Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
The Oklahoma Sooners face the Mississippi State Bulldogs in a top 25 showdown, but what are the other top games this weekend.
The 2024 softball season is off and running, and tournament play from coast-to-coast continues this week.
The Oklahoma Sooners are heading west for the annual Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic for a five-game slate. Additionally, some fantastic matchups are happening in Austin, Raleigh and in Athens.
But what are the best matchups happening this weekend? Here’s a look at eight games we’re looking forward to.
The Tigers have won back-to-back games on walk-offs in the Clearwater Invitational.
The LSU softball team passed its first major test of the season against a top-10 Oklahoma State team on Saturday in the Clearwater Invitational. The Tigers overcame a seventh-inning deficit as [autotag]Hannah Carson[/autotag] hit a walk-off, two-RBI single as LSU moved to 8-0 on the season.
[autotag]Sydney Berzon[/autotag] got the start on the mound and pitched a complete game. It wasn’t her best outing as she allowed 11 hits and six earned runs while striking out just five.
Oklahoma State started the game with a homer in the first inning, but LSU answered with a pair of runs in the bottom of the frame. It added three more in the second as it jumped out to an early 5-1 lead.
But the Cowgirls didn’t go away. They put up five in the third inning to retake the lead as Berzon had her roughest frame of the morning.
There was no scoring in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings, and LSU entered the bottom of the seventh in a do-or-die situation. Carson answered the call, and the Tigers’ impressive start to the season continued.
It will have another tough matchup later on Saturday afternoon against No. 5 Washington, which will begin at 4 p.m. CT in Clearwater.
Contact/Follow us @LSUTigersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Louisiana State news, notes, and opinions.
Follow Tyler to continue the conversation on Twitter: @TylerNettuno
Oklahoma Sooners softball 2024 schedule.
2023 was a historic season for the Oklahoma Sooners softball program. From breaking the regular season attendance record in a game with Texas to their national title three-peat and win streak, the Sooners were awe-inspiring a season ago.
The three-time defending national champion Sooners have a chance to accomplish something that hasn’t been done before: win four consecutive national championships.
The Oklahoma Sooners are currently riding a 57-game winning streak.
Though they suffered critical losses to the transfer portal ([autotag]Jordy Bahl[/autotag]) and graduation ([autotag]Grace Lyons[/autotag]), they’ll enter the season as the overwhelming favorites once again. Especially after retooling with additions like [autotag]Kelly Maxwell[/autotag] through the transfer portal and a freshmen class that could contribute immediately.
Oklahoma will move into a new home at Love’s Field. The Sooners’ new home increases their capacity for home games from 1,378 to 4,200 seats.
The Sooners women’s basketball team is back in action heading to Stillwater to face the Cowgirls for one final road game as conference foes.
There might not be a hotter team in women’s college basketball than the Oklahoma Sooners. They currently sit at 8-1 in conference play, with their only loss coming to No. 2 Kansas State Wildcats, which they avenged Wednesday night. That win gave the Sooners their first win over a top 2 team in the AP poll since 2004.
But they have to keep that momentum going, and it won’t be easy as they head on the road for [autotag]Bedlam[/autotag]. This will be the final road game for the Sooners as conference foes. [autotag]Oklahoma State Cowgirls[/autotag] currently sit at 4-6 in conference play and 11-10 overall.
A win this week could put Oklahoma back in the top 25 come next week. So, let’s take a look at how you can watch the game.
The Oklahoma Women’s basketball team is also back in action. They take on the Texas Tech Lady Raiders Saturday afternoon.
The Oklahoma Sooners women’s basketball team hit a little bit of a rough spot to end nonconference play but have bounced back nicely to open up Big 12 play. After three straight wins, however, they lost to the No. 12 ranked [autotag]Kansas State Wildcats[/autotag].
They could never get their offense going, shooting just 27.1% from the field and 25% from the three-point line. They also turned it over 13 times.
Now, they head back home to Norman, Okla. to take on the [autotag]Texas Tech Lady Raiders[/autotag]. Texas Tech is currently 2-2 in conference play, losing their last one to the [autotag]Oklahoma State Cowgirls[/autotag].
Let’s take a look at how you can watch the game and some key players to watch.
Tatum Clopton took a medical redshirt in 2023 after making five appearances on the mound as a freshman in 2022.
LSU softball coach [autotag]Beth Torina[/autotag] has landed her second transfer this offseason as former Oklahoma State pitcher [autotag]Tatum Clopton[/autotag] joined the roster.
The Lawrence, Kansas, native appeared in six games as a true freshman with the Cowgirls in 2022, five of which came on the mound. In one start that season, she allowed just two hits with no earned runs while striking out five batters.
Clopton didn’t appear during the 2023 season as she took a medical redshirt. She’ll arrive in Baton Rouge with three remaining years of eligibility as she looks to bolster a promising pitching staff that returns All-American freshman pitcher [autotag]Sydney Berzon[/autotag].
The Tigers add to their bullpen with transfer pitcher Tatum Clopton!
📄: https://t.co/Sigga0gwDu#GeauxTigers pic.twitter.com/eqL7r7nyR9
— LSU Softball (@LSUsoftball) July 31, 2023
LSU is still looking for its first Women’s College World Series appearance since 2017 after falling short in the Baton Rouge Regional in 2023.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=693609636]
Contact/Follow us @LSUTigersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Louisiana State news, notes, and opinions.
Follow Tyler to continue the conversation on Twitter: @TylerNettuno
Oklahoma State holds the early lead at the NCAA Championship thanks to a school-record performance.
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Maddison Hinson-Tolchard’s putt grabbed the lower lip of the cup before trickling in, bringing her teammates and orange-clad fans above the 18th green to a roar.
The junior at Oklahoma State hit an excellent approach shot into the par-5 closing hole, her final of the first round at the 2023 NCAA Women’s Golf Championship at Grayhawk Golf Club. Her putt tried to miss the cup, but it found its way in for her third straight birdie to close out the day.
The Cowgirls sit on top of the leaderboard at Grayhawk after the morning wave, shooting 8-under 280. Hinson-Tolchard, the Big 12 individual champion, is also leading, firing a 6-under 66, the lowest round in an NCAA Championship in school history.
“It was just steady,” Hinson-Tolchard said. “I didn’t even feel like I had a 66. Sunk a couple of really good putts and just kept myself in it.”
The best part is, Hinson-Tolchard didn’t realize she had the individual lead until told so after her round. One of the players in second? Her teammate, Rina Tatematsu, who shot a 4-under 68.
In 2021, the first year of three straight NCAA Championships at Grayhawk, Oklahoma State found itself in the match play final going up against Ole Miss. Hinson-Tolchard and Tatematsu were freshman and in the lineup. Hinson-Tolchard even won her match against Ole Miss, but the Cowgirls’ lost.
Last year, they returned to Grayhawk but finished 19th of 24 teams, missing the Monday cut to 15. That has been motivation all season.
“They’ve talked about wanting to get back, and it’s good to see them playing well,” Oklahoma State coach Greg Robertson said. “They were a big part of our success that week, but I’m happy with the way they started off.”
Clouds lingered above Scottsdale all morning and winds were calm, and Oklahoma State took advantage. Georgia, which also started in the morning wave, is the closest chaser at 2 under. Duke shot even par and was third of teams to tee off in the morning.
Texas Tech’s Shannon Tan matched Tatematsu with a 4-under 68.
However, it’s Hinson-Tolchard and the Cowgirls leading the way, and there’s plenty of motivation to continue after the strong start.
“It was a bummer not making it to match play last year,” Hinson-Tolchard said. “It was a huge motivation to get back. We want that feeling again.”
[mm-video type=playlist id=01es6rjnsp3c84zkm6 player_id=none image=]
A look at how social media reacted to the Oklahoma Sooners sweep of the Oklahoma State Cowgirls in Bedlam.
The Oklahoma Sooners completed the 2023 regular season with a sweep of the Oklahoma State Cowgirls in Stillwater. Two of the three contests weren’t all that close as the Oklahoma Sooners pitching staff continued its incredible run on the way to a Bedlam sweep.
During the sweep, Alex Storako moved to 16-0 and recorded strikeout No. 1,000. She’s been such a huge pickup for Patty Gasso this season; she has provided a veteran presence that can throw a bunch of innings.
In the Sunday win, Grace Lyons and Alynah Torres provided the offense the Sooners needed to complete their Big 12 slate undefeated.
As Oklahoma prepares for the Big 12 championships in Oklahoma City, here’s a look at how social media reacted to the sweep.
Oklahoma’s pitching staff came up big in the Bedlam sweep, allowing just six runs to a top 20 scoring offense in Oklahoma State.
With the regular season over, the Oklahoma Sooners finished No. 1 in scoring and ERA in 2023. An incredible feat for the most balanced and best team in college softball. We’re used to the Sooners offense being something special, but this year, Oklahoma’s pitching rotation has carried its fair share of the load as well.
Oklahoma State came into the series with the No. 8 team batting average and the No. 17 scoring offense, and the Sooners effectively shut them down.
In the series sweep, the Sooners’ pitching staff showed out. They allowed just six runs on the weekend against a top-20 scoring offense and just one home run. In the three games, Patty Gasso went four deep, utilizing Jordy Bahl, Nicole May, Alex Storako, and true freshman Kierston Deal.
The starters threw 19.2 of a possible 21 innings, and Deal provided 1.1 innings of work in Oklahoma’s come-from-behind win on Saturday evening. We’ve known what Oklahoma’s three primary starters were capable of, but Deal’s performance against the Cowgirls provided a glimpse of just how dangerous the Sooners’ pitching staff will be in tournament play.
When most teams will shorten their rotation of pitchers, the Oklahoma Sooners will be able to utilize four to great effect in Big 12 and NCAA tournament play.
This week, Oklahoma will play at most two games. That gives Gasso plenty of options along the way as they seek a Big 12 tournament title. When they get into regionals, super regionals, and the Women’s College World Series, nobody is set up as well as the Oklahoma Sooners because of their deep pitching staff.
For the Sooners to win their third-consecutive national championship, they’ll need the pitching staff to continue to be as good as they’ve been all season long. With a deep trio of starting pitchers and an effective true freshman that can provide a spot start or a relief appearance, Oklahoma will be incredibly difficult to beat in May and June.
Here’s a look at some of the best photos from Oklahoma’s sweep of Oklahoma State in Bedlam.
After the final weekend of the regular season, the Big 12 tournament seeding and schedule is set with the Sooners the No. 1 seed.
Both the Oklahoma Sooners and Texas Longhorns breezed through their semifinal matchup with run-rule wins to get to the Big 12 championship game on Saturday.
It’s a top-15 matchup for the league’s tournament title. Oklahoma has dominated the series in recent years, including a three-game sweep of the Longhorns the first weekend in April.
Texas had to overcome a four-run deficit to the Texas Tech Red Raiders on Thursday to reach the semifinal. This after getting swept in their regular season series finale over Baylor. With the 9-1 win over Kansas, it looks like the Longhorns have righted the ship heading into a Red River Showdown for the Big 12 title.
