Softball Visits Texas Tech for Weekend Set

NORMAN – The No. 1-ranked and Big 12-leading Oklahoma softball team travels to Lubbock, Texas this weekend for a three-game series at RV/NR Texas Tech.

The series begins Friday, March 15 with a 6 p.m. CT first pitch at Rocky Johnson Field followed by a 1 p.m. second game on Saturday. Game three is scheduled for a noon Sunday start. All three games will be broadcast on ESPN+ and 1560 AM/103.3 FM The Franchise 2 with each of the first two games also airing on 107.7 FM The Franchise.

Oklahoma holds a 70-7 advantage in the all-time series with Texas Tech and has won each of the last 34 meetings. OU is 28-1 in Lubbock, its lone loss at TTU occurring on April 1, 2011 in a 5-0 shutout.

LAST TIME OUT

Graduate left-handed pitcher Kelly Maxwell threw her fifth collegiate no-hitter as Oklahoma swept Tarleton State in a midweek doubleheader at Love's Field on Tuesday evening.

The Sooners downed Tarleton 8-0 and 12-1 to take both games of the set. OU closed its inaugural homestand at Love's Field with a 10-1 record.

Maxwell's brilliance set the tone in game one as OU's lineup backed the staff with four crooked numbers, plating three or more runs in an inning twice in each game.

SCOUTING THE RED RAIDERS

Texas Tech enters the weekend series with a 21-5 record and sits a game behind the Sooners in the Big 12 standings at 2-1 in conference play. The Red Raiders have won seven of their last eight games and are fresh off run-ruling New Mexico in both games of a Tuesday midweek doubleheader. Tech opened conference play by taking two of three in Provo last weekend.

Riley Love anchors the middle of the Texas Tech lineup with a team-leading 1.361 OPS, nine doubles, 10 home runs and 36 RBIs. Kailey Wyckoff is the leading hitter at .410 while Logan Halleman has added a .467 on-base percentage and 14 steals as a bottom-of-the-order tablesetter.

Arianna Villa, Aubrey Barnhart and Abbie Orrick each own OPS marks north of 1.000 as part of a lineup that has scored 190 runs this season, third-most in the Big 12.

Right-handers Maddie Kuehl (7-3, 2.27 ERA), Maddy Wright (6-2, 2.03 ERA) and Olivia Rains (6-0, 4.34 ERA) lead the Texas Tech rotation. Kuehl has fanned 56 across 61.2 innings while waking just 29, limiting opponents to a .220 average. Wright owns a .205 opponent average and a 30:13 K:BB ratio over 41.1 frames.

CYD'S CRUSHING IT

OU junior first baseman Cydney Sanders was named both NFCA National Player of the Week and Big 12 Player of the Week on Tuesday.

Sanders reached base in 10 of her 12 plate appearances over Oklahoma's four games, smashing five extra-base hits and drawing five walks while batting .714 (5-for-7). She belted four home runs and slashed .714/.833/2.571 for a 3.404 OPS. The junior drove in a Sooner-leading nine runs and scored six times, anchoring a lineup that produced 38 runs across four games.

During the month of March (11 games), Sanders is slashing .579/.690/1.947 for a 2.637 OPS with eight home runs, two doubles, a 1:8 strikeout-to-walk ratio and a whopping 22 runs batted in.

LEADERBOARDS

The Sooners enter the week ranked highly across the national leaderboards in multiple statistical categories. OU leads the nation in OPS (1.179) and is top-three in fielding percentage (2nd, .988), slugging percentage (2nd, .705), batting average (3rd, .388), on-base percentage (3rd .473), runs scored (3rd, 193), shutouts (3rd, 13) and home runs (3rd, 44) while ranking seventh in ERA (1.32). Junior first baseman Cydney leads the nation in OPS (1.630) and ranks third in slugging percentage (1.051).

Sanders leads the Big 12 in OPS, home runs (10) and slugging percentage while ranking fifth in RBIs (27), sixth in on-base percentage (.565) and seventh in walks drawn (15). Senior third baseman Alyssa Brito is third in runs scored (29), fourth in doubles (7) and tied for fifth in home runs (7) with senior shortstop Tiare Jennings. True freshman Ella Parker is fifth in on-base percentage (.565), sixth in OPS (1.414), eighth in batting average (.453) and ninth in slugging (.849).

In the circle, sophomore left-hander Kierston Deal is third across the Big 12 in ERA (0.85) and fourth in batting average against (.178). Nicole May is fourth in wins (8) and fifth in opponent average (.189) while landing eighth in ERA (1.60). Kelly Maxwell lands fourth in opponent average (.172), fifth in wins (7) and seventh in ERA (1.50) while Karlie Keeney's 1.50 ERA mark is sixth in the league.

LET'S GO POLLING

The Sooners remained at No. 1 in the NFCA/USA Today coaches poll this week, earning 23 of the 32 available first-place votes. OU jumped back into the top spot in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll, receiving 19 of 25 available first-place votes.

BIG 12 STANDINGS

Oklahoma enters the second weekend of conference play as the lone unbeaten team in the Big 12 at 3-0. The Sooners are a full game ahead of Oklahoma State, Texas, Texas Tech and UCF. OU hosts Tech this weekend, Texas welcomes BYU to Austin and UCF travels to OSU.

FRESHMEN PHENOMS

Oklahoma freshmen Ella Parker and Kasidi Pickering have provided immediate impact to the lineup as regulars in their debut season. The duo enters the weekend ranked first and third among OU hitters in batting average.

Parker has gone 8-for-12 (.667) over her last six games to take the team leading in hitting at .453, reaching base at a .565 clip and slugging .849 for a 1.414 OPS. She adds six doubles, five home runs and 22 RBIs and has walked in 20.3% of her trips to the plate. Among her Big 12 counterparts, Parker is fifth in on-base percentage, sixth in OPS, eighth in batting average and ninth in slugging.

Pickering slashes .426/.507/.656 for a 1.163 OPS entering the weekend. She has collected five doubles and three homers to go with 18 RBIs while logging strong defense in both outfield corners.

COACH GASSO NEARS 400

OU head coach Patty Gasso enters the weekend three wins away from recording her 400th Big 12 victory. The conference's all-time league wins leader would become the first coach to reach the milestone.

Gasso is 397-87 (.820) in Big 12 games over her illustrious career, earning 15 regular season championships and eight postseason titles. She has led OU in every season of the conference's existence.

KIERSTON'S DEALING

Sophomore left-handed pitcher Kierston Deal has been terrific over her last five starts, winning each while logging 22.0 scoreless innings. The southpaw has allowed just nine hits while maintaining a 27:4 strikeout-to-walk ratio over her last five outings.

CHAMPS IN THE CLUTCH

Oklahoma's lineup has produced the third-most runs across the NCAA with 193 this season. A key factor in the order's success has been the club's penchant for hitting with runners in scoring position. OU slashes .413/.497/.787 for a 1.283 OPS with RISP, producing a .521 weighted on-base average (wOBA) in those situations.

Alyssa Brito is 11-for-18 (.611) with RISP this spring, producing a 1.874 OPS. Tiare Jennings has blasted four home runs and four doubles while producing a 1.647 OPS with runners in scoring position. Ella Parker (.556), Jayda Coleman (.533) and Kasidi Pickering (.500) join Brito and Jennings as Sooners batting .500 or better with RISP.

ONE LAST RIDE IN THE BIG 12

The Sooners are in their final season of Big 12 competition with a 397-87 (.820) league record since the conference began in 1996, winners of 11 consecutive conference championships. They are 124-4 (.969) in Big 12 play since the beginning of the 2016 season and have not lost a conference series since 2011.

OU won both the regular season and conference tournament championships last season while going 18-0 in Big 12 play. The program has won 23 Big 12 titles (15 regular season and eight Big 12 tournament championships), all under head coach Patty Gasso.

Oklahoma will join the SEC on July 1, 2024.

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