Mar 7, 2021
NORMAN Three Oklahoma pitchers combined for a perfect game the Sooners second of the season and OU mashed six home runs in a 17-0 victory over Sam Houston State.
The No. 1-ranked Sooners improved to 17-0 with four wins (including three more run-rules) at the Courtyard Marriott Tournament at Marita Hynes Field.
Tiare Jennings, Jocelyn Alo, Grace Lyons and
Mackenzie Donihoo all hit home runs for the Sooners as did freshmen
Paige Knight and Zaida Puni, who each hit their first career home runs in an OU uniform.
Alo’s team-leading 13th bomb extended her hitting streak to 31 games. Jennings hit her 11th, Lyons her eighth and Donihoo her third.
Oklahoma softball embarks on its quest for a fifth national championship this week.
The Sooners, ranked No. 4 in USA TODAY/NFCA and ESPN.com/USA Softball preseason polls to start the season, finally released their 2021 schedule on Tuesday.
OU will face 10 programs who made the 2019 NCAA tournament in 2021. Twenty-one contests will take place inside the friendly confines of Marita Hines Field in Norman.
The first battles of the 2021 season will take place on Feb. 11-12 in the Wildcat Invitational, which was originally scheduled to take place in Abilene, TX, but has been moved to El Paso, TX, due to the freezing temperatures sweeping the nation this week. OU will play the UTEP Miners and Abilene Christian University twice each over the course of the invitational, with the seasons’ first pitch coming on Thursday at 11 a.m. against the Miners.
RPI: 15.
Ballpark: Carolina Softball Stadium at Beckham Field (1,277)
Postseason history: 22 NCAA Regional appearances, 2 Super Regional appearances, 3 World Series appearances.
Ace of the staff: Kelsey Oh. The senior right-hander had the 2020 season cut short with a foot injury. Oh finished 4-2 with a 2.14 ERA, 51 strikeouts and 16 walks in 32.2 IP.
Impact player: Kenzi Maguire. The graduate senior will be in her sixth season of college softball. Maguire started all 23 games at shortstop in 2020 for the Gamecocks, batting .328 with five doubles, nine RBIs, 14 walks, nine hit by pitches and 22 runs scored.
DII softball: Kutztown head coach Judy Lawes wins game No. 1,000 of her career