Softball Welcomes Nebraska

April 3, 2009

Nebraska (25-8, 2-2 Big 12) at #12 Oklahoma (28-11, 5-3 Big 12)
Dates	Saturday, April 4, 2009 \| 2 p.m. CDT Sunday, April 5, 2009 \| 1 p.m. CDT
Location	Norman, Okla. \| OU Softball Complex (1,000)
Tickets	Available for as low as $7
Promotions	Saturday: 250 OU softball slinkies \| Postgame baserunning Sunday: 1,000 trading card sets \| Postgame autographs Both days: Inflatable games for kids
Webcast	Available through Oklahoma All-Access (subscription based)
Game Info	Live Stats \| Oklahoma Game Notes

TICKETS REMAIN FOR THIS WEEKEND
Tickets remain for this weekend and the remainder of the home slate. Purchase tickets online or call (405) 325-2424 or toll-free (800) 456-GoOU. Tickets may also be purchased by visiting the OU Athletics Ticket Office located on the plaza level of the Asp Avenue Parking Facility, immediately west of Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. For groups of 10 or more, special group rates are available beginning at $4 each. Call (405) 325-8448 for more info. Birthday packs are also available for $10 per ticket and include a game ticket, hot dog, drink and a t-shirt. A minimum of 10 tickets are required to purchase a birthday pack. Group tickets and birthday packs must be purchased at least one business day prior to the game.

LIVE AUDIO AVAILABLE
This weekend's games will be broadcast by the Sooner Sports Network and through Oklahoma All-Access. Tony Sellars will call the games. Saturday's game will be an internet only broadcast, while Sunday's game will air on 1520 AM KOKC. A live webcast of this weekend's games are available through Oklahoma All-Access. The subscription-based service brings live game webcasts, live audio, coaches' shows and features plus access to hundreds of hours of classic video from the OU Athletics Department archives straight to your computer. Memberships are available in monthly ($9.95) and annual ($99.95) packages.

WEEKEND PROMOTIONS: KIDS DAY AND FAN APPRECIATION DAY
Saturday is Kids' Day at Marita Hynes Field. The first 250 fans through the gates receive an OU softball slinky. Inflatable games will be on-site and kids can run the bases and play catch on the field following the game. Sunday is Fan Appreciation Day and the annual trading card sets are available to the first 1,000 fans. The team will sign autographs postgame and the inflatable games will again be on-site. As always, students attending can present their Sooner Nation card to gain points for free stuff. The Sooner Nation Rewards Program provides incentives to students for attending home athletic events (excluding football).

SOONERS/HUSKERS SERIES HISTORY
Overall Record: Nebraska leads 42-31
In Norman: Nebraska leads 13-12
In Lincoln: Nebraska leads 12-6
At Neutral Sites: Nebraska leads 17-14
Oklahoma's Series Streak: Lost 1
Oklahoma's Series Streak in Norman: Won 3
Last Loss in Norman: April 30, 2005 (4-6)
2008 Meetings: March 29, 2008 (W 6-0 and 11-0 in Lincoln) and May 10, 2008 (L 5-6 in Oklahoma City)

SOONER REWIND: OU SPLITS WITH BAYLOR
The OU softball team split a pair of games against Baylor Wednesday evening at the OU Softball Complex. The Sooners dropped the first game, 5-0, before rebounding to defeat the Bears, 4-0, in the second. The Sooners managed just four hits in the opener and stranded five runners. A trio of freshmen picked up three of the four hits with Evan Sallis and Karolyne Long each going 1-for-3, while Katie Norris was 1-for-2. Junior Amber Flores tallied the other hit, going 1-for-3. OU starter Allee Allen fell to 12-2 on the year after giving up three runs, two of them earned, in 2.2 innings of work. A. Allen gave up five hits and was relieved in the third by freshman Kirsten Allen. K. Allen gave up two earned runs on six hits in the final 4.1 innings. After a scoreless first inning in the second game, Oklahoma finally got on the board in the bottom of the second on a Norris solo home run to left center. OU starter D.J. Mathis kept the Bears in check. Mathis threw a complete game shutout, allowing just six hits. She struck out four in her best performance since returning from a hampering injury.

FLORES TOP 25 FINALIST FOR NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE YEAR
University of Oklahoma junior shortstop Amber Flores has been named a top 25 finalist for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award. Flores joins the nation's best players on the list to determine college softball's top player. Flores currently leads Oklahoma and the Big 12 in a majority of statistical categories. Hailing from Calexico, Calif., Flores leads Oklahoma in batting average, hitting .430 on the year. She is 43-of-100 with 42 runs driven in and 42 scored on the year. While having 100 official at-bats, Flores has registered one sacrifice fly, been hit by a pitch 13 times and leads the team with 33 walks drawn. Her slugging percentage stands at an astounding .840. She reaches base 60.1 percent of the time.

RICKETTS A LOWE'S SENIOR CLASS TOP 10 FINALIST
University of Oklahoma senior Samantha Ricketts of San Jose, Calif., has been named a top 10 finalist for the 2009 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award for softball. Fan balloting is open through May 7 and will be coupled with votes from coaches and media to determine the recipient of the award. Winners will be announced during the 2009 NCAA Division I Women's College World Series in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, scheduled for May 28-June 3. Fans can vote by visiting http://www.seniorclassaward/com/vote or text SB8 to 839863.

FLORES MAKING THE MOST OF PLATE APPEARANCES
Junior shortstop Amber Flores (Calexico, Calif.) leads Oklahoma with a .430 batting average (43-of-100). Flores has had 147 total plate appearances - meaning she has drawn 33 walks and been hit by a pitch 13 times. She's only registered nine strikeouts on the year. Needless to say, Flores makes it a priority to get on base, and she does so 60.1 percent of the time. Her slugging percentage is a ridiculous .840. She is five home runs shy of tying her single season record of 15 set in 2008 and on pace to incinerate her single season walks drawn record of 45 set in 2008.

GASSO GETS 700TH WIN AT OKLAHOMA
Already Oklahoma's all-time winningest softball coach, Patty Gasso won her 700th game as the Sooners' head coach against Northwestern (3/7). Gasso's mark at the school is 711-235-2; while her career record stands at 874-294-2.

OU Fast Fact

Dani Dobbs leads OU with a .444 batting average in the last five games.

SOONERS SNAP BRIEF SKID
The win against Baylor in the second game of the doubleheader snapped Oklahoma's brief three-game losing skid. It was the longest for OU since dropping the last two games of the 2007 season and 2008 opener. The last time OU lost three straight in the same season was 2006.

FLORES EARNS SECOND BIG 12 POW AWARD
For a second time this season, Oklahoma junior shortstop Amber Flores was named the Big 12 Conference Player of the Week on March 23. The Calexico, Calif., native previously earned the honor during the first week of the 2009 campaign. On Saturday against Iowa State, Flores went a perfect 5-for-5 at the plate, drove in five runs and scored two as the Sooners defeated Iowa State, 10-7, on Flores' walk-off home run in the seventh inning. In the second game, Flores went 1-for-2 with a run scored and drew a walk. She hit .857 on the weekend, going 6-for-7 with a slugging percentage of 1.857. Flores also scored three runs total on the weekend. Overall on the week, Flores hit. 600 as Oklahoma went 3-0 with a pair of wins over ISU and a five-inning 8-0 blanking of Northern Iowa. In those three games, Flores produced a slugging percentage of 1.300 and an on-base percentage of .889.

RICKETTS NEARING HOME RUN CAREER MARK
Senior Samantha Ricketts (San Jose, Calif.) is one home run shy of tying the career mark of 46 set by Ashli Barrett (1998-2001). Ricketts already owns the career runs batted in record (216).

LONG BALLS GALORE
As a team, Oklahoma has 35 home runs on the year. Of those, seven have come from the bottom half of the order. Sophomore Dani Dobbs (Moore, Okla.) and freshman Karolyne Long (Midwest City, Okla.) each have two on the year. Sophomore Wendy Trott (Fountain Valley, Calif.) has three and sophomore Haley Anderson (Edmond, Okla.) has one.

JACK OF ALL TRADES
Junior Amber Flores (Calexico, Calif.) has played her third position in as many seasons in 2009. Flores began her OU career in the outfield and moved to second base as a sophomore. This season, with the departure of 2008 Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year Savannah Long, head coach Patty Gasso has called upon Flores to fill the hole at shortstop. But, Flores isn't the only other Sooner moving around. Against North Texas, sophomore Chana'e Jones (San Jose, Calif.) started at second base - far away from her usual spot in left field. Freshman Katie Norris (Stillwater, Okla.) has also seen time in right field after coming out of high school as a catcher.

RICKETTS: 176 STRAIGHT AND COUNTING
Senior Samantha Ricketts (San Jose, Calif.) currently holds the longest active starting streak by an Oklahoma player. Ricketts has started 176 straight games, dating back to April 26, 2006 (vs. Oklahoma State). She has started all but 14 of those games at first base. Ricketts started the final 14 games of the 2006 season as the designated player.

DOUBLE TROUBLE
Two-base hits are becoming the norm for the Sooners. As a team, OU has 55 doubles on the year and leading the way are junior shortstop Amber Flores (Calexico, Calif.) and senior first baseman Samantha Ricketts (San Jose, Calif.) with 11 and 13, respectively. Sophomore Chana'e Jones (San Jose, Calif.) has five. Sophomore Haley Anderson (Edmond, Okla.) has six and junior Lindsey Vandever (Davenport, Okla.) has four.

AND THAT'S THE WAY THE COOKIE CRUMBLES
Of Oklahoma's 11 losses, six are by one run. In those six losses, the Sooners hit just. 209 (45-of-215) and only one player hit above .350. In contrast, in the 27 wins, Oklahoma hit .337 (14-of-59) and four players above the .350 mark.

GO SPEED RACER
Freshman Evan Sallis (Muskogee, Okla.) leads the Sooners with 12 stolen bases on the year. Sallis is 12-for-14, while junior Amber Flores (Calexico, Calif.) is 8-of-9. Sophomore Krystle Huey (Garland, Texas) is a perfect 7-of-7 on the year.

A TRUE TEAM PLAYER
Sophomore Dani Dobbs (Moore, Okla.) and freshman Evan Sallis (Muskogee, Okla.) lead the team with four sacrifice hits on the year.

GAMES SELECTED FOR ESPN BROADCASTS
A pair of late season Oklahoma Big 12 softball games have been selected for broadcast by the ESPN family of networks, the company announced Thursday. The home finale against Texas A&M scheduled for April 19 has been moved from a 1 p.m. CT start to noon CT to accommodate a national broadcast on ESPN. The final game of the Bedlam Series presented by Ford, slated for April 29 in Stillwater, will air on ESPNU at 7 p.m. CT.

FLORES EARNS BIG 12, NATIONAL AWARDS
For her MVP performance at the Hawai'i Paradise Classic, junior shortstop Amber Flores (Calexico, Calif) was named Big 12 Player of the Week, Louisville Slugger/NFCA Division I Player of the Week and Co-Player of the Week by USA Softball on Feb. 10. It is the first time an OU softball athlete has earned both national honors in the same week. Flores hit .643 over a five-game span. Flores was 9-for-14 with nine runs scored and drove in 15 runs. Of her nine hits, two were doubles and three were home runs. Flores posted a slugging percentage of 1.429 and an on-base percentage of .737. She totaled 20 bases on the weekend, along with three walks and two hit-by-pitches. In OU's 18-0 win over UAB, Flores tied the OU school record with eight RBI in a single game. In the first inning, she drove in two runs on a double and later in the inning, cleared the bases with her three-run shot. She added a second three-run home run later in the contest.

MATHIS, RICKETTS TAKEN IN NPF DRAFT
Pitcher D.J. Mathis (East Alton, Ill.) and infielder Samantha Ricketts (San Jose, Calif.) were selected by the Akron Racers in the 2009 National Pro Fastpitch Senior Draft. Mathis went second overall, while Ricketts was the second pick in the third round, going 12th overall. Oklahoma was one of four schools with two players taken. Oklahoma has now had 13 players drafted to the NPF league since its inaugural draft prior to the 2004 season.

FLORES, RICKETTS PRESEASON ALL-AMERICAN
A pair of University of Oklahoma softball athletes were named Preseason All-Americans by ESPN. Junior Amber Flores (Calexico, Calif.) earned first team honors, while senior Samantha Ricketts (San Jose, Calif.) was named to the second team.

MATHIS, RICKETTS NAMED TO POY WATCH LIST
Oklahoma seniors D.J. Mathis (East Alton, Ill.) and Samantha Ricketts (San Jose, Calif.) were named to the 2009 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Watch List. Both are All-Americans and Ricketts was a top three finalist in 2007.

OU, ARIZONA RANKED IN EVERY NFCA POLL
The Sooners have been ranked in the NFCA poll since its inception, which spans 201 weeks. Oklahoma and Arizona are the only programs who have been ranked every week the poll has been released.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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