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Oklahoma softball: Sooners add another transfer for 2024

By Chip Rouse

Oklahoma celebrates the home run of Cydney Sanders (1) in the fifth inning during the second game of the Women's College World Championship Series between the Oklahoma Sooners and Florida State at USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City, Thursday, June, 8, 2023.
Oklahoma celebrates the home run of Cydney Sanders (1) in the fifth inning during the second game of the Women's College World Championship Series between the Oklahoma Sooners and Florida State at USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City, Thursday, June, 8, 2023. /
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We knew Patty Gasso and the Oklahoma softball program would be active in the transfer portal this offseason, and the Sooners have earned commitments from two transfer players this week.

On Wednesday, OU announced the addition of freshman pitcher Paytn Monticelli from the Wisconsin Badgers. Not even 24 hours later, former Furman catcher Riley Ludlam announced she was transferring to Oklahoma.

And something tells me Gasso is not done with the transfer portal this offseason.

In addition to the catcher position, Ludlam played some at shortstop this past season. It is not clear whether she will replace departed Sooner shortstop Grace Lyons while also providing backup at catcher for Kinzie Hansen, who has one season of eligibility remaining. Either way, Ludlam will have only one year of eligibility remaining.

Ludlam could also be used as the designated player. Former Texas A&M transfer Haley Lee was in that role a good part of the time this past season for the Sooners, but her eligibility ended with the 2023 season.

A Fort Myers, Florida, native, Ludlam was an All-Southern Conference First-Team selection in 2023.

In four seasons at Furman, Ludlum started 169 games (every game for four years), batted a collective .309 with 25 home runs and 117 runs batted in. Her best season was this past one when she hit .372 with 10 home runs and 41 RBI.

Ludlam is the third addition to the Oklahoma softball roster for the 2024. She joins fellow transfer Monticelli and former Sooner softball star Falepolima Aviu, who has been added to the coaching staff as an assistant. Aviu played on Oklahoma’s 2016 and 2017 national championship teams. She was a graduate assistant under Gasso in the Sooners’ 2022 national championship season and served as an assistant coach at North Carolina this past season.

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