It was a tremendous year for Oklahoma Sooners softball as they complete their quest for back-to-back national championships, sweeping Texas in the championship series. It’s their sixth national championship in program history. It was a record-setting season that had the nation marveling at the offensive output and the pitching carried its weight throughout 2022 as well.
With the season now over, the Sooners say goodbye to several super seniors, most notably the NCAA’s all-time home run queen, [autotag]Jocelyn Alo[/autotag]. But that doesn’t mean they’re slowing down by any stretch of the imagination.
While Jocelyn Alo deserves all the recognition for what she’s done at the plate, the woman hitting right behind her is a dominant offensive force in her own right; Tiare Jennings.
Jennings, who just completed her sophomore season hit 29 home runs and drove in 87 RBIs. This a year after hitting 27 home runs with 92 RBIs as a freshman. Yes, that’s 56 home runs and 179 RBIs in two seasons with the Oklahoma Sooners. While her “Bash Sister” has gobbled up the national player of the year awards, Tiare Jennings was a worthwhile option in her own right.
According to Beth Mowins, who took part in ESPN’s college softball roundtable to conclude the 2022 season, Tiare Jennings is the frontrunner for collegiate player of the year in 2023, saying, “I’m going to go way out on a limb and say that Tiare Jennings has put herself as the front-runner for national player of the year.”
Mowins was being a bit facetious, but her bold prediction certainly isn’t that bold. Jennings, the 2021 national freshman of the year, and a two-time first-team All-American has a chance to be the best hitter in softball over the next couple of years with Alo now playing professionally.
She finished the 2022 season first in RBIs (again), and third in home runs. While her batting average was lower than the .462 she hit as a freshman, she still hit an incredible .401 and went on a tear in the NCAA tournament.
In the postseason, Jennings hit .486 with seven home runs and 19 RBIs. She also added four doubles and 14 runs scored to win her second national championship in as many years with the Oklahoma Sooners.
With 56 home runs in two years, she has a great chance to pass former Sooners great Lauren Chamberlain for No. 2 all-time during her senior season. Jennings could also end up as the second player in NCAA history to surpass the 100 home run mark.
She’s off to an incredible start to her Sooners career and she’s just getting started. While there are concerns about who’s hitting behind her to provide the protection that she provided Jocelyn Alo, Jennings has proven that she’s one of the best players in college softball and will only get better.