Softball Faces Elite Field At Kia Klassic

FULLERTON, Calif. -- The No. 7/9 Oklahoma softball will face its toughest competition of the season in the Kia Klassic, which begins Thursday and runs through Sunday at Cal-State Fullerton. The tournament field features nine teams ranked in the current ESPN.com/USA Softball Top-25 Poll, including four squads in the top-10. The tournament is the final non-conference tune-up before the Big 12 season begins.

The first tie in OU softball history came this season during the champinship game of the Tiger Classic (Baton Rouge, La.) when OU and Illinois were deadlocked at 2-2 after seven innings. The game was called due to the travel plans of both squads. OU will look to avenge the blemish against the 14-5-1 Illini at 11 a.m. (CST), Thursday. Illinois has been riding the arm of ace of Amanda Fortune (10-2, 0.98 ERA) and consistent team offense, which is hitting .297. OU defeated Illinois 7-0 in the opening game of the Tiger Classic.

The Sooners will have a couple hours off before facing perennial powerhouse Fresno State (20-8). The 15th-ranked Bulldogs are led by ace Jamie Southern who has an astonishing ERA of 0.18. Southern is 13-3 on the season with two of those losses coming last week against San Diego State and then-No. 1 UCLA. While the Bulldog pitching staff is proving to be one of the best in the country (1.10 combined ERA), their offense is yet to hit its stride. As a team they are hitting .269 with slugger Christina Clark (.411, 9 home runs) leading the charge.

Oklahoma begins Friday pool play with the daunting challenge of the nation's only remaining undefeated team, Arizona (28-0). The No. 1 Wildcats have outscored opponents 220 to 26 this season and have won 21 games by five or more runs. U-of-A has six regulars batting above .300 including Caitlin Lowe (.530) and Autumn Champion (,526). As a team they are hitting .361, while their pitching staff is anchored by Alicia Hollowell, who has an ERA of 0.82. Hollowell is 17-0 and has struck out 225 batters in 110 innings.

Both of OU's Thursday games have been picked up by local radio station KBPK in Fullerton. Fans across the country can access the free radio broadcast through Soonersports.com. These are not official OU Athletics Department broadcasts but an agreement was reached so that Sooner softball fans could share in the local radio broadcast online.

The only games currently scheduled for broadcast are the contests with Illinois and Fresno State, but any games that the Sooners play on the main field during championship bracket play will also be broadcast. The game with No. 1 Arizona is not scheduled to be broadcast. Live stats will also be available for all games played on the main field, including the contests with Illinois and Fresno State. Links for the live stats and radio broadcasts are provided below.

THIS WEEK
Tuesday, March 16
OU 4, San Diego State 1

KIA KLASSIC
Thursday, March 18
OU vs. Illinois - 11 AM (CST)
OU vs. No. 15 Fresno State - 5 PM

Friday, March 19
OU vs. No. 2 Fresno State - 11 AM
Championship Play - 3, 5 PM

Saturday, March 20
Championship Play - TBA

Sunday, March 21
Championship Play - TBA
All times Central Standard.

VITAL STATS
Record - 24-6-1
Streaks - Won four
USA Today/NFCA Ranking - No. 7
ESPN.com/USA Softbal Ranking - No. 9
Home Record - 9-3
Road Record - 7-1
Neutral Site Record - 8-2-1

KBPK Radio Broadcast | Live Stats | Weekly Release

RECENT HISTORY
Oklahoma opened its week in California with a 4-1 win at San Diego State, Tuesday (3/16) afternoon. Junior ace Kami Keiter picked up her second win of the season and extended her streak of innings without allowing an earned run to 13. Keiter appears to be nearing mid-season form after sitting out the first month of the season with a strained biceps.
Junior April Valdez and San Diego County native Mariee Mena provided all the offense OU needed with two and one RBI, respetively. Freshman Norrelle Dickson moved into sole possession of eighth place on the OU single-season stolen base list.

DICKSON CLAIMS BIG 12 HONOR
Freshman Norrelle Dickson was named Big 12 Player of the Week on March 16 after hitting .632 during the OU/Worth Invitational. Dickson reached base 17 times in 24 plate appearances while also driving in five runs, scoring five runs and stealing four bases. Dickson upped her season average from .400 to .444 with the weekend outburst.

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 .450 with Dickson leading the pack at .517.

AN EYE ON THE RECORD BOOK
One Sooner - Norrelle Dickson - has already moved into the top-10 for stolen bases in a single season, while a few others are closing in a couple different categories. Dickson is eighth on the OU single season list with 18 stolen bases this season. Below is a list of others closing in on the OU single season top-10:

Stolen Bases
1. 46 - Angie Holwell,, 1997
6. 23 - Erin Evans, 2000
7. 22 - LaKisha Washington, 2000
8. 18 - Norrelle Dickson, 2004

Base on Balls
1. 41 - Casey Dickson, 1997
9. 27 - Kelli Braitsch, 2001
    27 - Heather Scaglione, 2003
C. 18 - Christina Enea, 2004
    16 - Norrelle Dickson, 2004
    16 - Heather Scaglione, 2004

Strikeouts (Pitching)
1. 356 - Jill Most, 1996
9. 166 - Cheryl Jacobs, 1980
10. 157 - Lana Moran, 1998
C. 121 - Nicole Denes, 2004

RARE DISPLAY OF POWER
Remarkably Norrelle Dickson's first 33 hits of the season were all singles. Dickson broke out of her single routine with an extremely rare sight, an inside the park home run to lead off the back end of a doubleheader against New Mexico (3/12). Of her 46 hits this season, Dickson has just two extra base hits, the other being a double.

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 (.447) and stolen bases (18) while ranking among the top-10 in the Big 12 in five categories (batting average, stolen bases, on-base percentage, hits and runs). She leads the Big 12 in hits, batting average and on-base percentage. Dickson, the fastest player on OU's roster, was caught stealing in the first game of the season. Since then she has swiped 18 consecutive bases over 30 games.

KEITER RETURNS
All-American Kami Keiter returned to 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. She extended that streak to 11 scoreless innings before giving up two earned runs in a loss to McNeese State. Keiter is 2-1 on the season with two save and a 0.50 ERA.

NOT STRANDED ALONE
As a team OU has a remarkable on-base percentage of .400. Five starters are getting on base at a .397 clip or beter. While the Sooners are producing an average of 5.9 runs per game, which is up from 4.57 in 2002, there are still plenty of opportunities the coaching staff would like converted. OU has already left 219 runners on base and is stranding an average of 7.1 runners per game. OU has left nine or more runners on base on nine occasions.

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 .326 with a .397 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 31 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 32 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 62 bases on 71 attempts (90 percent) this season. Twelve Sooners have recorded a stolen base with Norrelle Dickson at the top of the pack with 18.

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 30 more games, including the Big 12 Tournament, for a regular season total of 61. At their current rate OU is projected to steal 122 bases, which would break the school record of 112 set in 2000.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

Softball Faces Elite Field At Kia Klassic

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