Former Conference Foes Meet as Sooners Face Tech in Frisco

NORMAN – No. 10 Oklahoma (22-5, 5-4 SEC) meets former Big 12 foe Texas Tech (8-16, 4-5 Big 12) in Frisco, Texas, Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. CT for a midweek matchup at Riders Field, home of the Rangers' double-A affiliate Frisco RoughRiders.

The game can be seen via pay-per-view on Peak.Events with Chris Mycoskie and Cutter Sippel on the call. The game can be heard on the radio in Oklahoma on 99.3 FM/1400 AM The REF or nationwide on The Varsity app with Toby Rowland and OU alum Ross Hubbard calling the action.

THE BASICS

• Oklahoma enters the contest at 22-5 and winners of 11 of their last 15 games. The Sooners have a pair of top-10 non-conference wins and two SEC series already on their resume. OU started the season 11-0, the program's best start since 2011. The Sooners recently dropped their first SEC series of the season at No. 8 Alabama as the Tide took two of three in a tight series in Tuscaloosa.

• The Sooners are a consensus top-10 squad in the nation, ranking 10th in this week's D1Baseball poll. The team is ranked ninth in the Baseball America, Perfect Game USA and USA TODAY Coaches polls and No. 10 in the NCBWA top-25 rankings. Oklahoma also currently sits at No. 10 in the NCAA RPI.

• The Sooners and Red Raiders have met over 100 times in the storied history of the two programs with OU leading the all-time series 57-48-1. Most recently, OU swept Tech in a three-game set in Lubbock in 2024. it was OU's first sweep over Tech since 2011 and first in Lubbock since 2006.

• Probable Pitching Matchup: OU LHP Cameron Johnson (2-0, 5.59 ERA) vs. TTU RHP Connor Mohan (0-0, 6.10 ERA).

#10 Oklahoma vs. Texas Tech
Date: April 1
Time (CT): 6:30 p.m.
Location: Frisco, Texas
Ballpark: Riders Field

Watch Peak.Events
Live Stats
Listen
Game Notes

THE NUMBERS

OU's pitching rotation is headlined by 2025 Preseason All-SEC RHP Kyson Witherspoon, who is 5-1 this season in his seven starts with a 64-to-10 strikeout-to-walk ratio. The Golden Spikes Preseason Watch List honoree has struck out a career-high 12 batters in two of his seven starts and recorded double-digit strikeouts in three games.

• Twin brother, Malachi Witherspoon, holds a 2-2 record in seven starts with 33 strikeouts. Lefty Cade Crossland has made his debut in the rotation the last two weekends. In seven appearances this season (four starts), Crossland has fanned 29 batters and walked 13. Lefty transfer Cameron Johnson is 2-0 in six starts with 21 K's.

• The pitching staff ranks 35th in the country with a 4.15 team ERA. Kyson Witherspoon ranks fifth in the country and second in the SEC in strikeouts with 64 and sixth in the nation in K/9 (14.77). His 0.95 WHIP is good for fourth in the league. His five victories rank eighth in the country and second in the SEC.

• The Sooners are outscoring opponents 201-126 and OU's pitchers have struck out 276 batters on the year. This season marked the first time in program history the Sooners have started a season 11-0 and held each opponent to five runs or less. OU has surrendered double-digit runs just three times on the year.

• Oklahoma is 15-1 at L. Dale Mitchell Park, outscoring the opposition 137-61 on its home field, including a 19-6 home run advantage in Norman.

• OU's deep bullpen has been impressive, surrendering 49 runs with a 135-to-49 K/BB ratio. The Sooners have utilized 10 bullpen arms so far in 2025. Senior Dylan Crooks has taken on the closer role, ranking first in the nation with eight saves in 12 appearances, striking out 17 and surrendering three runs (1.50 ERA) in 18.0 innings of work.

• In the batter's box, four Sooners are batting above .300 on the season. Sophomore Jaxon Willits leads the team with seven homers, while returning NCBWA All-American Easton Carmichael paces OU with 13 extra-base hits. Willits and Carmichael are tied for the team lead with 27 RBIs each. Centerfielder Jason Walk has been the table setter in the leadoff spot, with hits in 20 of 26 games played and four homers on the year, already besting his season total of three from his freshman year a season ago.

• Freshman second baseman Kyle Branch has impressed in his first collegiate season, batting .340, good for second on the team, to go with nine XBH and 19 RBIs. Redshirt sophomore Sam Christiansen leads OU with 29 walks drawn, good for second in the SEC and 13th in the country. Junior transfer Trey Gambill paces OU in batting average (.377) and on-base percentage (.536).

• Oklahoma has proven to be a menace on the base paths, stealing 69 bags on the year to rank first in the SEC and 16th in the country. Dawson Willis paces OU with 12 stolen bases, good for second in the SEC, while seven Sooners have registered at least five on the year. OU is 69-for-82 on stolen base attempts.

• The Sooners have utilized the long ball, hitting 33 home runs on the year. The Sooners have homered in 21 of OU's 27 games on the year, including 14 of the last 15.

THE BEST BASEBALL CONFERENCE IN AMERICA

• The OU baseball program looks to make a name for itself in the premier baseball conference in the country in its inaugural season in 2025.

• The Sooners are no strangers to competing against their new conference foes. Since head coach Skip Johnson's hiring in 2018, OU is 43-34 versus current members of the SEC (including Texas).

• OU won its first two conference series as members of the SEC. On SEC Opening Weekend at South Carolina, Oklahoma took the rubber match in Columbia by a final of 6-5 in 10 innings, erasing a two-run deficit with two outs in the ninth before Jason Walk launched a homer at the top of the 10th to give OU the win. The Sooners took two of three vs. Mississippi State at Mitchell Park in Norman. After falling in the opener despite 11 strikeouts from Kyson Witherspoon, OU turned around to win back-to-back games and clinch the series on its home turf.

• OU dropped its first conference series of the year last weekend at No. 12 Alabama in a highly-contested top-15 series. OU forced a rubber game with a Saturday win after falling 8-6 on Friday, and nearly completed a Sunday comeback after being down seven runs but couldn't finish the job and fell 8-6 to drop its first series.

• The Sooners will play 30 conference games this season, highlighted by five home series versus four of the past five national champions (Vanderbilt [2019], Mississippi State [2021], Ole Miss [2022], LSU [2023]), and a home regular season finale vs. rival Texas.

• The Sooners travel to South Carolina, Alabama, Missouri, Georgia and Kentucky in 2025.

RANKINGS CHATTER

• Oklahoma dropped one spot to No. 10 in this week's D1Baseball poll after a hard-fought series at now-No. 8 Alabama. After starting the season unranked, Oklahoma has vaulted into the top 10. The Sooners made their debut at No. 16 on Feb. 24 after the Round Rock sweep, and have since been ranked 13th, 12th and 10th, 9th and back to No. 10 this week.

• The Sooners are a consensus top-10 squad across the board, holding their highest rankings in the Baseball America, Perfect Game USA and USA TODAY Coaches polls (No. 9) and 10th in the NCBWA top 25 and D1Baseball.

• The Sooners are 3-3 in ranked matchups in 2025 after going 4-1 in such games throughout the regular season in 2024, with all four wins coming against top-15 opponents.

NEWCOMERS MAKING NOISE

• Looking to replace 22 lost letterwinners from 2024, the Sooner coaching staff hit the transfer portal and recruiting trail hard to bring in 28 newcomers for 2025.

• Of those 28, 16 are transfer student-athletes, including 11 from junior colleges, a testament to OU assistant coach and recruiting coordinator Todd Butler and the OU staff's expertise at the JUCO level.

• The newcomers have made an impact this season, with nine newcomer position players making starts and three freshmen or transfers making starts on the mound already in 2025.

• Freshman Kyle Branch and junior transfer Dawson Willis have started all 27 games at second and third, respectively. Fellow newcomer outfielders Trey Gambill and Sam Christiansen, and first baseman Dayton Tockey, have all recorded 20 or more starts. Gambill and Branch rank first and second on the team with respective .377 and .340 batting averages, while Tockey and Willis have each provided power at the plate with a combined 20 extra-base hits.

• On the bump, nine Sooners new to the program in 2025 have made appearances with junior JUCO transfer Cade Crossland pacing the group with 29 strikeouts. Freshman Michael Catalano (17 K) and sophomores Cameron Johnson (21 K), Jason Bodin (20 K) and Gavyn Jones (16 K) have been instrumental to OU's pitching success.

For updates and more information on Oklahoma Baseball, follow the Sooners on X/Twitter and Instagram (@OU_Baseball) and like Oklahoma Baseball on Facebook.