Oklahoma softball: OU’s domination extends beyond No. 1 ranking
By Chip Rouse
Oklahoma softball sits No. 1 in the national rankings this week and is the only undefeated team in the country with a perfect 28-0 record.
The Sooners aren’t just winning games; they’re winning by large margins. Twenty of Oklahoma’s 28 games this season ended by run-rule prior to the official seven innings.
Only five times this season has the OU winning margin been by three or fewer runs.
Oklahoma is winning with power bats and timely hitting and shutdown pitching to go along with strong defense in the field. The Sooners are among the national leaders in all three categories. OU has scored at least 10 runs in an inning five times this season.
The Sooners were scheduled to play a three-game series at Baylor this weekend, but the series was cancelled because of COVID protocols within the Baylor program. Instead, Oklahoma was able to pick up a pair of games in Louisiana on Saturday. They will play a doubleheader against Mississippi State in the first game, followed by a contest with Louisiana Tech on the Lady Techsters’ home diamond in Reston, Louisiana.
More from OU softball
- Oklahoma softball: Sooners add a fourth top-ranked 2025 commitment
- Oklahoma softball: Sooners pick up three elite 2025 commitments this month
- Oklahoma softball: Sooner star Grace Lyons is Big 12 Scholar Athlete of the Year
- Oklahoma softball: Sooners add Oklahoma State ace pitcher via transfer
- Oklahoma softball: Sooners add veteran starting pitcher via transfer
Mississippi State is 19-15 overall but is winless in nine outings in the Southeastern Conference. The Lady Bulldogs, who are 0-3 all-time against OU, have some familiar faces on staff. They are coached by Oklahoma alum and former All-American Samantha Rickets. A 2009 OU graduate, Ricketts is in her second season as head coach at Mississippi State after serving four as an assistant.
Ricketts has another former Sooner on her staff. Nicole Ricketts, who played on two OU national championship teams (2016 and 2017) is a graduate assistant.
Louisiana Tech comes into Saturday’s twin bill with a 13-16 overall record and 3-1 in Conference USA. The Sooners and Lady Techsters have met a dozen times previously with OU holding an 8-4 advantage. The two teams have met once before in Ruston, in 1983. Louisiana Tech won that game, 2-1.
The Sooners are pounding the ball all over the diamond this season, and that goes pretty much top-to-bottom through the lineup. The average score margin of an OU game in 12.1 to 1.4.
As a team Oklahoma leads the nation in the following hitting categories:
Batting average: .457
Runs: 338
On-base percentage: .533
Slugging percentage: .894
Home runs: 91 (28 more than second-place Arkansas)
Home runs per game: 3.25
The Sooners have hit at least one home run in 27 of 28 games and has clubbed at least two in 25 of the 28 outings. They have hit two-plus round-trippers in one inning 21 times, three or more in an inning seven times and four-plus four times.
Thirteen different Oklahoma players have hit a home run this season
The OU pitching staff has thrown a shutout 14 times this season, tied for No. 1 in the country, and has a collective ERA of 1.45, eighth best in the country.
On defense, the Sooners rank third nationally with a .985 fielding percentage.
On the individual side, Senior Joceyln Alo’s 22 home runs is the most among Division I players. True freshman Tiare Jennings has 16 home runs, which ranks third nationally, and sophomore Kinzie Hansen is right behind with15, tied for fourth.
Oklahoma also has three of the top-four hitters in the country, based on batting average: Also, 1st, .566; Jennings, 2nd, .527; freshman Jayda Coleman, 4th, .513.
Head coach Patty Gasso has led the Sooners for 27 seasons. In all that time, she has never had a losing season at Oklahoma overall or in conference games. She has won 1,308 games and has a .795 winning percentage, the best all-time in OU softball.
With numbers like these, it’s pretty easy to understand why Oklahoma is recognized as the best softball team in the country midway through the 2021 season. The Sooners began the season as the country’s No, 4 team. They moved into the top spot the week of March 1 and have remained there ever since. OU received 19 of the 20 first-place votes this week.