Oklahoma baseball: Sooner shortstop honored as Big 12 Co-Newcomer of Week
By Chip Rouse
![Dakota Harris snags a ground ball and throws to first putting out Scott Shaw as the University of Oklahoma Sooners (OU) baseball team plays Rider at L. Dale Mitchell Park on Feb. 24, 2023 in Norman, Okla. [Steve Sisney/For The Oklahoman]Ou Practice](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape%2Fcover%2Fsport%2F88edebfd711c495f821084f1c354e1b8cbae8024e0e97bf96ba83e0ab077b7f3.jpg "Dakota Harris snags a ground ball and throws to first putting out Scott Shaw as the University of Oklahoma Sooners (OU) baseball team plays Rider at L. Dale Mitchell Park on Feb. 24, 2023 in Norman, Okla. [Steve Sisney/For The Oklahoman]Ou Practice")
Oklahoma baseball junior shortstop Dakota Harris played a key role in the Sooners series win over TCU this past weekend and on Monday was named the Big 12 Co-Newcomer of the Week.
Harris, who transferred to OU after two seasons at Polk County State College in Winter Haven, Florida, went 5 for 11 at the plate and drove in five runs as the Sooners took two of three games from TCU over the weekend.
The junior shortstop’s five hits included a three-run homer, a double and three singles. He also collected three walks.
For the season, Harris is hitting .386, third best on the Sooner team, with a .448 on-base percentage, and an on-base-plus-slugging percentage of 1.050.
Harris shared the Newcomer of the Week honor in the Big 12 with Austin Green of Texas Tech, who also was named Big 12 Player of the Week. Pitcher of the Week honors went to Will Rigney of Baylor.
This is the first Big 12 weekly award for Harris and the second weekly honor for a Sooner this season. Freshman catcher Easton Carmichael was named Big 12 Newcomer of the Week on March 13.
Oklahoma is 13-7 overall this season and is off to a 2-1 start in Big 12 play. The Sooners suffered heavy losses from last season’s OU squad that finished a national runner-up to Ole Miss in the College World Series. Five of the nine regular starters in the Sooner lineup this season are newcomers either as freshmen or transfers.
They will host Dallas Baptist, which owns an identical 13-7 record, on Tuesday night at L. Dale Mitchell Park.