Oklahoma softball: No. 2 Sooners need to avoid Baylor Bear trap

Opponents looking for a soft spot in Oklahoma softball will become frustrated in a hurry.

That’s because there are few weaknesses in this Sooner squad. Oklahoma is 32-2 and ranked second in the nation for a reason: This team is really, really good.

The Sooners have it all: outstanding pitching, an explosive offense that can produce runs playing both small ball and long ball and makes few defensive mistakes. And this is something that has become very characteristic of a Patty Gasso-coached team.

As good as this OU softball team is, it is not invincible. The Sooners’ two losses this season (both to teams ranked in the top three at the time) proves that point.

Good teams always have a target on their back. That is why the Sooners can expect to get the best shot from every opponent they come up against.

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Complacency is the No. 1 enemy of great teams, and is just the crack in the armor that a lessor opponent needs to overcome the odds against it.

We bring this up because OU would appear to be an overwhelming favorite playing at home this weekend against a Baylor team that is under .500 overall (15-18) and just 2-5 to open the Big 12 schedule. Beyond that, the Sooners have won 43 consecutive game at Marita Hynes Field in Norman and own a 60-13 all-time record against Baylor.

Oklahoma is 22-0 since suffering a 7-1 loss to then No. 2 UCLA (the Bruins are now ranked No. 1 in the country) on Feb. 22. That is the longest active winning streak in Division I softball. In addition, the Sooners have not lost to a Big 12 opponent in 28 consecutive games dating back to the 2017 season.

During the 22-game winning streak, the OU offense has generated 184 runs, while the country’s third-ranked pitching staff has allowed just 19 total runs.

The Sooners have showed little signs of letting up against any opponent this season. They have averaged nearly nine runs a game, and 17 of their 32 wins have been decided after five innings because of the run rule ( a game is ruled over after five innings if a team is up by eight or more runs).

Oklahoma leads Division I softball in hitting (.377 batting average), on-base percentage (.464) and slugging percentage (.680), and the pitching staff’s 1.25 earned run average is the third best in the nation.

This weekend’s home series with Baylor is the last complete series the Sooners will play at home the remainder of this season. All of OU’s remaining conference games, with the exception of a single game against Oklahoma State on May 4, will be played away from Norman.