It looks like the Oklahoma Sooners will soon be getting a secret weapon back, but it's not on the field.
News 9's Toby Rowland, who's also the voice of the Sooners, reported on Thursday that OU associate head coach and pitching coach Jennifer Rocha is expected to return to the team for the first time this season when the No. 4 Sooners play LSU in an SEC series this weekend.
Rocha had been away from the team ever since OU head coach Patty Gasso announced the same day as the Sooners' season opener that Rocha would be gone for "an undetermined period" because of an undisclosed health matter. In replace of Rocha, Gasso brought in former OU pitcher Karlie Keeney as an interim coach.
Pitching coach Jennifer Rocha reportedly returning in midst of 21-game winning streak
Gasso made it known early how vital of a loss Rocha would be, no matter how long it was for.
"She is always the calm voice, the reasonable voice, the faith-based voice, the thought-out thoughtful voice," Gasso said early in the season. "It's just, she is too wonderful of a person to be a coach. That's horrible, but coaches are ruthless. We want to win at all costs. Sometimes you just forget who you are, and she never does. And she never lets us as a coaching staff forget who we are. She just always keeps our feet on the ground, keeps us in check.
"I don't know, she's one of the greatest people I've ever met. I love working next to her and it's very hard to look to my left and not see her there. But a familiar face is always helpful, and Karlie Keeney has stepped in graciously and really did a good job for us as our opening weekend began."
The Sooners' pitching staff struggled early on without Rocha, but has since gotten back on track during OU's 21-game winning streak. Audrey Lowry asserting herself as the ace has been the biggest key in the Sooners' pitching turnaround.
Lowry has a team-best 2.08 ERA and 15-1 record in 18 appearances and 10 starts. As a team, the Sooners have a 2.71 ERA as transfers Sydney Berzon and Miali Guachino have recently stepped up. Freshmen Allyssa Parker and Berkley Zache have also been impressive lately in minimal opportunities.
The Sooners should instantly up their game now. That's no knock on Keeney, but Rocha is one of the best pitching coaches in college softball. With a staff made up mostly of newcomers, many will get their first in-season coaching from Rocha to improve quicker than they ever have.
With Rocha healthy enough to return, that's nothing but good news for the Sooners and terrifying for the rest of the country. The Sooners are hitting the ball at a historic rate and were 32-2 without one of their most vital assets. Now, if pitching was supposed to keep the Sooners from another national title, those problems will soon be solved.