Oklahoma State Cowgirls Softball

Sooners Still On Top: Updated look at the top 25 softball power rankings after Week 2

Updated look at college softball power rankings after week 2.

Week 2 of the softball season is in the books. And while the action in Clearwater, Florida, getting halted due to weather left much to be desired, it was another fantastic week on the diamond.

There were a number of impressive performances across the country and we’re beginning to see the top teams separate themselves.

Oklahoma may be in a tier of its own because of what it has done over the last three-plus years, but teams such as Texas and Georgia have been impressive as well.

On the flip side, powerhouse programs UCLA and Florida State have had slow starts.

The SEC is beginning to establish itself as the premiere softball conference. Mississippi State and Kentucky have picked up big nonconference wins this season. In D1Softball’s latest top 25, 11 SEC programs are represented. That’s not even including Oklahoma and Texas who will officially be joining the SEC in July.

The Red River Rivals have been on a tear to start the season and look to be on a collision course for the Big 12 title in their final years.

Here’s a look at the latest D1Softball top 25 and where those teams rank in the Softball America power rankings.

Updated to include USA TODAY Sports NFCA Coaches Poll and USA Softball/ESPN Poll.

More: 3 Stars from the Sooners 5-0 weekend in Lake Charles

Sooners No. 1: Updated look at D1Softball’s top 10 after opening week of action

Oklahoma Sooners still No. 1 in the latest softball rankings. What do the rest of the rankings look like?

The opening week of softball action has come and gone. It was a great opening week of tournaments across the country. There were several surprises but a number of the top teams showed that they were indeed contenders to start the season.

Of the surprises, perhaps none was bigger than UCLA struggling with Maryland and San Diego while losing big to Texas and Oklahoma State in Southern California. The Bruins were bounced from the Los Angeles regional last May. Are they heading in the wrong direction as a program, or is this just an early-season funk.

Florida State dropped their opener to Charlotte, but responded well over their final four games of the week.

It’s just week one, but teams like Texas, Tennessee, and Oklahoma State made statements about their status as contenders in 2024.

The Oklahoma Sooners remained the No. 1 team in the nation in both D1Softball and Softball America’s latest top 25 rankings released on Monday.

Here’s a look at the top 10 teams in D1Softball’s top 25 and where they ranked according to Softball America.

Oklahoma Sooners preseason voted No. 1 in Big 12 preseason coaches poll

The Oklahoma Sooners were voted No. 1 in Big 12 preseason coaches poll. How did the rest of the conference stack up?

Surprise, surprise. The three-time defending national champions were voted to win the Big 12. The Sooners have won 11 consecutive Big 12 titles and haven’t lost a regular season series in the conference since 2011 and are 121-4 in Big 12 play since 2016.

In 2023, the Sooners went 18-0 and outscored their conference opponents 123-17 along the way. The pitching staff threw 10 shutouts against Big 12 competition.

In the expanded Big 12, new foes await, but until someone’s able to knock of the Sooners, they’ll remain the favorite in the conference and for the national title.

When they begin the season on February 8 against Utah State, they’ll look to extend their 53-game winning streak and begin their trek to a fourth-straight national championship. No one has ever won four-straight titles, but this Sooners squad looks set up to make another run.

The Sooners return four All-Big 12 first-team selections, including Big 12 Player of the Year [autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag].

Let’s take a look at the Big 12 coaches poll.

Note: Coaches could not vote for their own team.

Conference schedule revealed for Oklahoma Sooners final Big 12 season

The Oklahoma Sooners softball program now knows who their conference opponents will be in their final swim through the Big 12.

The Oklahoma Sooners will venture through the Big 12 one last time in 2024 and now we know the conference part of their schedule.

The Sooners have dominated the Big 12 since it was established in 1996. They’ve won 15 regular season conference titles, including the last 11. They’ve won eight tournament titles.

In 2023, Oklahoma completed the best season in college softball and set the record for consecutive wins at 53 straight and counting.

As Oklahoma looks to add to their trophy, here’s a look at their conference schedule for the 2024 season.

Social media reacts: Ace pitcher Kelly Maxwell transfers to the Oklahoma Sooners

The Oklahoma Sooners made another splash in the transfer portal, adding Oklahoma State ace Kelly Maxwell. Here’s how social media reacted.

What was reported early Thursday morning became official when Kelly Maxwell updated her Instagram profile to include the Oklahoma Sooners.

Maxwell crossed the Bedlam lines to join the Crimson and Cream, but she joins a Sooners team looking to extend its national championship streak to four in 2024.

She’s been one of the best pitchers in college softball for the last several years. Maxwell won Big 12 Co-Pitcher of the Year in 2022 and has been named Pitcher of the Week six times.

The former Oklahoma State Cowgirls ace is capable of carrying a team to the NCAA tournament and Women’s College World Series. However, she joins a team that looks stacked in the circle.

Oklahoma returns Nicole May and Kierston Deal, who were key to the Sooners leading the nation in ERA in 2023. Oklahoma also has highly touted S.J. Guerin, who was a true freshman in 2023. The Sooners added Peytn Monticelli and Karlie Keeney to give them arguably the deepest roster of pitchers in the country.

It’s a huge addition that continues to solidify the Sooners as the frontrunners for the national title in 2024. They’ll be challenged along the way, but Maxwell’s addition gives Oklahoma another fantastic arm to work with.

Here’s how social media reacted to the news.

Oklahoma Sooners should look to add Oklahoma State transfer Kelly Maxwell

Oklahoma Sooners should look to add Oklahoma State Cowgirls transfer ace Kelly Maxwell.

If Jordy Bahl’s departure via the transfer portal wasn’t stunning enough, Oklahoma State Cowgirls’ ace Kelly Maxwell announced via Instagram on Friday morning that she was looking for a new opportunity via the portal.

It’s a stunning move after four years in Stillwater, but as a graduate transfer, Maxwell has the opportunity to continue her career in a new locale.

“This was not an easy decision but one that I felt was best, for my own personal happiness,” Maxwell wrote. “Thank you for being there and supporting me as I made some of the best memories of my life.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/CuZyy9vL3Z9/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

The Oklahoman’s Jenni Carlson had this to say about the stunning development: “Shocking because she has been Oklahoma State softball’s ace for three years. Shocking, too, because of the timing; it’s been a month since her season was over.”

Maxwell was one of five unanimous All-Big 12 first-team selections in 2023, joining former Sooner Bahl and Sooners’ stars Tiare Jennings, Jayda Coleman and Baylor’s Shaylon Govan.

One would think it improbable for the Oklahoma Sooners to add someone from across the Bedlam rivalry lines. However, Trace Ford broke the ice this offseason when the defensive end transferred from Oklahoma State to Oklahoma. Making the jump as well was guard Lexy Keys, who, after playing in 71 games with 32 starts, opted for the Crimson and Cream in the transfer portal.

Maxwell is one of college softball’s best pitchers. She’s a six-time recipient of Big 12 Pitcher of the Week and was the 2022 Big 12 Co-Pitcher of the Year. She had a bit of a down year in 2023, finishing with an ERA of 1.91 and a 16-7 record. This after posting a record of 21-5 in 2022 with an ERA of 1.21 with 313 strikeouts.

In her career, she’s thrown 746 strikeouts and has a career ERA of 1.58 across nearly 500 innings of work.

While the Oklahoma Sooners have [autotag]Nicole May[/autotag] returning and Patty Gasso is high on [autotag]Kierston Deal[/autotag], they’ve been active in the portal this offseason in their attempts to add talent in the circle. They brought in [autotag]Peytn Monticelli[/autotag] after her true freshman year for Wisconsin.

But if 2023 showed us anything, you can never have enough good arms in college softball. It certainly made a huge difference in the Sooners’ record-breaking winning streak and third straight national championship.

Maxwell will be someone that every team in the nation will want to add. You can bet as soon as her name officially hit the portal, either Patty Gasso or pitching coach Jennifer Rocha was in contact.

As the Sooners head into 2024 looking to extend their winning streak and run their national championship run to four straight, adding a talent of Maxwell’s experience and talent would be huge for Oklahoma.

Here’s a look at the best pictures of Kelly Maxwell’s time with the Oklahoma State Cowgirls

Day 4 of the Women’s College World Series: Matchups and how to watch

A pair of elimination games take place on Sunday to determine who heads to the Women’s College World Series semifinals and who goes home.

On Saturday in the Women’s College World Series, the higher seeds held serve to advance to the semifinals. Oklahoma toppled Tennessee, 9-0, and Florida State won a close game against Washington, 3-1.

With Florida State and Oklahoma’s wins on Saturday, Tennessee and Washington change brackets in elimination play.

The Volunteers will take on the Oklahoma State Cowgirls. The winner of that matchup will face Florida State for a chance to go to the Women’s College World Series finals. The Seminoles beat Oklahoma State in their WCWS opener on Thursday.

Washington will take on Pac-12 conference mate Stanford. The winner of this conference showdown will face the back-to-back defending national champion Oklahoma Sooners. Oklahoma beat Stanford on Thursday to open the Women’s College World Series.

Stanford and Oklahoma State have already survived one elimination game. The Cardinal beat Alabama, and the Cowgirls beat Utah to stay alive in the Women’s College World Series.

Here’s a look at Sunday’s matchups and how to watch.

No. 9 Stanford vs. No. 7 Washington, 2 p.m. CT on ABC.

No. 6 Oklahoma State vs. No. 4 Tennessee, 6 p.m. CT on ESPN2.

[lawrence-auto-related count=5 category=683578888]

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow John on Twitter @john9williams.

Day 2 of the Women’s College World Series: Matchups and How to Watch

There are three games on Day 2 of the Women’s College World Series. Here’s a look at Friday’s schedule.

Day one of the Women’s College World Series featured a pair of impressive offensive performances from Tennessee and Florida State and a pitcher’s duel for the ages between Jordy Bahl and NiJaree Canady.

It was a fantastic opening day for the WCWS in Oklahoma City. The only negative takeaway was they weren’t able to finish each of the opening round matchups due to inclement weather.

On the bright side, moving Washington and Utah to Friday gave us another day with a three-game WCWS slate.

The Huskies and the Utes are each looking to punch their ticket to the winners’ bracket semifinals. The evening matchups give us our first elimination games in Oklahoma City.

Will Utah’s incredible postseason run continue? Can Oklahoma State and Stanford bounce back from being shutout on Thursday? Will Alabama be able to keep their game closer against Stanford than they were able to against Tennessee in the opener?

Here’s a look at Friday’s matchups and how to watch.

No. 7 Washington vs. No. 15 Utah – 12 pm CT on ESPN2

No. 5 Alabama vs. No. 9 Stanford – 6 pm CT on ESPN*

No. 6 Oklahoma State vs. Loser of Washington vs. Utah – 8:30 pm CT on ESPN*

*Denotes Elimination Game

[lawrence-auto-related count=5 category=683578888]

Key players to watch for each team in the Women’s College World Series

As the eight teams descend on Oklahoma City, here are some of the key players to watch in the Women’s College World Series.

This week, the eight teams who qualified for the Women’s College World Series will descend upon Oklahoma City to crown the 2023 national champion. While the Oklahoma Sooners are the favorite to win the title, they’ll be challenged along the way.

Each of the eight teams in the Women’s College World Series is bringing some serious talent with them to USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium.

While there are certainly a lot of talented players worth mentioning from each team, here’s a look at some of the key players in this year’s WCWS field.

Women’s College World Series field set for Oklahoma City

With the super regionals complete, here’s a look at the Women’s College World Series field and how each team punched their ticket to Oklahoma City.

In what has become one of the best weekends in sports, the super regionals didn’t disappoint. There were incredible matchups across the board, and while just two of the super regionals went to a game three, there was plenty of drama across the country.

Of the eight teams that advanced, only one lower-seeded team in the super regional was able to advance. The Stanford Cardinal. Of the eight teams represented, three are from the Pac-12, two are from the Big 12, two are from the SEC, and one is from the ACC. No Big Ten teams were able to make it to the Women’s College World Series, and no mid-major programs advanced to OKC in 2023.

With the super regionals complete, here’s a look at the Women’s College World Series field and how each team punched their ticket to Oklahoma City.