Oklahoma Sooners softball

The Oklahoma Sooners softball team is the softball team that represents University of Oklahoma in the sport of women's softball.

Oklahoma Sooners softball
Founded1975
UniversityUniversity of Oklahoma
Head coachPatty Gasso (28th season)
ConferenceBig 12
LocationNorman, OK
Home stadiumOU Softball Complex (Capacity: 1,378)
NicknameSooners
ColorsCrimson and cream[1]
   
NCAA Tournament champions
2000, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2021
NCAA WCWS runner-up
2012, 2019
NCAA WCWS appearances
2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021
AIAW WCWS appearances
1975, 1980, 1981, 1982
NCAA Super Regional appearances
2005, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021
NCAA Tournament appearances
1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021
Conference Tournament championships
1996, 2001, 2007, 2010, 2017, 2018, 2021
Regular Season Conference championships
1996, 1999, 2000, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021

The Sooners compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) in the Big 12 Conference, and play their home games at the OU Softball Complex. Oklahoma has won their conference title 13 times, has been to the NCAA Tournament 27 times, has been to the NCAA Women's College World Series 14 times, and has won the NCAA championship five times. OU also appeared in the AIAW Women's College World Series four times. The team is currently coached by Patty Gasso.

History

The Sooners won their first national championship back in 2000. They swept Harvard, Cal-State Northridge, and Oregon State at their home regionals to advance to their first appearance in the Women's College World Series. They beat California and knocked off Southern Mississippi and Arizona to advance to the championship game against UCLA. They beat UCLA 3-1 to capture their first national title.

They hosted and won their 2013 regional. They beat Marist and Arkansas with a combined score of 41-6. They hosted again their super regionals against Texas A&M where they outscored the Aggies 18-2. In Oklahoma City, they went through 8 seeded Michigan, #10 ranked Texas, and #11 ranked Washington to reach Tennessee in the championship. Game 1 was where Lauren Chamberlain hit her iconic two-run walk-off home run after 12 innings of play. In game 2, Keilani Ricketts drove in all four runs, and Michelle Gascoigne pitched a shut out to obtain their second national title.

Once again, they hosted their regional in 2016 where they beat Wichita State and Ole Miss. They went on to host their super regional against Louisiana-Lafayette where they swept to advance to the Women's College World Series once again. In their first game in the tournament, they beat Alabama in extra innings. They faced #12 Michigan in game 2, and beat LSU in their third to face Auburn in the championship. They won 2-1 in their final game where Paige Parker threw a complete game.

In 2017, Sooners hosted another straight regional and won against North Dakota State, Arkansas, and Tulsa. From there, they went to #7 Auburn for the Super Regionals where they won in two games. They held off Baylor in Oklahoma City, overcame #6 Washington, and beat Oregon to face Florida in the finals. They won game 1 in the longest game ever played in the finals in 17 innings. They finished off the series with a swept to capture their fourth national championship.

In 2021, the Sooners hosted their regional as the No. 1 overall seed and beat Wichita State, Texas A&M, and Morgan State. They advanced to host their super regional against Washington, which they won in two games. At the Women's College World Series, they lost their first round game to James Madison University; subsequently, they won four straight elimination games to advance to the championship series, besting Georgia, UCLA, and James Madison twice. In the championship series, they lost their first game to Florida State, but returned to win games two and three to claim their fifth national championship.

Love's Field

On October 28, 2021, it was announced a new softball stadium, Love's Field, is planned to break ground in 2022 and open before the 2024 season. Love's provided the naming gift following a $9 million donation. The estimated cost for the project is $27 million. The overall square footage of the complex will be 44,000 square feet and will have a seating capacity of 3,000.[2][3]

Coaching history
Main article: List of Oklahoma Sooners head softball coaches
Years Coach Record %
1975-1976Amy Dahl18-16.529
1977-1984Marita Hynes257-188.578
1985-1993Michelle Thomas226-230.496
1994Jim Beitia58-15.795
1995–PresentPatty Gasso1,381–342–2.801

[4]

Championships

NCAA Women's College World Series National Championships
Season Coach Record WCWS final opponent
2000Patty Gasso66–8Won Championship game over UCLA 3–1
2013Patty Gasso57–4Won Championship series over Tennessee 2–0
2016Patty Gasso57–8Won Championship series over Auburn 2–1
2017Patty Gasso61–9Won Championship series over Florida 2–0
2021Patty Gasso56–4Won Championship series over Florida State 2–1
National Championships[5] 5

Conference Championships
Season Conference Record Head Coach
1996Big 12 Conference17–5Patty Gasso
1999Big 12 Conference11–3Patty Gasso
2000Big 12 Conference17–1Patty Gasso
2009Big 12 Conference14–4Patty Gasso
2012Big 12 Conference19–5Patty Gasso
2013Big 12 Conference15–2Patty Gasso
2014Big 12 Conference16–2Patty Gasso
2015Big 12 Conference14–2Patty Gasso
2016Big 12 Conference17–1Patty Gasso
2017Big 12 Conference17–1Patty Gasso
2018Big 12 Conference18–0Patty Gasso
2019Big 12 Conference18–0Patty Gasso
2021Big 12 Conference16–1Patty Gasso
Conference Championships[6] 13

Conference Tournament Championships
Year Conference Tournament Location Head Coach
1996Big 12 ConferenceOklahoma City, OKPatty Gasso
2001Big 12 ConferenceOklahoma City, OKPatty Gasso
2007Big 12 ConferenceOklahoma City, OKPatty Gasso
2010Big 12 ConferenceOklahoma City, OKPatty Gasso
2017Big 12 ConferenceOklahoma City, OKPatty Gasso
2018Big 12 ConferenceOklahoma City, OKPatty Gasso
2021Big 12 ConferenceOklahoma City, OKPatty Gasso
Conference Tournament Championships[7] 7

NCAA Tournament seeding history

National seeding began in 2005. The Oklahoma Sooners have been a national seed 15 of the 16 tournaments.

Years → '05 '07 '08 '09 '10 '11 '12 '13 '14 '15 '16 '17 '18 '19 '21
Seeds → 14310714941711310411

Records and results

Records by season
National Champions Conference Champions Conference Tournament Champions

Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, C = Conference

Sources:[8]

Records by opponent

Sources:[9]

Big 12 Conference opponents
Opponent GP W-L-T Win % First meeting Last meeting
Baylor8370-130.8430-2 L
September 21, 1979		3-1 W
March 27, 2022
Iowa State11890-280.7631-2 L
April 15, 1978		9-0 W (5)
April 23, 2022
Kansas11975-440.6305-2 W
April 15, 1978		9-1 W
May 1, 2022
Oklahoma State16897-710.57711-1 W
April 9, 1975		10-2 W (6)
May 15, 2021
Texas7550-250.6671-4 L
April 19, 1997		2-4 L
April 16, 2022
Texas Tech7467-70.9057-1 W
April 22, 1977		21-0 W (5)
April 10, 2022
Former Big 12 Conference opponents
Opponent GP W-L-T Win % First meeting Last meeting
Missouri9554-410.5684-13 L
March 16, 1977		11-0 W (5)
March 7, 2021
Nebraska8945-440.5061-2 L
April 15, 1977		10-2 W (5)
February 21, 2020
Texas A&M8050-300.6250-7 L
April 22, 1977		2-1 W
February 21, 2020
Major Non-Conference opponents
Opponent GP W-L-T Win % First meeting Last meeting
Alabama188-100.44412-0 W
February 16, 1997		7-3 W
June 2, 2019
Arizona5122-290.4313-4 L
March 14, 1979		10-2 W (5)
February 26, 2022
Arizona State2915-140.5170-3 L
March 15, 1979		5-3 W
February 26, 2021
Florida87-10.8751-0 W
February 28, 1998		2-0 W
June 2, 2018
Florida State168-80.5001-0 W
April 24, 1987		5-1 W
June 10, 2021
Michigan218-130.3811-2 L
March 22, 1986		7-5 W
June 4, 2016
Tulsa5545-100.81811-10 W
February 19, 1994		10-1 W (5)
March 27, 2019
UCLA186-120.3332-3 L
March 9, 1981		4-1 W
February 12, 2022
Washington2914-150.4832-3 L
March 3, 1995		9-1 W (5)
May 29, 2021

College World Series

Oklahoma has made 14 trips to the Women's College World Series, winning the title in 2000, 2013, 2016, 2017 and 2021. OU finished as runner-up in 2012 and 2019.

Year W L Percent
2000401.000
200112.333
200202.000
200312.333
200412.333
201102.000
201242.667
2013501.000
201412.333
201651.833
2017501.000
201822.500
201933.500
202162.750
Total: 38 22 .633

Coaching staff
Name Position Seasons at Oklahoma
Patty GassoHead coach28th
Jennifer RochaAssociate Head Coach and Pitching Coach4th
JT GassoAssistant Coach7th
Kristen ZaleskiVolunteer Assistant Coach1st
Fale AviuGraduate Assistant1st
Sydney RomeroGraduate Assistant3rd
Shannon SaileGraduate Assistant1st
Reference:[10]

Notable players

Sources:[11]

National Awards
USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year
Softball America Player of the Year
NFCA National Freshman of the Year
Softball America Freshman of the Year
Honda Sports Award
Academic All-American of the Year
  • Lana Moran (2000)

First Team All-Americans

Conference Awards
Big 12 Player of the Year
Big 12 Pitcher of the Year
Big 12 Freshman of the Year
Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year
  • Heather Scaglione (2004, 2005)
  • Savannah Long (2008)
  • Lindsey Vandever (2010)
  • Kelsey Arnold (2016, 2018)
  • Caleigh Clifton (2019)
  • Grace Lyons (2021)
Big 12 Newcomer of the Year
  • Andrea Davis (2000)
Big 12 Coach of the Year
  • Patty Gasso (1996, 1999, 2000, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021)

References
  1. "Colors – OU Brand Guide". April 20, 2018. Retrieved July 11, 2018.
  2. "Love's Travel Stops Contributes Lead Gift for New Softball Stadium". soonersports.com. October 28, 2021. Retrieved October 28, 2021.
  3. Bailey, Eric (October 28, 2021). "OU to begin construction of Love's Field, a $27 million stadium for softball program". Tulsa World. Retrieved October 28, 2021.
  4. "OU Softball Coaches". SoonerStats.com. Retrieved 8 June 2019.
  5. "WCWS History". Sooner Sports. University of Oklahoma. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  6. "Oklahoma Sooners Softball 2019 Media Guide" (PDF). SoonerSports.com. University of Oklahoma Athletics. p. 19. Retrieved 3 May 2019.
  7. "Oklahoma Sooners Softball 2019 Media Guide" (PDF). SoonerSports.com. University of Oklahoma Athletics. pp. 106–107. Retrieved 3 May 2019.
  8. "Sooner Stats". soonerstats.com. Sooner Stats. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
  9. "2019 OU Softball Media Guide" (PDF). SoonerSports.com. University of Oklahoma Athletics. pp. 118–134. Retrieved 5 June 2019.
  10. "Oklahoma Softball Coaches". SoonerSports.com. University of Oklahoma Athletics. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
  11. "Big 12 Softball Records" (PDF). Big12Sports.com. Big 12 Conference. pp. 86–89. Retrieved 3 May 2019.
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