The University of Oklahoma may be situated on the plains in the middle of the country, but OU softball head coach Patty Gasso and the Sooners have no difficulty attracting the best softball talent from all over country.
That's what winning six national championships in its last nine Women's College World Series appearances and 12 conference championships in the last 13 years will do for you.
On National Signing Day on Wednesday, Oklahoma locked down another top-ranked recruiting class, signing three five-star recruits and three four-stars to the Sooners' 2026 class. This was the second year in a row the Sooners signed the country's No. 1 softball recruiting class, according to On3. Last year's OU class included four of the top five players nationally. And fans will be happy to know Gasso and her staff already have a head start on another outstanding recruiting class for 2027.
Oklahoma softball signs another No. 1 recruiting class for 2026
The 2026 Oklahoma softball signees come from five different states, including California, Arizona, Hawaii, Texas and Oklahoma.
"This is one of the best incoming freshman classes we've had in a while," Gasso said in a statement. "There's a little bit of everything, from pitching to great defense, but some big-time hitters are going to make this offense powerful and elite."
The 2026 season will be Gasso's 32nd year leading the Oklahoma softball program.
Meet the new recruits and the future of the OU softball program:
Peyton Westra, 1B/OF
A five-star recruit, and the No. 2 player in the country and No. 1 outfielder, from Mesa, Arizona. A three-time regional champion in high school, three-time first-team all-region, and Westra earned defensive player and player of the year honors one time each. Her high school batting average/on-base percentage/slugging percentage was .755/.826/1.735.
Jerrell "Ori" Mailo, IF
Another five-star prospect and ranked as the No. 4 player nationally. The Sooners have done extremely well in recent years recruiting Hawaiian players, and Mailo is the latest one. She is a two-time Hawaiian state champion and MVP with Mililani Varsity Softball.
Malaya Majam-Finch, RHP
Ranked as the No. 1 player in the 2026 class by Extra Innings Softball. Majam-Finch was the 2021 All-America Games champion. She is a three-year captain of her high school team in Fullerton, California, first-team all-league and league MVP. She's the niece of USA Softball legendary pitcher Jennie Finch.
Ella Kate "EK" Smith, RHP
Ranked as the No. 2 player nationally by Perfect Game USA, from Katy, Texas. A 2025 World Cup Champion with the USA U18 National Softball Team, a 2025 Extra Innings Class of 2026 National First-Team All-American, 2025 #3 Max Preps/Extra Innings Player Class of 2026 and 2025 Max Preps Top Players to Watch Class of 2026.
Ki'ele Ho-Ching, IF
Defensive player of the year and MVP as a freshman at Long Beach Polytechnic in California. Three-time offensive player of the year and three-time first-team in her high school conference. She has a career batting average of .537 and has hit over .500 all three seasons.
Keegan Baker, RHP
The Sooners didn't have to go far to find Keegan Baker. She is the lone in-state recruit in OU's 2026 class. Baker led Edmond Memorial High School to four state tournament appearances and was a four-time conference pitcher of the year. She was an Extra Innings First-Team All-American and a four-time District 6A-1 Pitcher of the Year. Her senior high school season, she posted a 0.7 ERA and struck out 211 hitters in 180 innings.