6 Oklahoma Sooners were included in USA Softball’s preseason National Player of the Year watch list.
The Oklahoma Sooners are about to embark on another incredible journey when the 2024 season gets started. Owners of a record 53-game winning streak, they’ll have a chance to further extend their historic achievement deep into the year.
They’ll have a couple of top 10 battles with Washington and Duke on the first weekend of the season in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. But if they can pass those tests, there’s no telling when the streak could come to an end.
The Sooners will get everyone’s best shot yet again in 2024, but they’ve got the talent to withstand every salvo, just like they did last year. Though they’re replacing Jordy Bahl, Grace Lyons, and Haley Lee, they brought in a talented freshman class and a number of impactful transfers to retool the roster.
But there’s more than enough talent to have another magical season and it starts with the six Sooners that were named to USA Softball’s National Player of the Year watch list.
As the Sooners get set to face Clemson, Oklahoma will face one of the best players in college softball, Valerie Cagle.
There was a great deal said about the Oklahoma Sooners who did not make the top three for the USA Softball National Player of the Year honor. Jayda Coleman, Tiare Jennings and Jordy Bahl were finalists (top 10) but missed the cut.
One of the players who made the shortlist is Clemson’s Valerie Cagle. Cagle is tied for seventh in the nation with 19 home runs and tied for 18th in RBIs. Her .467 batting average is fifth in college softball.
She put together an incredible season at the plate. She also has been Clemson’s best pitcher in 2023. Her 25 wins are tied for eighth, and her 1.20 ERA is 11th in the country.
B5 | That's home run No. 19 for Valerie Cagle 💣
With 2 outs, Cagle sends a 2 run homer out of the park‼️
— Clemson Softball 🥎 (@clemsonsoftball) May 20, 2023
She’s a two-time ACC player of the year and was the conference’s freshman of the year in 2021. According to our friends over at Clemson Wire, she’s had 23 multiple-hit and 16 multiple RBI games in 2023.
She has been a do-it-all force for the Clemson Tigers. The Oklahoma Sooners will have quite the task to keep her contained at the plate and getting to a pitcher that’s only allowed a .174 batting average across 660 at-bats.
As the Sooners look to extend their nation-best 46-game winning streak, they’ll face a stiff test from one of the best players in the nation.
The Oklahoma Sooners and Clemson Tigers will begin their super regional showdown on Friday, May 26, at 1 p.m. CT in Norman. The game can be viewed on ESPN2.
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Jordy Bahl, Jayda Coleman, and Tiare Jennings were named finalists for USA Softball’s National Player of the Year award.
Three Sooners were named as finalists for the USA Softball Player of the Year Award. [autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag], [autotag]Tiare Jennings[/autotag], and [autotag]Jordy Bahl[/autotag] lead the way for the Oklahoma Sooners, who had the highest number of players make the cut for the prestigious award.
UCLA and Tennessee are the only other schools with multiple athletes represented with two athletes apiece.
Oklahoma’s softball dominance has been on display in the USA Softball National Player of the Year discussion. They’ve had at least two finalists for five straight years and three finalists each of the last two years.
A Sooner has won the award in four of the last 10 seasons, with [autotag]Jocelyn Alo[/autotag] winning back-to-back Player of the Year honors in 2021 and 2022.
𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐨 🌟🌟🌟
Bahl, Coleman, Jennings named Top-10 Finalists for @USASoftball Collegiate Player of the Year.
It’s Bahl’s second time on the short list for Player of the Year honors. She’s been the headliner for Oklahoma’s pitching staff over the last two years, which leads the nation in team ERA. Bahl has a team-best six shutouts and has a combined nine shutouts on the year too. She also has one perfect game on the year and combined on two no-hitters. Only a sophomore, Bahl is on an incredible run to start her Oklahoma career.
It’s Coleman’s first time being up for the award as a junior. She has a team-high 13 home runs and leads the Sooners with a .454 batting average. She’s slugging .862 and has a .575 on-base percentage. Coleman’s top 10 in the nation in batting average, slugging, and on-base percentages.
This is Jennings’ second time to be named a finalist. She has 12 home runs and 10 doubles on the year. She also has a team-high 49 runs batted in. She’s batting .435 and holds a slugging percentage of .786 and an on-base percentage of .506.
The top three finalists will be revealed on May 17 and the winner will be announced before the Women’s College World Series starts on June 1st.
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In Whistle’s web series “No Days Off” Jocelyn Alo described the feeling of setting the home run record and her love and dedication for the game.
With another incredible season for the Oklahoma Sooners, Jocelyn Alo earned her second consecutive USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award. She’s the fifth player to win the award in consecutive seasons, and, heading into the Women’s College World Series, Alo’s put together a career that has her in consideration as one of the best of all time.
But she hasn’t gotten there through sheer talent, though she’s incredibly talented and has been from a young age. Alo has put in the work to become the best player in softball.
In the web series No Days Off from Whistle, Alo shared what sets her apart as a hitter is the reps she put in as a kid with her dad and the film work she does on her opponents and on herself.
“When I was 4 years old, I would ask my dad to take me to go hit, and we would hit 1,000 balls every night just for fun.”
Former teammate and now coach Sooners assistant Shannon Saile described Alo as “extremely dedicated and confident in the work she puts in.”
One of the high points in Alo’s career was breaking the NCAA’s all-time home run record.
“I didn’t hear the crowd whenever I did break the record. I was just super locked into the moment,” Alo shared in the web series. “Next thing I know, my coach is doing our little thing at third and then I’m being mobbed at home plate. And as I see my dad up in the stands, and I’m just saying how much I love him. Definitely lots of good feelings.”
Coming into the season with the home run record in striking distance and Oklahoma poised to contend for another national championship would put pressure on anyone. But Alo said she tries to “stay within herself and not make the moment too big.”
Sooners head coach Patty Gasso told her “pressure is privilege.” And it’s that relationship with Gasso that helped Alo thrive the last couple of seasons.
“Playing for a coach like Patty Gasso is everything I’ve ever wanted in a coach and a whole lot more,” Alo shared about her Hall of Fame coach. “To play under a woman, a boss lady, was something different for me. She has helped me to grow as a person, as a player, and more importantly as a woman.”
In the episode, Alo shared she plans to play professionally after she was selected first in the inaugural WFP collegiate draft. And she announced she’ll be playing for Team USA in the 2028 Olympic games.
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Putting together another fantastic season, Jocelyn Alo was named USA Softball National Player of the Year for the second consecutive year.
Jocelyn Alo’s 2022 season for the Oklahoma Sooners continues to be one for the ages. After setting the NCAA’s all-time home run record, and distancing herself from the previous record, Alo has won the USA Softball National Player of the Year award for the second straight season.
Alo is the fifth player to win the award in consecutive years, joining former Sooners great Keilani Ricketts in the esteemed category.
In her final season in Norman, Alo has set an incredible standard for hitting. In 2022, she’s batting .497 with 29 home runs and 72 RBIs. She’s also scored 72 runs and walked 48 times.
She now has 117 home runs and counting after breaking the record with No. 96 in Hawaii back on March 12. Alo’s hit a home run in four of five games this postseason and is batting .643 with four home runs and 10 RBIs.
Another dominant season unfolding before our eyes, Jocelyn Alo has the Sooners poised to go back-to-back as national champions. Oklahoma opens the Women’s College World Series on June 2 at 1:30 p.m. CST against the Northwestern Wildcats.
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