Oklahoma softball: Sooners remain No. 1; sweep Big 12 weekly honors
By Chip Rouse
Oklahoma softball heads into the Big 12 Tournament this week as the No. 1 seed and as the country’s top-ranked team.
There was some concern after the Sooners suffered their second loss of the season last weekend at Oklahoma State that No. 2 UCLA (38-3) might jump OU into the top spot, but the Sooners retained their hold on the No. 1 ranking for the 11th consecutive week. Oklahoma received 25 of the 32 first-place votes.
Oklahoma State, by the way, fell two spots, to No. 9, this week in the USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Poll.
Oklahoma took two of three games from the Cowgirls over the weekend, giving the Sooners 60 consecutive Big 12 series wins. It was a hard-fought series. Every game could have gone a different way, which was exactly what Patty Gasso’s crew needed as they prepare to head into the postseason, where they have had a great deal of success in recent seasons.
There is a very good chance that OU and Oklahoma State could meet up again in the championship game of the Big 12 Tournament this weekend.
Two Oklahoma freshmen who played key roles in the Sooners two wins over Oklahoma State swept the Big 12 weekly awards. Nicole May was named Big 12 Pitcher of the Week, and Jayda Coleman was honored as Player of the Week in the conference. It was the first Big 12 weekly award for both Sooners.
Playing in her first Bedlam softball series, May weekend of work included one win, one save and six strikeouts in 5.1 innings in relief. Oklahoma State hitters batted a collective .133 against May.
The freshman right-hander came on in relief in the third inning of Sunday’s series finale and shut down the Cowgirls the rest of the way, holding them to one run on three hits, to preserve the Sooner victory.
May also came on in the seventh inning in game two with one out, two runs in and two on base, with the Sooners leading 6-4, and recorded the final two outs. It was her first save of the season and allowed OU to even the series at a game apiece.
Coleman, the No. 1 overall recruit in the 2020 class, ended the weekend going five-for-eight at the plate for a.625 average, with six runs batted in, a home run and a double. She also recorded nine putouts from her center field position, several of which were diving catches that could have led to extra bases and Oklahoma State runs. Her .500 season batting average is tied for fourth best in NCAA Division I softball.
It was the 10th time this season that an Oklahoma player has received Big 12 weekly honors. Another Sooner freshman, Tiare Jennings has been named Big 12 Player of the Week three different times this season.
Top-seeded Oklahoma will open up the Big 12 Tournament in Oklahoma City with a pair of games on Friday. The Sooners will play No. 4 Baylor in their first game on Friday and No, 6 Texas Tech in the second game. The teams will be re-seeded after the opening round. Saturday’s games will consist of the third-place game, followed by the second-place game. The championship game will follow those two games, at approximately 3 p.m. on Saturday.
The Big 12 Tournament championship game will be televised on ESPN2.