Senior Night, Then Big 12 Tourney For Softball

NORMAN, Okla. -- The No. 21 Oklahoma softball team (37-17-1) concludes the regular season with a rematch against Tulsa (43-17) on Tuesday night at the OU Softball Complex.

The OU Softball program will honor Nicki Holt, Katie Overton and April Valdez who will be playing in their final home game at Marita Hynes Field. First pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m. with the Senior Night ceremonies preceding the game. Fans are encouraged to arrive early and take part in the festivities.

Tulsa took the first meeting from the Sooners on April 5 by a score of 2-0. TU starter Maren Genow allowed just three hits in route to the dominant shutout performance. All of the Golden Hurricane offense was provided by Katie Torres, who had an RBI double and solo home run in the contest.

The Sooners have dominated the all-time series with the Golden Hurricane despite a recent skid. OU won the first 24 meetings from 1994-2003, but lost on Senior Day last season to give TU its first win in the series. The series is swung in OU's favor 24-2 despite Tulsa's two-game win streak.

Genow has anchored the TU staff (1.27 team ERA) with a 20-3 record and 1.37 ERA. The offensive load has fallen on Torres shoulders, who leads the team with 14 home runs and 38 RBI. Torres has help in senior Heather Hiar (.356, 18 RBI) and sophomore Kelly Miller (.325, 28 RBI) who have recently garnered WAC Player of the Week honors.

TU is 43-17 and has hopes of reaching the NCAA postseason for the first time. The Golden Hurricane is within reach of the school record of 48 wins, which they set in 2002.

The game will be broadcast on local radio station KREF (1400 AM) with Brian Brinkley pulling the one-man show. As usual fans can log into SoonerSports.com's O-Zone and watch a live video feed of the game. Live stats will also be provided on OU's official athletics web site.

SENIOR DAY
Tuesday, May 11
Tulsa at Oklahoma - 7 PM

BIG 12 TOURNAMENT
Don E. Porter Hall of Fame Stadium
Oklahoma City, Okla.
Thursday, May 13
Oklahoma (# 5) vs. Baylor (# 4) - 10 AM

Live Stats | OU Weekly Release

Vital Stats
Record
- 37-17-1
Streaks - Lost One
USA Today/NFCA Ranking - No. 21
ESPN.com/USA Softball Ranking - No. 20
Big 12 Record - 11-7
Home Record - 21-3
Road Record - 6-9
Non-Conference Record - 26-10-1
Midwest Region Record - 17-10
Out of Region Record - 20-7-1

LOOK AHEAD TO THE BIG 12 TOURNEY
The Oklahoma Sooners will open the Big 12 Tournament as the No. 5 seed and will face No. 4-seed Baylor at 10 a.m. on Thursday at the Don E. Porter ASA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City. Play begins in the conference tourney on Wednesday with the survivor's of the elimination games facing the top two seeds, Nebraska (1) and Texas A&M (2).

BIG 12 TOURNAMENT CENTRAL

The seeding is based solely on regular season conference finish. OU went 11-7 and was swept at Baylor in a doubleheader on March 29. OU had won 21 straight games against the Bears before the twin bill losses. OU still leads the all-time series 28-5.

OU has an all-time Big 12 Tournament record of 24-11, which is the best mark in the conference. The Sooners are 2-0 against Baylor in the tournament. OU will face either Texas (No. 8), Iowa State (No. 9) or Nebraska (No. 1) in its second tourney game.

BIG 12 TOURNAMENT TICKET INFO.
Tickets can be ordered by contacting the All Sports Association (405) 236-5000. The costs are listed below:

All Session - General Admission ($50.00 )

Games 1-10 - General Admission ($8 Adult; $5 Senior Citizens & Children 12 and under)

Games 11-Championship - General Admission ($10 Adult; $7 Senior Citizens & Children)

RELATED RECAPS

BAYLOR 3, OU 1 (10 INNINGS)
GAME 1 - MARCH 29, 2004
Baylor late inning heroics did in the Sooners in a 3-1, 10-inning loss to the Bears on Monday, March 29. Over a span of 11 days, Keiter took the loss in four games that were decided in the opponents final at bat. Three of those were due to defensive lapses on OU's part. April Valdez, who had just four errors at the time, booted a grounder in the 3-4 hole that allowed Baylor to tie the game at 1-1 in the seventh inning of the first game of the doubleheader. A walk-off two-run home run by Kelly Osburn clinched it for Baylor in the 10th inning. Offensively, the lone Sooner bright spots were Scaglione (3-for-3), who hit her 11th home run, and Kristin Vesely (2-for-4).

BAYLOR 4, OU 1
GAME 2 - MARCH 29, 2004
The Sooners couldn't salvage a win in the night cap of the twin bill against Baylor. OU's offense could only muster one run as the Bears took the sweep with a 4-1 win. The lone Sooner run was courtesy of April Valdez (1-for-3, 1 RBI). Valdez (2-1) took the loss after allowing all four Baylor runs in her first career Big 12 start.

OU 1, BAYLOR 0
2003 BIG 12 TOURNAMENT - MAY 3, 2003
A first inning RBI single by Kelli Braistch scored Erin Evans and gave OU the decisive 1-0 lead. Kami Keiter tossed a two-hit shutout and continued her dominance of the Big 12 field in the conference tourney. Through three games Keiter had allowed one run in 22.0 innings of work. Baylor became the first No. 10 seed in the history of the Big 12 to win two games in the conference tourney.

RECENT HISTORY
The Oklahoma Sooners started their most recent three-game stretch with an impressive victory over Bedlam rival Oklahoma State. Long balls by Jamie Fox and Heather Scaglione powered the Sooners to the 5-1 win and season sweep of the Pokes. The Bedlam showdown drew a OU Softball Complex record crowd of 1,623. The Sooner have won 18 of the last 19 contests with their in-state rival.

With momentum in hand from the Bedlam sweep the Sooners headed to Iowa State to take on the ninth-place Cyclones. Friday's opener went according to plan with OU winning 6-1. Jamie Fox and Jessica Leslie each had two RBI as the Sooners cruised. Kami Keiter improved to 14-9, marking the first time during her junior season that she was five games above .500.

OU's offense came out flat in its final regular season Big 12 game. A first inning solo home run by Scaglione was all the Sooners could force across the plate. Iowa State countered with two runs and sent the Sooners into a 10-day break on a sore note.

HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE
The finale of the 2004 Bedlam Series, presented by Bank of Oklahoma and your Okahoma Ford Dealers, drew an OU Softball Complex record crowd of 1,623. The crowd broke the prior mark of 1,480 set against Texas in the 2002 NCAA Regionals (May 18). Below is a list of the top-10 crowds in the history of the OU Softball Complex:

1. 1,623	Oklahoma State	4/28/04
2. 1,480	Texas	5/18/02
3. 1,476	Texas	4/14/02
4. 1,433	Texas A&M	5/19/02
5. 1,432	Washington	5/20/01
6. 1,365	Oklahoma State	4/2/03
7. 1,357	Washington	5/19/01
8. 1,327	North Carolina	5/18/01
9. 1,320	Oklahoma State	4/19/00
10. 1,304	Oklahoma State	4/24/02

MAKING A CASE
Heather Scaglione has established herself as a favorite for the Big 12 Player of the Year award. In the conference ranks for the entire season, she leads the Big 12 in hits (65, tied with Norrelle Dickson), batting average (.417), home runs (15), RBI (45), total bases (120), on-base percentage (.531) and slugging percentage (.769), while she also ranks second in walks (38), third in runs scored (38) and fifth in doubles (10). She is the only player in conference hitting above .400, while also being the only player to eclipse .500 in on-base percentage and .700 in slugging percentage.

Scaglione Wins Big 12 Hitting Crown...

Her numbers have only improved since the start of Big 12 play. In conference only games she leads or is tied for the lead in batting average (.455), home runs (6), RBI (15), total bases (40), on-base percentage (.597), slugging percentage (.909) and walks (16).

Her most impressive stat may be on defense where she has thrown out 12 of 19 attempted base stealers (.632). She also has just three passed balls this season and has picked off four runners.

Her remarkable season will go down in Big 12 history as one of the best ever. Scaglione's current on-base percentage of .531 is tied for the best mark in Big 12 history. Her current batting average is the ninth best in Big 12 history, while her home run total is tied for 10th and her walk total is sixth. She is also within reach of the top-12 in RBI, hits and total bases.

450 & 600 DOWN, 650 & 500 NEXT?
OU head coach Patty Gasso needs just one win to notch the 650th victory of her head coaching career (Long Beach City College and OU). Her current career record is 649-215-1 (.750). Gasso picked up the 450th win of her Sooner career when OU knocked off Illinois 7-0 in the season opener at the LSU Tiger Classic (Feb. 6). Gasso's OU career record is 487-157-1 (.755). With a 51 win season Gasso will reach her 500th Sooner victory this season. OU has averaged 53 wins a season since 2000. Gasso coached the 600th game of her Sooner career in OU's 10-0 defeat of North Carolina on Feb. 21.

OU CLAIMS BEDLAM BELL
With sweeps in softball, track & field, women's basketball and a 52-9 victory in football last November, the University of Oklahoma claimed the Bedlam Series over Oklahoma State for 2003-04. The Sooners finished two points ahead of OSU, 10.5-8.5, in the Bedlam Series presented by the Bank of Oklahoma and your Oklahoma Ford Dealers.

NO. 5 AND NO. 6 FOR SCAGLIONE
The Big 12 Conference announced on May 4 that junior catcher Heather Scaglione of the Oklahoma softball had garnered the Big 12 Player of the Week honor for the fifth time this season. The recognition extends her conference records for single-season (5) and career awards (6). In six official at bats from April 27-May 2, Scaglione had two home runs and three RBI while hitting .500. The San Diego, Calif., native's two-run home run against Oklahoma State was the game winner and ignited the Sooners to a 5-1 win. During the weekend set with Iowa State, Scaglione went 2-for-3 with another home run and four base on balls - including two intentional passes. On the week Scaglione had staggering numbers in slugging percentage (1.500) and on-base percentage (.700).

FLOURISHING AT THE TOP
Versatile center fielder Kristin Vesely bounced around OU's lineup for the first two months of the season. It appears she may have found a home as the Sooners leadoff hitter. Since moving up to the top spot nine games ago she is hitting .342 with six runs scored and a .419 on-base percentage. She has improved her batting average nine points (.303 to .312) since the change. Coach Gasso has acknowledged on several occasions the improved approach she is taking at the plate. Gasso has also been impressed by the way Vesely has become a student of the game.

SWITCHING THINGS UP
After defensive struggles in Nebraska (4/7-8), OU coach Patty Gasso felt it was time to shake up the infield. The result against Texas Tech was moving Norrelle Dickson to her natural position, third base, and inserting senior Katie Overton at short stop. Dickson had started the previous 48 games at short, while freshman Jamie Fox has started the same number at third. Fox has since found herself penciled in at designated player and right field. The new defensive look has been a resounding success over the last eight games.

READY FOR PRIMETIME
There is no waiting in the shadows for freshmen on the Oklahoma softball team. Coach Gasso expects contributions immediately. This season the Sooners have had to rely on freshman more than any season since 2000. Freshman have accounted for about three starting spots (32%) in every game. Jamie Fox and Norrelle Dickson are two of five Sooners that have started in every game this season. Amber Spaulding, Stacia Aleman and Jessica Johnson have accounted for 58 percent of the starting nods at designated player, while Spaulding has also started in right field 24 times (40 percent). Fox, Dickson, Aleman and Spaulding, who have received the most playing time of the rookie group, have a combined batting average of .276.

MENA TIME
Sophomore Mariee Mena has picked the right time to find her swing and that stroke has solidified her as the starting right fielder lately. Mena is hitting .333 in conference. The Escondido, Calif., native has improved her season batting average 18 points since the start of the Big 12 season. She was hitting .260 following the Kia Klassic and is currently swinging at a .278 clip. Her .278 average is the fifth best on the squad, while her conference number ranks second behind Scaglione.

STOPPING CRIME
In 55 games this season only 19 runners have attempted to steal a base against junior catcher Heather Scaglione and she's gunned down 12 of them (63 percent). Last year 38 runners tried to steal on the Sooner signal caller and she tossed out 14 (38 percent). Scaglione had a streak of 34 straight games without allowing a stolen base snapped against Arizona (3/19). Coach Gasso has taken to calling her the best catcher in the country and it's clear that Scaglione's reputation is preceding her. No one has attempted to steal on Scags over the last five games and no one has been successful over the last eight games.

PROMOTING THEFT
Baseball statisticians say individuals need to successfully steal 80 percent of the time to help their team. How about if your team completes the theft at an 83 percent rate? The Sooners have swiped 85 bases on 103 attempts (83 percent) this season. Twelve Sooners have recorded a stolen base with Norrelle Dickson at the top of the pack with 25.

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 6 more games, including the Big 12 Tournament, for a regular season total of 61. At their current rate OU is projected to steal 94 bases, which is 18 shy of the school record of 112 set in 2000.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

Senior Night, Then Big 12 Tourney For Softball

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