Softball Season Begins in Mexico

Thursday, February 6

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

6:00 PM

University of Oklahoma

Nevada

February 05, 2020 | Softball

FloSoftball Stream Notes Live Stats

Puerto Vallarta College Challenge
Day	Opponent	Time (CT)
Thursday	Nevada	6 p.m.
Friday	Long Beach State	12:30 p.m.
Saturday	George Washington	6 p.m.
Saturday	BYU	8:30 p.m.

PUERTO VALLARTA, Mexico — The No. 3/3 Oklahoma softball team opens its 2020 campaign this weekend at the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

The Sooners are slated to take on Nevada (6 p.m. CT) on Thursday and Long Beach State (12:30 p.m.) on Friday. On Saturday, OU will face George Washington at 6 p.m. before a game with BYU at 8:30 p.m. Action can be seen via FloSoftball on a subscription basis and heard via the Franchise 2 in Oklahoma on 1560 AM and 103.3 FM.

WEEKEND STORYLINES

• Oklahoma is 34-14 all-time in season openers. In 2019, OU defeated Syracuse 6-0 at the GCU Kickoff Tournament in Phoenix, Ariz.

• This marks the second time OU will open its season at the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge. In 2017, the Sooners went 2-2, posting victories over BYU and Nebraska and dropping games to Auburn and Washington.

• The Sooners made their 13th appearance at the Women's College World Series in 2019, culminating in a 57-6 record and national runner-up finish. Oklahoma has won the past eight Big 12 regular season titles, finishing with a second consecutive 18-0 conference record in 2019.

• OU returns two first-team All-Americans in senior pitcher Giselle Juarez and junior utility player Jocelyn Alo. Also returning is sophomore utility player Grace Green, a third-team All-America and all-region honoree.

SOONERS TABBED PRESEASON NO. 3

• Oklahoma enters the 2020 season ranked third in the USA Today/NFCA Division I Preseason Coaches Poll and the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Preseason Top 25, both of which were released Jan. 28.

• Oklahoma's No. 3 spot in the NFCA poll marks the 10th straight year the Sooners have started in the NFCA's top 10, good for the nation's longest active streak. OU has been ranked in the top five seven of the past eight years, the most over that stretch. Overall, the Sooners rank third with 20 top-10 appearances in the NFCA preseason poll, trailing only Arizona (22) and UCLA (21).

• Oklahoma, Michigan, UCLA and Washington are the only programs to be ranked in every NFCA preseason poll, which dates back to 1995. OU also extended its streak of being ranked every week in the 26-year existence of the NFCA's poll.

• This marks the 13th straight season and 16th in the 18-year history of the ESPN.com/USA Today poll that Oklahoma is ranked in the preseason top 10. The ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 Poll is voted on by coaching representatives of 11 Division I Conferences in the 10 USA Softball regions and by media members who consistently cover Division I softball across the country.

• Oklahoma is scheduled to face eight ranked teams in 2020: No. 1/2 (NFCA/USA) Washington, No. 5/5 Arizona, No. 6/6 Texas, No. 13/13 Oklahoma State, No. 14/15 Northwestern, No. 15/16 Kentucky, No. 18/19 Texas Tech and No. 25/23 Wisconsin. 2020 opponents Baylor and Houston received votes in both polls.

THREE NAMED TO PLAYER OF THE YEAR WATCH LIST

• Senior pitcher Giselle Juarez, junior utility player Jocelyn Alo and sophomore utility player Grace Green are among the 50 student-athletes on the preseason watch list. Juarez was named NFCA First Team All-American in 2019, while Alo was a second-team selection and Green was a third-team honoree.

• Three selections tie for second nationally with Alabama, Arizona, Texas and Washington also having three representatives. UCLA leads all programs with four on the list.

• The top 25 finalists for the 2020 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award will be announced April 22. While an athlete does not have to be on the Watch List to be considered for the top 25, the eventual USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year will come from the top 25 finalists. The top 10 finalists will be announced May 6 and the top three announced May 20. The 2020 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year will be revealed May 26.

• Oklahoma alumna and current USA Softball team member Keilani Ricketts was a two-time recipient of the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award, considered the most prestigious honor in NCAA Division I Softball.

FRESH FACES

• The Sooners will have a new look in 2020 with nine newcomers set to take the field for OU, eight being true freshmen and one transfer.

• The pitching staff includes three true freshmen in right-hander Olivia Rains, right-hander Macy McAdoo and left-hander Alanna Thiede, plus right-handed redshirt freshman Brooke Vestal.

• Junior Taylon Snow, a transfer from Auburn, looks to contribute at second base in her first year with the Sooners. As a sophomore at Auburn, Snow started 52 games and her .324 batting average was third-highest on the team.

• Freshman OF Rylie Boone out of Owasso High School and INF Mackenzie Donihoo of Mustang High will look to find their spots in the outfield and infield, respectively. Both earned 6A all-state honors in Oklahoma. Another all-stater, Raylee Pogue, out of Mustang, Okla., will serve as a dynamic utility player.

• Continuing OU's California pipeline are freshmen Kinzie Hansen of Norco, Alycia Flores of Colton and Thiede of Carlsbad. Hansen will be listed as a catcher but see work elsewhere, while Flores, younger sister of junior Eliyah, will play outfield and Thiede will look to contribute early for the Sooners in the circle as a lefty.

BIG 12 PRESEASON FAVORITES AGAIN

• Winner of the last eight regular season Big 12 championships, the Oklahoma softball team topped the 2020 Big 12 Preseason Coaches' Poll, the league announced in early January. For the fourth year in a row, each of the other six head coaches selected the Sooners as No. 1.

• This marks the eighth straight year and 11th in the last 12 that OU has topped the conference's preseason poll.

• Last year, the Sooners became the first program to finish Big 12 play undefeated in back-to-back seasons. OU is undefeated in their last 54 conference series (50-0-4 in that span) and have not lost a conference series since 2011. Overall, the Sooners finished 2019 with a 57-6 record as they made their 13th Women's College World Series appearance, culminating with a national runner-up finish.

LAST TIME THEY MET...

• Nevada: The Sooners last faced the Wolf Pack in 2010 in Norman, winning by a final tally of 8-6 in nine innings. OU leads the series with Nevada with a record of 3-0.

• Long Beach State: The Sooners hold a 12-1 advantage over LBSU with their most recent win coming in 2017 in Long Beach. OU shut out Long Beach State 14-0 behind a no-hitter from Mariah Lopez.

• George Washington: Oklahoma and GWU face off for the first time in program history this weekend.

• BYU: The Sooners shut out the Cougars in 2019 at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic, 5-0. Then-junior Giselle Juarez struck out 14 of the 21 batters she faced to collect the win and lead OU. OU leads the all-time series 7-1.

SINGLE-GAME TICKETS ON SALE

Single-game tickets for OU's home slate went on sale last week and are still available for purchase. Tickets for the Sooners series vs. preseason No. 6 Texas (March 20-22) have sold out and the Saturday (May 2) matchup against preseason No. 13 Oklahoma State is also sold out.

Reserved seats have already sold out via season ticket holders, but general admission tickets will be available for $15 for adults and $10 for youth (ages 6-18) and senior citizens (55 and older). Group discounts are available for groups of 10 or more.

General admission seating is located in the bleachers down the first and third base lines and in the outfield bleachers.

Tickets can be ordered online or by calling (405) 325-2424 or toll-free at (800) 456-GoOU.

UP NEXT

The Sooners travel to Tucson, Ariz., on Feb. 14-16 to take on Bryant, Northern Iowa, Long Beach State and Arizona in the Hillenbrand Invitational, hosted by the University of Arizona.

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