OU softball is a cheat code
OU softball is a cheat code
The top-ranked Sooners received their biggest test of the season this past weekend, yet still swept their Bedlam rivals just before postseason play begins.
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🥎 OU’s dominance continues
NORMAN, Okla. — The Big 12 softball crown won’t be leaving Norman anytime soon.
Oklahoma hosted Oklahoma State at Marita Hynes Field this past weekend for a high-stakes Bedlam series. The winner was guaranteed the outright Big 12 regular-season championship, and the top-ranked Sooners wouldn’t be denied.
Jordy Bahl was spectacular in her Bedlam debut, striking out six, allowing four hits and just one run in a complete-game effort on Thursday.
Hope Trautwein and Bahl then combined to blank Oklahoma State on Friday, marking OU’s first shutout Bedlam win since 2019.
The Cowgirls looked like they might take Saturday’s series finale. A Jocelyn Alo go-ahead grand slam in the bottom of the fifth dashed those hopes.
By no means was the weekend as easy as the Sooners’ sweep indicates. The Cowgirls had plenty of fight in them, despite losses of 7-1 on Thursday, 6-0 on Friday and 5-3 on Sunday.
OU was simply better.
“I’m just really proud of this team,” said OU coach Patty Gasso following Friday night’s championship-clinching win. “This is hard to do, I think you all know that. We don't talk too much about it, but it's a grind. To be able to continue this kind of run has been phenomenal, and I’m really proud of this program. Our coaches have been outstanding, support staff through the roof.
“It's just an all-in buy-in by everybody and here we are right now. Championship.”
The run Gasso is referencing is the now 10 consecutive Big 12 regular seasons crowns OU has claimed.
And with postseason play beginning this weekend in Oklahoma City for the Big 12 tournament, here is what the top-ranked Sooners have accomplished so far as they start preparing for another national-title run:
OU won 48 of its 49 regular-season games, including 35 of those games by mercy rule and winning 17 of 18 in conference.
The Sooners went a perfect 14-0 at home, 15-1 on the road and 19-0 on neutral sites.
The Sooners own wins over the following teams, ranked in the top 30 of the RPI: No. 5 UCLA, No. 8 Oklahoma State three times, No. 13 Tennessee, No. 14 Texas twice, No. 20 Kentucky and No. 28 Mississippi State.
OU ranks No. 1 nationally in team batting average (.378), home runs per game (2.57), earned runs average (0.71), slugging percentage (.758) and on-base percentage (.487).
Pretty, pretty, pretty good.
Next, OU will play the winner of No. 4 Iowa State and No. 5 Baylor (12 p.m. on Thursday) in the Big 12 tournament semifinals. OU's game is set for a 1 p.m. CT first pitch on Friday.
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The Eyes on Oklahoma returns tomorrow with special guest national college football writer Shehan Jeyarajah of CBS Sports. With spring football practices out of the way and the transfer portal deadline past us, Jeyarajah joins the program once again to help me “fantasy draft” 2022 Big 12 Player of the Year candidates.
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🏟 Around campus
⚾️ OU takes series at TCU: Oklahoma baseball (29-17, 11-7 Big 12) padded its resume with a road series win against TCU over the weekend. The Sooners dropped Friday’s opener 9-7 before winning 11-7 on Saturday and 5-1 on Sunday. Next, OU hosts West Virginia in Norman this coming weekend for OU’s final three regular-season home games.
🏌️♀️ OU women begin NCAAs: The Sooners women’s golf team begins NCAA regional action in Albuquerque today. The Sooners were selected as the No. 9 seed in their regional. OU will play 54 holes over three days, starting with 18 today at the University of New Mexico’s par-72, 6,414-yard Championship Course. The top-four teams among the 12 in Albuquerque will advance to the NCAA championships in Scottsdale, Arizona, later this month. [Click here for live stats]
🎾 OU women advance to Round of 16: The second-ranked Sooners tennis team will compete in the NCAA Tournament’s Round of 16 for the first time in program history. OU clinched its spot with a 4-3 win over No. 17 Arizona State on Saturday. The Sooners’ historic postseason run continues when they host No. 15 Stanford next weekend in Norman.
📚 Read options
Allen Kenney of SB Nation’s Crimson and Cream Machine assesses the NCAA’s NIL issues (via Crimson and Cream Machine)
CBS Sports has OU football at No.4 in its post-spring power rankings (via SoonersWire)
Why Tyler Venables stayed with Clemson football instead of joining dad at Oklahoma (via Greenville News)
Opinion: OU softball's regular-season finale good for everybody (via Oklahoma Columnist by Clay Horning)