The No. 1 overall seed Oklahoma softball team will take on No. 16 Washington in the NCAA Norman Super Regional beginning on Friday.
Don’t be misled by the Lady Huskies’ No. 16 national seed. Ranked No. 6 in the latest USA Softball/ESPN.com Top 25. Washington should probably be hosting its own Super Regional rather than traveling to the Sooner State. Hard to explain exactly what the thinking of the NCAA selection committee was in dropping the Huskies to the 16th and final placement among the national seeds.
But here we are.
Oklahoma’s record-setting offense has been virtually unstoppable this season, but Washington, which beat Michigan twice on Sunday to win the Seattle Regional, comes to Norman a team that balances good hitting with good pitching, a combination that some experts say is the right formula to pose a serious challenge to the top-seeded Sooners.
As the No. 1 scoring team in the nation, averaging over 11 runs per game, Oklahoma has been able to put away teams all season primarily with its high-powered offense, very good but not great pitching and exceptional defensive capability. Washington possesses those same skills, although not as prolific an offensive lineup as the Sooners.
Based on the way the two teams match up statistically, it could easily the best of the eight Super Regionals that take place this weekend, with a spot in the Women’s College World Series on the line.
Here is the statistical comparison of the two teams in several major categories (national ranking in parentheses):
OU Washington
Batting average: .424 (1) .325 (15)
Runs (per nine innings): 11.52 (1) 5.89 (25)
Home runs: 142 (1) 68 (30)
Home runs per game: 2.84 (30) 1.19 (30)
On-base percentage: .509 (1) .406 (15)
Slugging percentage: .814 (1) .537 (17)
Staff ERA: 1.91 (15) 2.41 (39)
Fielding percentage: .986 (1) .984 (2)
The one thing that can shut down a great offense is great pitching, and Washington has one of the best starting pitchers in all of college softball in senior Gabbie Plain. The Washington right-hander is 32-3 this season with an ERA of 1.23 and 331 strikeouts in 227 1/2 innings. She leads the nation in wins and ranks second in strikeouts and is credited with 13 shutouts in the 2021 season.
Plain was the only pitcher Washington used on Sunday in its two wins over Michigan in the Seattle Regional, which speaks to her durability and stamina.
The Washington senior pitched the Huskies to a 2-0 shutout win over Oklahoma in the 2018 Women’s College World Series. She is one of the three finalists, along with OU’s Jocelyn Alo and Rachel Garcia of UCLA, for the 2021 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year.
Washington leads the all-time series with Oklahoma 15-12, but the Sooners are 6-5 against the Huskies when the two teams meet in the postseason.
The cards are certainly stacked in the Sooners’ favor in this one, but they are definitely going to have to be on their game because Washington is coming in with a big chip on its shoulder and the motivation to prove the NCAA selection committee wrong. And going up against the No. 1 overall national seed serves as the ideal setting in which to do it
This has been a record-setting season for the top-ranked Sooners, and Saturday’s game between Oklahoma and Washington will set yet another record. The game will be televised on ABC-TV beginning at 2 p.m. CT. It will be the first college softball game ever televised on the ABC network
The best of three series will also be played before a full-capacity crowd at Oklahoma’s Marita Hynes Field, which should give the Sooners a valuable home-field advantage.