Softball Opens SEC Play Against Auburn

Friday, March 13

6:30 p.m.

University of Oklahoma

Auburn

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Kierston Deal pitching during a game against Abilene Christian

Photo by: Peyton Martin/University of Oklahoma

Softball Opens SEC Play Against Auburn

March 12, 2026 | Softball

Live Stats SECN+ (Friday)SECN+ (Saturday)SECN (Sunday)Tickets vs. Auburn Game Day Program Listen Sooner SeatShare OU Game Notes Auburn Notes

NORMAN — No. 4 Oklahoma opens its second season in the Southeastern Conference with a three-game home series against (RV) Auburn Friday, March 13 through Sunday, March 15.

Friday and Saturday's games will be streamed on SEC Network+, while Sunday's contest is going to be broadcast on SEC Network.

Promotions and Ticket Info:
The SEC home-opening weekend features Kierston Deal's Senior Day Recognition on Friday while Sunday is a "Wear Crimson" game at Love's Field. Kierston Deal posters will be given away to fans on Friday.

A limited number of reserved seats along with standing room only tickets are available for sale. Continue to support the Sooners and ensure your seats are always filled through our SeatShare program. To participate, you can share your tickets with a family member or friend by transferring your tickets, sell your tickets on SeatGeek (Football, Men's and Women's Basketball, Women's Gymnastics, Baseball, and Softball) or donate your tickets back to us for a service member to use. To learn more about earning bonus points or sharing, selling or donating your tickets, click here.

Weekend Schedule
Friday, March 13 at 6:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 14 at 2 p.m.
Sunday, March 15 at 12 p.m.

SERIES HISTORY

• OU and Auburn are meeting for the first time as SEC foes. The Sooners are 8-2 all-time against the Tigers and 1-0 against Auburn in Norman. The Sooners have seen Auburn five times in Oklahoma City though, with OU going 4-1. The Sooners last played Auburn in 2023, with OU winning, 14-0 and 7-1, in Oklahoma City. The most notable encounter with Auburn came in the 2016 Women's College World Series Championship Series as the Sooners won the title in three games.

SEC PRIMER

• Oklahoma begins its second season in the SEC against Auburn March 13-15. The Sooners went 17-7 in their first season in the SEC, winning the regular season title and earning a share of the conference tournament title.

• The Sooners swept No. 10/9 South Carolina in their inaugural SEC weekend last year, winning three one-run games in a meeting of the final two unbeatens in the nation.

FIRST PITCH

• Oklahoma has hit 108 home runs through 27 games and become the fastest program to 100 homers in a season in NCAA history on Sunday against Louisiana. The 2026 tally already ranks seventh in OU history for home runs in a season.

• Oklahoma freshmen have already combined for five weekly honors between national accolades and SEC laurels this season. Kendall Wells has earned three national honors, Kai Minor one and Lexi McDaniel another.

• The Sooners have tallied 38 innings of at least four runs this season, while hitting five or more home runs in 12 of 27 games played.

• OU leads the nation in run-rule victories with 19. Prior to OU's 2-1 win against Louisiana Sunday, March 8 the Sooners had won 10 consecutive games in run-rule fashion.

• OU's offense features 14 players with at least three home runs. Six players have at least nine home runs, while in all of 2025 seven players had eight home runs or more. OU's batting averages range from .345 to .529, with 11 of 14 players with an at-bat batting above .400. Ella Parker hit .423 last year, the lone Sooner to hit above .400 in 2025.

• OU is 4-1 against ranked teams this season, tallying two victories against No. 17/18 Arizona (21-3 and 5-4) as well as a win against No. 14/20 Duke and No. 23/RV Washington. Three of those four victories have been via run-rule as the Sooners have outscored ranked teams, 58-14, this season.

• Oklahoma has won via run-rule in 12 of the last 14 games, while playing only 75 innings over the last 14 games. The Sooners have hit 59 home runs over that stretch, while scoring 195 runs (13.9 per/game). Kendall Wells has hit 10 home runs during that period, while Ella Parker has driven in 28. Those numbers are coming after OU's loss to Long Beach State Feb. 21, igniting a 14-game winning streak.

OFFENSIVE ONSLAUGHT

Oklahoma is slashing the national lead while pacing the country in 10 different offensive statistical categories this year. OU stands atop the country through 27 games in:

Batting average (.457)
Hits (346)
Home Runs (108)
Home Runs/Game (4.0)
On-Base Percentage (.545)
RBIs/Game (12.74)
RBIs (344)
Runs/Game (13.0)
Slugging Percentage (.958)
Runs (351)

EVERYBODY HITS

• OU's lineup has produced from every angle this season. All 14 Sooners that have had an at-bat this season have hit at least three home runs, while five Sooners have had a multi-home run game. Allyssa Parker, Ella Parker, Lexi McDaniel, Gabbie Garcia and Isabela Emerling are all in that group, while Emerling and Ella Parker have both hit three home runs in a single game.

• Each position player that's played has played in at least 19 of 27 games, while 11 of 14 players have greater than a .400 batting average and four have at least a .500 batting average.

FRESHMAN FEATURE

• OU owns the nation's top recruiting class in 2025 and this spring that group will take the field for the first time. Lexi McDaniel (INF, St. Joseph, Mo.), Kai Minor (OF, Irvine, Calif.), Allyssa Parker (RHP/UTL, Pocola, Okla.), Kendall Wells (C, Bogart, Ga.) and Berkley Zache (RHP, Niles, Mich.) round out the 2025 signing class. Freshman Jerrell "Ori" Mailo joins the Sooners early after signing this past November as part of the Sooners' top-ranked 2026 signing class.

• McDaniel, Parker, Wells and Minor have had staggering success at the plate this season. McDaniel and Minor are one and two on the team in batting average (.529 and .510). Prior to this past weekend, Minor was on a 17-game hitting streak and still rides a .560 on-base percentage. McDaniel touts a 1.041 slugging percentage and seven homers, three of which are pinch-hit roundtrippers. Wells leads the entire nation with 19 home runs to go with 37 RBI, while Allyssa Parker's 1.116 slugging percentage ranks third on the team.

SOPHOMORE ARMS

• Sophomore pitching duo of lefty Audrey Lowry and righty Miali Guachino have combined for a 86-1 record, 82 strikeouts and just 16 walks in 86 innings of work. Lowry started the season going 8-0 in her first eight decisions, while Guachino picked up a pair of wins against (RV) San Diego State and No. 23 Washington at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic. Both hurlers have a sub-.90 WHIP.

NATIONAL NODS

• Freshmen Kendall Wells and Lexi McDaniel went back-to-back weeks earning national honors. Wells was named D1Softball Player of the Week and Softball America Freshman of the Week Feb. 24, while Lexi McDaniel earned D1Softball Freshman of the Week honors March 4.

• Wells added to that list of honors yesterday with her second Softball America Freshman of the Week honor of the season.

SEC HONORS

• OU has earned SEC weekly honors in three of four weeks to start the season, with two of them being freshmen.

• Lexi McDaniel, a freshman out of St. Joseph, Mo., is the latest Sooner to earn SEC Freshman of the Week. The infielder hit four home runs and while going 10-for-13 with 11 runs, 12 RBI and a 1.769 slugging percentage during that week. She homered twice Feb. 28 and hit a grand slam to propel OU to a record-setting 21-run inning.

• Freshman Kai Minor was named SEC Freshman of the Week as well, hitting .692 with seven runs, three doubles, one triple, two homers and nine RBI. She tripled and homered in the same game and scored in all five contests on the weekend.

• The speedy centerfielder has swiped seven bases, homered four times and tripled twice.

• Junior Kasidi Pickering was named SEC Player of the Week Monday, Feb. 16, the first such award in her career. She earned the honor after hitting .833 (10-for-12), with 13 runs, 11 RBIs, three home runs and six walks. Pickering leads the team with 26 starts, touting a .628 on-base percentage and a whopping 23 walks.

CIAO BELA

• Redshirt-senior Isabela Emerling has nine home runs through 21 games played, just three short of her total in 58 games played a year ago. Emerling tied the program record for homers with three against Montana last month, while coming up just inches from another three-homer game Tuesday at North Texas.

• Emerling is hitting .460, .248 points higher than her 2025 season total. With one more grand slam she would be tied for seventh in NCAA history for career grand slams. She currently sits at six, with 41 career home runs to her name. Emerling is slugging 1.060, well above her previous career high of .685 set as a sophomore at North Carolina.