photo by: Kahner Sampson/Special to the Journal-World

Kansas pitcher Blakely Barber (left) and catcher Bailey Amezcua look to the dugout during the Jayhawks' game against Utah on Sunday, March 22, 2026, at Arrocha Ballpark in Lawrence.

Three weekends of conference play have now yielded three series wins for the Kansas softball team, which took two out of three games against BYU at Miller Park in Provo, Utah.

After losing on a walk-off home run on Friday night, the Jayhawks were able to regroup and win the decisive third game, something they have done in each of their Big 12 series. This time, they did it by a score of 10-3 on Saturday.

KU is now 25-10 on the season and 6-3 in Big 12 play with a chance to bring its momentum back home to Arrocha Ballpark as it hosts Arizona State (28-9, 3-6 Big 12) for a three-game series beginning on Thursday at 5 p.m.

The Jayhawks set the tone early against the Cougars with a four-run second inning in Thursday night’s opener in Provo. Catcher Bailey Amezcua’s two-RBI single resulted in a third run due to a fielding error in left field, and then Presley Limbaugh singled at the top of the order to score Amezcua. While freshman pitcher Blakely Barber continued to limit the BYU lineup, KU tacked on two additional runs thanks to a home run by Hailey Cripe and a throwing error that allowed pinch runner Madi Hays to score.

Barber gave way to Lizzy Ludwig after issuing a pair of walks in the bottom of the fifth inning, and BYU scored its first run on a play that ended the inning as Tristen Turlington stole home but Danica Acosta was caught stealing. KU’s sixth inning went awry when a stolen base got overturned upon replay review, and Bre Townsend singled in a run for BYU to make it 6-2.

The Cougars applied some pressure in the seventh with three straight hits off Ludwig, and they got the tying run to second base with two outs, but Lila Partridge caught Rita Tavita looking on a full count to preserve the 6-4 win.

BYU was, however, able to muster some late-game heroics the following night.

KU’s Kaelee Washington induced two early groundouts in the first inning but then threw eight straight balls and allowed a three-run home run to Hailey Morrow. BYU pitcher Hailey Shuler, who threw a complete game, kept the Jayhawks at bay for a while, aided by two double plays, but KU got an unearned run to make it 3-1 in the fourth inning.

Partridge turned in another strong outing in the circle for the Jayhawks, and in the sixth inning Limbaugh singled and Ella Boyer homered to left to tie the game.

Partridge was able to get out of a jam in the bottom of the sixth with runners on second and third, and after a scoreless inning for the KU offense she managed to get the first two outs of the seventh, but Acosta homered on a 2-0 pitch to give the Cougars a 4-3 win.

The decisive game on Saturday went far more cleanly for the Jayhawks. They went down a run early, but Boyer and Cripe homered in the third, as did Campbell Bagshaw in the fourth. Limbaugh drove in one run in the fourth, then another in a five-run sixth inning that put the game out of reach. Chloe Barber took the win for KU with three runs allowed in 5 1/3 innings.

KU now has as many league wins through nine games as it did through 24 last season.