Oklahoma softball ready for championship season
Eleven straight Big 12 regular season softball championships for Oklahoma, but everyone in the program knows the work isn’t done yet.
The Sooners clinched No. 11 by finishing off a three-game sweep of visiting Kansas with an 8-2 victory Sunday afternoon in the final home game of the regular season.
The win puts OU at 45-1 overall, 15-0 in the Big 12, and currently riding a 37-game winning streak heading into the last weekend of the regular season.
“It was exciting. All day you could feel the energy,” head coach Patty Gasso said. “We knew what was at stake. The team played hard, not just for the title, but more for the seniors. Seniors want to walk off the field with a win and playing well. There are just so many things going on around us. There are a lot of distractions, and they did a great job of staying focused.”
Super senior Alex Storako was one of four who were honored this weekend and delivered once again. The Michigan transfer went 5.1 innings pitched, allowing four hits, one earned run with zero walks and six strikeouts to improve to 15-0.
Also honored were Grace Lyons, Grace Green and Haley Lee, who have come up big time and time again this season.
It was the juniors that made sure the seniors had one more happy memory at Marita Hynes Field. Tiare Jennings hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the second inning. Jayda Coleman went 2-for-3 with a double, two runs scored and drove in two runs to pace the offensive effort.
That has been more than enough for this pitching staff. The one earned run Sunday was the first earned run allowed in conference play since April 2 vs. Texas. OU went eight straight conference games in April without giving up a run.
Sophomore star Jordy Bahl came in for the final 1.2 innings, striking out three. Bahl is 14-1 this season with 127 strikeouts and a 1.10 ERA.
Nicole May, who had another dominant outing Saturday vs. KU, is 14-0 with a 0.43 ERA with 109 strikeouts this season.
Gasso came into the season preaching to her team that they were going to lose games this year. It happened once at Baylor in the Waco Tournament more than two months ago. Oklahoma softball is doing their best to never let it happen again.
“Now I know they don’t want to feel that again,” Gasso said. “That’s part of the motivation is not feeling that again. There is just a big pride in this team. They’re very athletic. They know they’re good. I think they love to win.
“When we practice, we play to win. When we practice, we set up situations where someone is winning and losing. It’s constant. They’re always hungry for the win. They don’t like the idea of someone coming in and being better than them. It’s very prideful.”
OU is outscoring opponents 385-37 with 88 home runs. The OU pitching staff has a 0.80 team ERA with 353 strikeouts and a nation-best 28 shutouts.
The Sooners close out the regular season on the road. OU begins at Tulsa on Tuesday (5 p.m.) in a make-up for a game postponed last Wednesday. Then comes the big one. Bedlam in Stillwater at Oklahoma State next Friday-Sunday.
A conference title isn’t on the line for Oklahoma softball, but there is a whole lot of pride at stake. And as Gasso has said repeatedly, it’s about playing your best in May and June. It’s about getting better with each week. May is here. It’s just about that championship time.
“We’re not satisfied. We’re going in next weekend, and we’re getting after it,” Gasso said.
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