Softball Hosts OU/Worth Invitational

The No. 6/7 Oklahoma softball team (18-5-1) hosts its second spring tournament of the season this weekend when action gets underway in the OU/Worth Invitational. Joining the field with the Sooners are New Mexico, McNeese State and Centenary. OU begins action with a Friday doubleheader at 2:30 p.m., against New Mexico.

New Mexico, who was picked to finish last in the Mountain West Conference, is off to a 16-9 start. The Lobos and Sooners have one common opponent this season - North Texas - who OU took a doubleheader from and UNM beat 3-1 on Feb. 21. The Lobos are 1-4 against the Big 12 this season with the only victory coming last weekend at Texas Tech. Offensively, junior third baseman Cassie Chavez is leading UNM with five home runs and 14 RBI. In the circle the junior-transfer Ashley Perkins is undefeated at 8-0 with a 1.27 ERA.

McNeese State enters the Worth Invite with a record of 10-16. The Cowgirls and Sooners only common opponent is Sam Houston State, who took two of three at McNeese last weekend. Sam Houston State split a doubleheader with OU during the OU/Nike Classic. Offensively, McNeese is led by junior second baseman Nicole Edlund who is hitting .400 on the year. Anchoring the Cowgirl pitching staff is sophomore Jessica Denham, who is 5-6 with a 1.30 ERA.

Oklahoma finishes the tournament with a Sunday doubleheader against Centenary, who is 9-10 on the season. The Sooners and Ladies met twice during the Tiger Classic (Feb. 6-8) and OU won both contests by a combined score of 17-1. The Ladies are led by Janis Kelley, who has six home runs and 19 RBI, and Micah Rhodes who is hitting .431 on the season. Senior Cheyenne Daries lead sthe pitching staff with a 2.32 ERA and a 6-5 record.

OU/WORTH INVITATIONAL
Friday, March 12
New Mexico vs. OU - 2:30 PM (DH)

Saturday, March 13
McNeese State vs. OU - 2:30 PM (DH)

Sunday, March 14
Centenary vs. OU - 2:30 PM (DH)

VITAL STATS
Record - 18-5-1
Streaks - Lost one
USA Today/NFCA Ranking - No. 6
ESPN.com/USA Softbal Ranking - No. 7
Home Record - 4-2
Road Record - 6-1
Neutral Site Record - 8-2-1

Weekly Release | Live Stats

NOTE OF THE WEEK
While OU (.750) has the second best winning percentage in the Big 12 behind Baylor (.777), it is clear the Sooners have the most balanced attack in the Big 12. OU leads the Big 12 in every major offensive category except doubles and strikeouts. Five Sooners are ranked among the top-10 in batting average, including freshman Norrelle Dickson (.400) and Jamie Fox (.347), who rank No. 3 and No. 10 respectively. Individual Sooners lead the Big 12 in hits, home runs, RBI and total bases, while ranking in the top-five of every offensive category. As for pitching, OU's combined ERA of 1.41 is second in the conference. Individually, Nicole Denes ranks in the top-four of every pitching category except opponent batting average. For a complete list of conference statistical rankings check page seven of this release.

KEITER RETURNS
All-American Kami Keiter returned the OU pitching staff after missing the first four weeks of the season with a strained biceps muscle in her pitching (left) arm. She debuted in the Houston series (3/5-6) and made an immediate impact. Keiter threw five scoreless innings and picked up two saves as OU won two of three from the Cougars.

RECENT HISTORY
Oklahoma went 2-1 in a rare three-game non-conference series at Houston last weekend (March 5-6). OU capitalized on Houston mistakes all weekend, which was vital to their success since its offense had its first off weekend of the season.

In the Friday night game (3/5) OU tallied five early runs and held off the upstart Cougars for the 5-2 win. Norrelle Dickson charged the OU offense with two RBI from the leadoff spot. Catcher Heather Scaglione hit her seventh home run of the year in the third inning to extend OU's lead to 5-2.

During Saturday's (3/6) doubleheader OU would play a pair of 2-1 games, winning the first and dropping the second. Nicole Denes improved to 13-4 with a win in opener, while Kami Keiter picked up her second save in 2.2 innings of scoreless relief work. In the second game of the twinbill OU offense was stifled by Cougar reliever Jenny Johnson who did not allow a hit over 4.1 innings of work. OU's lone run came on a RBI single by Heather Scaglione that plated Christina Enea.

BATTERY CLAIMS BIG 12 HONORS
Oklahoma pitcher Nicole Denes and catcher Heather Scaglione claimed both Big 12 weekly honors for the week of Feb. 23-29. Denes was named pitcher of the week after going 4-2 and throwing 38.2 innings in the stacked NFCA Leadoff Classic. Denes' weekend was highlighted by her fourth shutout of the season, which came against No. 7 Michigan. Denes also recorded a career-high 11 strikeouts against then-No.10 Florida State.

Scaglione continued to be the catalyst for OU's offense. She hit .474 in six tournament game with one home run and six RBI. OU swept the Big 12 weekly awards for the first time since April 13, 1999.

STACKING UP WELL
OU has been a very balanced squad so far this season. In fact their offensive and pitching numbers are better or on par with the last three seasons. The pitching staff's efforts are especially remarkable considering that All-American Kami Keiter has only thrown five innings this season. Below is a comparison of OU's current stats with the numbers from the last three seasons:

	2001	2002	2003	2004
ERA	1.57	1.28	1.40	1.41
Runs P/Game	6.4	5.3	4.6	5.6
Batting Avg.	.338	.288	.271	.321

NOT STRANDED ALONE
As a team OU has a remarkable on-base percentage of .402. Six starters are getting on base at a .398 clip or better, including Heather Scaglione's team-high .489 rate. While the Sooners are producing an average of 5.6 runs per game, which is up from 4.57 in 2002, there are plenty of opportunities the coaching staff would like converted. OU has already left 171 runners on base and is stranding an average of 7.1 runners per game. OU has left 9 or more runners on base on seven occasions.

FOX TROT
Coach Gasso expected a lot from freshman Jamie Fox when she gave her starting duties at third base. Fox has exceeded even those expectations. Over the last 18 games the freshman from Louisiana is hitting a team-best .414 with three home runs and 16 RBI. She tied a Sooner season-high with an 11-game hitting streak that was snapped in the opener at Houston (3/5). Fox ranks in the top-10 of four Big 12 offensive categories.

SETTING THE TABLE
A common theme this season has been speedsters Norrelle Dickson, April Valdez and Kristin Vesely causing havoc on the base paths. The speedy trio normally bats No. 1, No. 2 and No. 9 respectively and they all slap hit from the left side. Their job is to set the table for the sluggers. So far this season they have been exceptional. Their combined on-base percentage is .448 with Dickson leading the pack at .473.

THE NICEST SURPRISE
Oklahoma softball beat writer Guerin Emig (Norman Transcript) called junior April Valdez the "nicest surprise" performer for the Sooner squad in a article detailing OU's quick start (Feb. 21). He definitely has a point. Valdez, who hit .191 last season after transferring from DePaul, has been dominate in the batters box and in the pitching circle. The California native is hitting .353 with a .436 on-base percentage, both of which rank in the top-5 on the team. Valdez has already put together an 11-game hitting streak, which is the best of her career and the longest on the squad this season. The offensive highlight of the season was the grand slam she hit in a 10-0 run-rule defeat of North Carolina on Feb. 21. In the circle Valdez filled a needed hole left by the early injury to Kami Keiter. On the season she is 2-0 with a 1.47 ERA, which ranks second on the team. Valdez, who was recruited as pitcher/utility player out of high school, picked up the first shutout, complete game and win of her OU career during the OU/Nike Classic.

STOPPING CRIME
In 24 games this season only five runners have attempted to steal a base against junior catcher Heather Scaglione and she's gunned down all of them. Last year 38 runners tried to the steal on the Sooner signal caller and she tossed out 14 (38 percent). Scaglione has not allowed a stolen base in 25 straight games. Coach Gasso has taken to calling her the best catcher in the country and it's clear that Scaglione's reputation is preceding her.

PROMOTING THEFT
While opponents aren't even attempting to run on OU catcher Heather Scaglione, the exact opposite is true of OU. The Sooners have swiped 44 bases on 50 attempts (88 percent) this season. Eleven Sooners have recorded a stolen base with Norrelle Dickson at the top of the pack with 13.

The Sooners work on the base paths is an added dimension from last season. In 2003 OU stole 56 bases on 88 attempts (64 percent). A safe estimate is that OU will play 37 more games, including the Big 12 Tournament, for a regular season total of 61. At their current rate OU is projected to steal 112 bases, which would tie of the school record set in 2000.

LIVING UP TO THE HYPE
Norrelle Dickson came into OU as perhaps the most hyped recruit in the program's history. The speedy leadoff hitter has definitely fit the bill. Dickson leads the squad in batting average (.400) and stolen bases (13) while ranking among the top-10 in the Big 12 in five categories (batting average, stolen bases, on-base percentage, hits and runs). Dickson, the fastest player on OU's roster, was caught stealing in the first game of the season. Since then she has swiped 13 consecutive bases over 23 games.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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