Sooners Head West for Mary Nutter

Friday, February 21

Cathedral City, Calif.

12:30 PM

University of Oklahoma

Nebraska

February 20, 2020 | Softball

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^3/3 Oklahoma

Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic

Friday, Feb. 21-Sunday Feb. 23 / vs. Nebraska, Texas A&M, Seattle, No. 2/2 Washington, Wisconsin / Palm Springs, Calif.

FloSoftball ($) / Radio / Live Stats / Game Notes

Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic
Day	Opponent	Time (CT)
Friday	Nebraska	12:30 p.m.
Friday	Texas A&M	3 p.m.
Saturday	Seattle	12 p.m.
Saturday	#2/2 Washington	2:30 p.m.
Sunday	Wisconsin	11 a.m.

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. — The No. 3/3 Oklahoma softball team continues its season-opening road swing this weekend in Palm Springs, Calif., at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic.

The Sooners are slated to take on Nebraska (12:30 p.m. CT) and Texas A&M (3 p.m.) on Friday and Seattle (noon p.m.) and No. 2/2 Washington (2:30 p.m.) on Saturday, before closing the weekend vs. Wisconsin (11 a.m.) on Sunday. Action can be seen via FloSoftball on a subscription basis and heard on The Franchise 2 in Oklahoma (1560 AM, 103.3 FM).

WEEKEND STORYLINES

• The trip to Palm Springs has become an annual voyage for the Sooners, who are playing in their 15th consecutive Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic. They have participated in the event every year since 2006 and gone 49-21 (.700). At last year's Classic, OU went 4-1 on the weekend with wins over BYU (5-0), No. 14/13 Arizona (2-1), CSU-Fullerton (9-1) and UCSB (8-0). The Sooners dropped their lone contest of the weekend vs. No. 2/2 UCLA (7-1).

• Oklahoma is coming off a 4-1 performance at the Hillenbrand Invitational in Ariz., last weekend. The Sooners topped Bryant (8-3), Northern Iowa (10-2), No. 4/4 Arizona (6-4) and Northern Iowa a second time (8-0). OU dropped its first game of the year to Long Beach State (5-4).

• The Sooners registered their biggest win of the early season on Feb. 15 vs. No. 4/4 Arizona in front of the Wildcats' sold out crowd of 3,006 at Hillenbrand Stadium. OU completed the comeback victory in 10 innings by a score of 6-4.

NEWCOMERS STEPPING UP

• Oklahoma's newcomers have quickly become one of the top storylines for the 2020 Sooners. OU has started eight fresh faces across the lineup in the early part of the season.

• Freshman Kinzie Hansen out of Norco, Calif., has shown power at the plate early for OU. Out of Sooners that have played at least five games, Hansen ranks first on the team in batting average (.394), hits (13) and RBIs (14) and boasts a .606 slugging percentage.

• In the circle, three freshmen have started games for the Sooners: redshirt frosh Brooke Vestal and true freshmen Macy McAdoo and Olivia Rains. McAdoo leads all OU pitchers with four wins and in opposing batting avg (.150) of those that have pitched more than two innings. Rains leads OU in runs allowed, giving up just three on the year. Another true freshman, Allana Thiede, has made two appearances, striking out two in 2.0 innings pitched.

• Junior transfer Taylon Snow has made an impact at second base in her first season as a Sooner. Snow is batting .350 on the year in the leadoff spot and has contributed in the field with 10 putouts and nine assists in six starts. The Auburn transfer hit her second career home run in OU's win over Bryant on Feb. 14.

SAILE'S STRONG START

• Senior right-handed pitcher Shannon Saile has started her senior campaign strong in the circle. The Land O' Lakes, Fla., native has struck out 35 batters in 23.2 inning pitched and has given up just two earned runs and zero home runs.

• Saile holds a .059 ERA and an opponent batting average of just .165. The senior has is 4-1 on the early season and has collected four saves, with her biggest close coming in extra innings vs. No. 4/4 Arizona last weekend in Tucson.

LAST TIME THEY MET...

• Nebraska: The Sooners and Huskers, old Big 12 foes, are tied in the all-time record column, 44-44, with the last matchup coming on March 17, 2018. The Sooners topped the Huskers, 8-0, in six innings to tie the all-time series.

• Texas A&M: Another familiar foe of old, the Aggies and Sooners have faced off 79 times, with OU holding a 49-30 series lead. The programs have not played in five years, with the Sooners taking the last battle, 2-0, in Norman on May 17, 2015, at the NCAA Norman Regional.

• Seattle: This year's game marks the first matchup in program history between the Sooners and Redhawks.

• Washington: The Sooners and Huskies are tied 12-12 all-time, with the last matchup coming in the 2018 WCWS, a 3-0 UW win to end OU's season.

• Wisconsin: OU leads the all-time series against the Badgers, 5-2. The Sooners and Badgers faced off in last year's NCAA Norman Regional, with the Sooners taking two of three. The Wisconsin victory ended OU's 41-game win streak.

HOMECOMING

• Six current Sooners will be playing in their home state when OU takes the field this weekend at Big League Dreams Park in Palm Springs, Calif.

• Alycia and Eliyah Flores (Colton), Grace Green (Oakdale), Kinzie Hansen (Norco), Taylon Snow (Chino Hills) and Alanna Thiede (Carlsbad) all hail from the Golden State and continue OU's California pipeline that includes the ranks of alums Keilani Ricketts, Lauren Chamberlain, Sydney Romero, Shay Knighten and many more.

SOONERS ANNOUNCE TV SLATE

• The No. 3/3 Oklahoma softball team will have 22 of its regular season games televised.

• Three contests will air on the ESPN family of networks, seven on FOX Sports Oklahoma (FSOK), two on FSOK+, one apiece on FSN and FS1 and and five on Sooner Sports TV Powered by FOX Sports. An additional three road contests are scheduled to air on Big 12 NOW on ESPN+.

• Four Sooners games will be televised nationally in 2020. OU's March 22 contest against Texas will air on ESPNU, its April 10 game vs. Kentucky will be aired on FS1, while its April 25 matchup vs. Texas Tech will air on ESPN2. The May 2 regular season finale vs. Oklahoma State will be broadcasted by ESPN.

• Three of the Big 12's seven regular-season national broadcasts will involve the Sooners and seven of the nine Phillips 66 Big 12 Softball Championship contests will also be televised via FCS. The Big 12 Softball Championship game on May 9 will be televised nationally on ESPN2 at 5 p.m. CT.

SINGLE-GAME TICKETS GOING FAST

• Tickets for Oklahoma softball's series' against Texas (March 20-22) and Oklahoma State (April 30-May 2) have sold out. Additionally, the Sooners' Saturday matchups vs. Kentucky (April 11) and Texas Tech (April 25) have sold out. Tickets for other home games can be purchased online or by phone at (800) 456-GoOU.

• The Sooners are scheduled to host 28 regular season games at Marita Hynes Field in 2020. Last year, OU went 18-1 at home, including a 13-0 record in the regular season.

COACH GASSO ANNOUNCES STAR-STUDDED COACHES LUNCHEON

• The Oklahoma softball coaching staff will hold its inaugural coaches luncheon on Wednesday, Feb. 26, at 11 a.m. CT in the Barry Switzer Center at Gaylord Family—Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, the team announced Feb. 13.

• Head coach Patty Gasso and her staff invites coaches and fans alike to attend the luncheon, serving as an opportunity for supporters of the program to hear from Coach Gasso about the 2020 season and the new team. Also speaking will be Associate Head Coach Jennifer Rocha and some of the most decorated athletes in not only Oklahoma softball history, but NCAA softball history.

• Women's College World Series Most Outstanding Players Jennifer Stewart (2000), Keilani Ricketts (2013), Paige Parker (2016) and Shay Knighten (2017) along with NCAA career homerun leader Lauren Chamberlain and several other OU alumni will be in attendance to speak to the audience on their time at OU and their advancement of the game.

• Check in will begin at 11 a.m. with opportunities for photos with alumni in attendance. Lunch will be served at 11:30 am and the program will conclude at 1 p.m. Individual tickets are currently on sale for $150. For group pricing for up to eight people, contact director of operations Jackie Livingston at jackiel@ou.edu.

UP NEXT

The Sooners open their 2020 home slate with the annual Courtyard Marriott Tournament at Marita Hynes Field. OU will welcome Northwestern, Abilene Christian and North Texas to Norman for the home-opening weekend. Tickets are still available and can be purchased online or by phone at (800) 456-GoOU.

For updates and more information on Oklahoma softball, follow the Sooners on Twitter and Instagram (@OU_Softball) and like Oklahoma Softball on Facebook.