will be preserved in the history books for a good long time. The former Sandite set the all-time Oklahoma State career home-run record at 36 after hitting a solo shot against Mississippi State in the Regional finals, Sunday, May 23rd. She added a 37th against Texas in the Super Regional series. One of the coolest homers she has hit was a three-run blast as a sophomore that her own father caught over the outfield fence. 

Pennington’s senior season came to a close at 2:18 a.m. Sunday, June 6th after a rain-delayed 4-2 loss to Florida State at the Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City. The Pokes put a stop to Georgia’s 5-0 postseason run in the first round of the tournament before falling 2-1 to James Madison, who also knocked off the top-ranked Oklahoma Sooners the day before. Their elimination game didn’t even start till after midnight. 

Pennington ended the season with a .270 batting average, 33 runs, 47 hits, and 36 RBI. She also hit a career-high 13 home runs to help OSU (48-12) post the third-most wins in its history and the best season under Gajewski.

Pennington said after the game on what stood out to her most this season, “I think the biggest thing is just the way that our team grew so much closer toward the end. It’s really tough to see these seniors play their last game because coach tells us all the time that we are not really going to remember the games.

“We’re going to remember these friendships and the memories and the moments that we make, and I think it’s just really important that we remember the really good moments that we had this year and just continue to stay in touch with these people. And once a Cowgirl, you’re a Cowgirl for life. I think it’s just really exciting to be able to look back and see how much we grew together throughout this season.”

Pennington went 1-for-3 in OSU’s finale that started 10 minutes before midnight.

“We were treating it like any other game,” Pennington said. “We weren’t discouraged by the time we were starting. We were probably more amped up. With our fans, we expect them to be there. They are the ones that get the crowds going and chant and get us up if we’re down and they are loyal, so I didn’t expect anything less from the crowd. They were awesome. There was a lot of orange in OKC this week. That was really exciting to see.”

Her already storied career will continue next season, as the Hotel and Restaurant Administration Major returns for one more season to add a minor to her degree and hopefully get the Pokes into their first-ever Series Finals.