Tag: Oklahoma Sooners Softball 2024

Oklahoma softball earns two ESPY nominations for 2024

Oklahoma softball was nominated for a pair of ESPY awards. .

The Oklahoma Sooners softball team was nominated for a pair of awards at the 2024 ESPYS after bringing home the national championship earlier this month.

[autotag]Patty Gasso[/autotag]’s team has been nominated for the Best Team award, after a fantastic [autotag]WCWS[/autotag] run that included one loss in Oklahoma City. It’s the fourth consecutive year Oklahoma has been nominated for the award. This includes last year when OU didn’t win Best Team despite having one loss all season and dominating the NCAA softball tournament field in the midst of the historic winning streak.

This season, the Sooners won the national championship, their eighth since 2000, with Gasso as the head coach. OU has won the past four titles and six of the last eight.

The one loss in the [autotag]Women’s College World Series[/autotag] was avenged in epic fashion by senior [autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag]. Her walk-off home run in Game 3 against Florida was nominated for Best Play.

The 2024 ESPYS will be broadcast live on Thursday, July 11, at 7 p.m. CT on ABC from Los Angeles. Fan voting is underway for all categories and runs through July 11 at 4 p.m. CT. The complete list of 2024 nominees can be viewed here.

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Trio of Oklahoma softball players enter the transfer portal

The Sooners need to replace three players after losing them to the transfer portal.

The Oklahoma Sooners are fresh off victory in the Women’s College World Series final, winning their fourth NCAA national championship in row. It’s championship No. 8 overall for the program, all in the 21st century.

But, heavy is the head that wears the crown. OU had three players depart via the [autotag]transfer portal[/autotag] on Monday.

D1softball’s Justin McLeod posted on social media that [autotag]Avery Hodge[/autotag], [autotag]Quincee Lilio[/autotag] and [autotag]S.J. Geurin[/autotag] will test the portal waters.

Hodge is the most surprising of the departures and the biggest loss of the three. The infielder stepped up when her role increased in the [autotag]Women’s College World Series[/autotag]. She is a career .278 hitter in 114 games and 97 at-bats.

Lilio is another loss in the infield, owning a .211 batting average in her career. She’s mostly played in a utility role, coming off the bench in pinch-hit situations. In 88 games, Lilio has just 71 at-bats.

Geurin is the first pitcher to depart the team. She pitched 10 innings in 2024 after a redshirt season in 2023.

While roster turnover is expected every year, the offseason is just beginning in college softball. [autotag]Patty Gasso[/autotag] will no doubt seek to improve the champs via the [autotag]transfer portal[/autotag] to chase ring No. 9. It’s likely the Sooners will be active in the portal, but they are adding eight true freshmen this fall as part of the 2024 signing class.

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Oklahoma’s senior class pulled off the unthinkable with four-peat

Five of Oklahoma’s seniors earned four national title during their time with the Sooners. An absolutely unbelievable run.

Winning one championship in sports is difficult. Winning two straight puts you in the history books forever. Winning three in a row means you’re a legend. But winning four straight? That’s unheard of in team sports, only being accomplished by a small handful of times throughout history.

“People say, ‘Let’s go win one,’” OU coach Patty Gasso said. “You’re like, ‘OK.’ It’s not like that. It’s very difficult. Everything has to go right. The thing about them is they’re resilient. They have a lot of pride in that.

The 2024 senior class for the Oklahoma Sooners softball team will finish their college careers not knowing how it feels to walk away from a season without a championship.

[autotag]Rylie Boone[/autotag], [autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag], [autotag]Kinzie Hansen[/autotag], [autotag]Tiare Jennings[/autotag] and [autotag]Nicole May[/autotag] now have four rings. They’re joined in this senior class by [autotag]Alyssa Brito[/autotag], [autotag]Karlie Keeney[/autotag], [autotag]Riley Ludlam[/autotag], [autotag]Kelly Maxwell[/autotag] and [autotag]Alynah Torres[/autotag], all transfers who started their careers elsewhere.

“This one was the hardest one that I’ve ever had to work for in my life,” Jennings said via The Oklahoman. “This team, the adversity that we went through, we did it and we overcame everything.”

Oklahoma’s senior class finished with as many national championships as [autotag]NCAA Tournament[/autotag] loses, as OU finished off Texas on Thursday night. It was an 8-4 victory in Game 2 of the [autotag]WCWS[/autotag] final to win championship number eight, tied for the second-most all-time.

The Sooners won their unprecedented fourth-straight championship, giving [autotag]Patty Gasso[/autotag] a record-tying eight rings. Half of them have now come in succession.

The Sooner seniors wowed many inside and outside the world of sports with a career sweep of national championships, but a quote from their head coach tells their story better than anyone else can.

“This is the best senior class that has ever played the game, and I’ll stand behind that as long as I live,” said Gasso of their incredible run.

Patty Gasso has built a historic dynasty in Norman, and this senior class has pulled off something few imagined could ever be done. And we may never see another run like this again. But given what Oklahoma’s done, who’s to say they can’t run it back.

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Kelly Maxwell saves Sooners to earn her first national title

After transferring to Oklahoma from Oklahoma State, Kelly Maxwell was there for the Sooners when her team needed her.

Oklahoma Sooners pitcher [autotag]Kelly Maxwell[/autotag] received a lot of backlash for her decision to cross the Bedlam lines and transfer to OU last fall.

She faced immense pressure following her decision to move to Norman from Stillwater. Maxwell also stepped into the unenviable role of replacing [autotag]Jordy Bahl[/autotag], a dominant pitcher who was a legend in the crimson and cream.

Maxwell shouldered some of the blame when the 2024 edition of the Sooners didn’t always measure up to previous championship iterations.

But make no mistake about it, the Sooners don’t finish off their four-peat if Maxwell stays in Stillwater instead of moving to Norman. She was instrumental in making history happen. It was an emotional roller coaster of a season and the emotions came to a head on Thursday night.

“Just gratitude,” Maxwell said after helping the Sooners win their unprecedented fourth consecutive WCWS title. “Just thankful for everything that I’ve been through and all that I’ve gone through and just being able to have a team that loves me an supports me — all the glory to God — and I think just being able to fight for them as they had my back too.”

Maxwell’s incredible week included shutting out UCLA in a 1-0 win on Saturday, rescuing the Sooners from elimination in a marathon win over Florida on Tuesday, and winning Game 1 against Texas on Wednesday on no rest.

All of this happened before [autotag]Patty Gasso[/autotag] called her in to seal the deal in Game 2 against the Longhorns on Thursday night.

The game teetered in the balance, as the ‘Horns were making a comeback in the top of the sixth inning. Maxwell, normally a starting pitcher, was brought into the game with two outs and two on to save the day. Maxwell got OU out of the inning with the lead, then finished off Texas 1-2-3 in the seventh to get the sweep.

Maxwell’s performances earned her Most Outstanding Player honors for the [autotag]NCAA Tournament[/autotag]. She was 5-0 with two saves and a 1.88 ERA, etching her name in history following a gutsy three week display of excellence.

When the book is written about the Sooners Dynasty, let’s all make sure we save a chapter for Kelly Maxwell. Championship number eight doesn’t happen without No. 28 refusing to back down and rising to the occasion to earn her first national title.

More: Social media reacts to Oklahoma’s national championship win over Texas

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Oklahoma Sooners take on ACC Champion Duke Blue Devils to open WCWS

The Oklahoma Sooners will face Duke in game one of the Women’s College World Series as they begin their quest for a four-peat.

The Oklahoma Sooners softball team has once again made it to the [autotag]Women’s College World Series[/autotag], which will take place from May 30 to June 7. The Sooners are the No. 2 seed in the eight-team field. It’s their eighth trip in a row and 16th appearance to WCWS in program history.

Oklahoma will face Duke in their first game of the WCWS, with first pitch set for Thursday at 1:30 p.m. in Oklahoma City.

The Sooners rolled through the first two rounds of the [autotag]NCAA Tournament[/autotag]. [autotag]Patty Gasso[/autotag]’s team won the Norman Regional two weeks ago before sweeping Florida State in last week’s Norman Super Regional.

Duke went on the road and beat Missouri in the Columbia Super Regional last week. The No. 10 Blue Devils are making their first-ever trip to the WCWS after a 2-1 series win over the Tigers.

Of course, the Sooners are no strangers to the WCWS. They’re searching for their unprecedented fourth-straight national championship. Another title would bring their overall total to eight, all coming since 2000 with Gasso at the helm.

The road will be a bit different for OU in 2024, as the Sooners won’t be the top overall seed this year. No. 1 Texas will face No. 8 Stanford after winning the [autotag]Big 12[/autotag] regular season championship. The Sooners exacted revenge over the Longhorns in the Big 12 Championship, winning the final conference tournament before both teams move to the [autotag]SEC[/autotag].

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Oklahoma softball facing a familiar foe in Florida State Seminoles

The OU softball team draws Florida State in the NCAA Super Regionals, building on an already impressive rivalry.

The Oklahoma Sooners softball team steamrolled through the regional round of the [autotag]NCAA Tournament[/autotag], as [autotag]Patty Gasso[/autotag]’s team looks to be regaining their form at the right time.

Their Super Regional opponent at Love’s Field will be a familiar foe, though, a team the Sooners know very well. The Florida State Seminoles come into Norman as a 15-seed and heavy underdogs against No. 2 Oklahoma.

The Women’s College World Series has been decided between the Sooners and the Seminoles two out of the last three seasons. Back in 2021, Florida State grabbed an upset win in Game 1 of the championship series before the Sooners stormed back to win the national title.

In 2023, Oklahoma continued its historic win streak with a sweep of Florida State, winning championship number seven and completing the three-peat.

Though this Florida State team isn’t ranked as highly as they were in 2021 or 2023, the Seminoles still pose a dangerous threat to the Sooners. They’re a championship-caliber program with players that have plenty of experience in postseason games.

The Norman Super Regional will begin Thursday night on ESPN2 at 6 p.m. with Game 1. The three-game series winner will return to Oklahoma City as one of the eight teams competing in the WCWS.

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Sooners’ Kinzie Hansen named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year

Oklahoma softball’s Kenzie Hansen is the new Defensive Player of the Year in the Big 12.

Oklahoma Sooners’ softball catcher [autotag]Kinzie Hansen[/autotag] has been named the 2024 Defensive Player of the Year in the Big 12. The OU Softball account announced the recognition on Wednesday morning via social media.

The graduate senior and three-time national champion has been a leader behind the plate for [autotag]Patty Gasso[/autotag]’s team. Hansen leads the Sooners with a .415 batting average and has hit eight home runs along with 28 RBIs. She also has six doubles and 14 walks on the season.

Hansen has been a vital part of this four-year run, in the latest installment of the Gasso dynasty. In her time at Oklahoma, she’s hit 57 career home runs, 246 career hits and national championship rings from 2021, 2022 and 2023.

 

Hansen celebrated senior day along with her teammates last week, and the Sooners enter the Big 12 Tournament as the No. 2 seed this week. Oklahoma will face off against either Houston or Kansas on Thursday afternoon at 1:30 p.m.

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Oklahoma softball seeks bounce-back in Big 12 tournament

Oklahoma Sooners softball will need to channel their dominance early in the season if they want to win the Big 12 Tournament.

The Oklahoma Sooner softball team enters the 2024 Big 12 Tournament this week as a 2 seed behind the Texas Longhorns. It’s the first time OU isn’t at the top in 12 years.

But the Sooners still have a chance to earn the top overall seed in the NCAA Tournament if they can win the Big 12 Tournament this week.

It hasn’t been as clear a run to this point for [autotag]Patty Gasso[/autotag]’s team, which lost a three-game series at Texas and a three-game series at home against the Oklahoma State Cowgirls. Everybody in the world of NCAA softball knows the Sooners can flip the switch, however, and run past any and every team they face.

Oklahoma won Game 3 at home against Oklahoma State last week by a score of 8-2 to secure the 2 seed in Oklahoma City. The top of the Big 12 standings features three of the top four teams in the country: the Sooners, Cowgirls and Longhorns.

Oklahoma is sandwiched between their two rivals at No. 2. Texas is No.1 and Oklahoma State is No. 3.

The Big 12 Tournament will run May 8-11, but Oklahoma’s first game will not be until Thursday. The Sooners face No. 7 Kansas, which won the first-round game against No. 10 Houston. First pitch for Oklahoma’s quarterfinal game is 1:30 p.m.

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