STILLWATER, Okla. — Less than 24 hours after two nearly flawless games, the Stillwater High School softball team struggled to get the offense going, dropping its final two games of the Stillwater High School Softball Festival Saturday at Couch Park.

“It’s very frustrating,” Davis said. “We’re very capable of playing like we did in the first two games. We showed it in the first and last inning (against Bartlesville). I don’t know if we ran out of gas or what happened.”

The Lady Pioneers (3-2) started the day with a 1-0 loss to Ponca City in the 9 a.m. before losing 4-3 to Bartlesville, a team they beat 7-0 on Friday.

“Our defense wasn’t as solid today,” Stillwater senior Jenny Scarbrough said. “We made a lot of errors and we didn’t hit it as good as we could have. It just didn’t work out for us.”

Senior Brittney Lockett (2-1) got the start for Stillwater against Ponca City, giving up one run on six hits in six innings of work. But it was the normally powerful offense and strong defense that let her down. The Lady Pioneers only accounted for two hits, while the defense made three errors in the loss.

“I don’t want to use an excuse for us, but sometimes we’re not a morning team,” Davis said following the loss to Ponca City. “We just didn’t come ready and mentally focused to take care of business.”

Ponca City scored the game’s only run in the bottom of the fourth on a shallow fly to right that dropped for a single.

Sophomore Halley Randolph got Stillwater’s offense going in the bottom of the fourth with a one-out double before senior Anna Fowler bunted her over to third. That’s where Randolph stayed as the Lady Pioneers couldn’t come up with the game-tying hit to drive her home.

“It was like dangling a carrot in front of a horse,” Davis said. “We’re right there, but we just need to take better at-bats and get a better look at the ball.”

Stillwater’s struggles at the plate carried over to the final game of the festival against Bartlesville. After scoring a run to answer the two Bartlesville plated in the top of the first, the Lady Pioneers struggled to get anything going against Kristin Kauk, resulting in a 4-1 loss.

Meanwhile, the Lady Bruins had no trouble handling freshman Baby Phares. Fresh off a one-hitter against Sapulpa, Phares (1-1) allowed four runs on five hits and a walk before Davis pulled her for Lockett prior to the start of the third inning.

“We just had to see what the freshman could do,” Davis said. “We know we’re going to give up some runs. We just have to come back and do it ourselves.”

Stillwater finally got the bats going in the bottom of the fifth, when junior Courtney Hughes and Stokes both singled. Scarbrough then belted a two-out triple to the gap in right, scoring both runners and putting the tying run on third.

Following a walk to Randolph, set the table for Fowler. The senior crushed a line drive, but it was right at the Bartlesville shortstop to end the game.

“It was pretty heartbreaking when she caught it because it was a senior and that was the best swing she had all day,” Davis said. “She’s been on the ball and it just didn’t fall for us.”

With the festival over, the Lady Pioneers will turn their attention to Monday night’s district game at Choctaw.

“We came out of it 2-2, which is alright,” Davis said. “But Monday and Tuesday is when it really counts because those are our district games. We learned a lot this weekend and we’re ready to take care of business.”

Sandwiched between Stillwater’s two games, Adair topped Bartlesville 6-2 in the 10:30 a.m. game. Ponca City scratched across a run in the top of the seventh to beat Adair 4-3 in the game before Stillwater faced Bartlesville.