OU Softball Hosts BYU at Love's Field: Thu, Fri, Sat in 3 games

[OUBeliever56A]

The 36-3 Oklahoma Sooners, #1 / #2 in the polls, 13-2 in the Big 12 and in 1st Place, will host the Brigham Young Cougars who are 21-17 overall and 4-11 in the Big 12 in 8th Place. The teams will play for their only time in the Big 12 before OU exits for the SEC next year. BYU is the first new team in the Big 12 that OU will play this season.

The games will be played on Thursday and Friday at 6 PM with the Saturday game starting at 1 PM. the wind will be blowing at 15 or more MPH each day. Thursday the wind is from the NW. The next two days it is from the SW. The temp will be in the 60's at the start on Thursday, 70's on Friday and Saturday. The first two days will be sunny.

Oklahoma, well there fans, are hoping to see the Sooner bats re-appear in the three games against BYU due to the shortfall of runs lately with 14 runs in the last 4 games. I am sure the players would like to see that as well. The Sooner pitching has been on target allowing 5 runs in those same 4 games. The Sooners have played error-free ball over those four games on defense as well. The Sooners will be seeking to start a new winning-series streak against BYU in conference.

BYU comes in with losses in their last 4 games as they lost to Utah Valley in their midweek game and were sweep by UCF last weekend. The BYU pitchers have given up 29 runs in their last 4 games while scoring 20 runs. The Cougars have committed 6 errors in those 4 games as well.

Here are the hitting and pitching/defensive lines for each team:
OU - BA- .380, OB%- .480, Slug%- .697, 71 doubles, 3 triples, 80 HRs, 336 runs - 8.62 R/G, 47 steals in 52 attempts.
OU - 1.42 ERA, BA Allowed - .180, EBH Allowed - 19 doubles, 1 triple, 19 HRs, 17 shutouts, 13 errors - .987 Field%

BYU - BA- .331, OB%- .420, Slug%- .504, 51 doubles, 4 triples, 39 HRs, 262 runs - 6.89 R/G, 41 steals in 47 attempts.
BYU - 5.14 ERA, BA Allowed- .302, EBH Allowed - 57 doubles, 3 triples, 30 HRs, 3 shutouts, 38 errors - .963 Field%

Honestly, the pitching for BYU is very shaky. They give up almost 2 base runners per inning and they give up an EBH every 2.2 innings pitched. Oklahoma should hit very well this weekend. But they should have hit much better than they did on Tuesday. The BYU pitching will likely go with Mares (LHP- 5.69 ERA), Temples (LHP- 4.49 ERA) and Dahle (RHP- 5.61 ERA) and it might be in that order. Usually the other two pitch in relief in most games with maybe Aguilar (RHP- 3.50 ERA) joining them in the circle often. The three main pitchers are 17-17 on the season. The defense does not help the pitchers too much. Their 38 errors have turned into 45 unearned runs scored.

The strength for BYU is their bats and their 6.89 runs per game. They can hit for average and they also take a walk often. But they could use a bit more power. Select players can steal a base for BYU as well. They are pretty good 5 hitters, maybe 6 deep. Their hitters fall off fairly quickly after that. The good news about BYU is that they are not the Texas Longhorns hitters. But the Longhorns only hit a measly .179 against OU last weekend. So the theory goes, if Texas can't hit over .200 against the Sooners, the BYU Cougars should not either. The Sooners gave up 6 runs last weekend and they should do at least that good this weekend if the quality of pitching holds this weekend.

I really do not think that BYU can win a game this weekend due to their pitching woes, but as anyone will say, "On any given day.........." I do believe in the rest of that phrase.

No one knows how this weekend will work out. I think we could see 3 run-rule victories, but I think it is likely that BYU will make one game close with their offense for a while. So I would be happy with two run-rules and one 4 or 5 run win. I think the Sooner pitching will stay tough this weekend. I expect that Maxwell, May and hopefully Deal will get starts this weekend. I could even see all three of them also getting a relief appearence this weekend as well.

I want to provide a small update on career numbers before I close.

• Tiare Jennings now has 288 career hits and is still in 6th Place as a Sooner. Lisa Carey ('98-01) in in 5th with 289 hits, just 1 ahead of Jennings. In 4th Place with 293 hits is Kristin Vesely (’03-06) just 5 ahead of Jennings. Hopefully, Jennings will be in 4th Place by the end of Saturday's game.

• Kinzie Hansen now has 198 career RBIs and is in 9th Place as a Sooner. She just passed Shay Knighten ('16-19) who had 197 career RBIs last night.

• In the Career HR race between the trio of Jennings, Karli Spaid and Addisen Barnard, Spaid now leads with 90 HRs and is Tied for 6th with Stacey Nuveman (UCLA). Jennings has 88 HRs and is tied for 9th with Bratz and Espinosa both of Arizona. Barnard has 83 HRs in a tie for 13th with Jessie Warren of Florida State.

Good luck to OU this weekend against BYU.

Boomer Sooner!

[OUBeliever56A]

Here is the Sooner staff writers article about the Sooners 3-game series with BYU on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

https://soonersports.com/news/2024/4/10 ... o-host-byu

Here is to hoping that the Sooners play very well this 'weekend'.

Boomer Sooner!

[BakerSooner]

Any news on Love Field construction? Is the team practicing on Love Field yet? Using the locker rooms? Its the middle of April.
Thank you all. Long time lurker posted a few before the page was renewed. Boomer!!!

[OUBeliever56A]

All I can say is that substantial landscaping has been completed on the outside of the stadium. We will see what changes inside the stadium there are in about 2 hours.

[EMan]

8-0 run rule win in 5 by the Sooners tonight. OU scored 4 in the bottom of the 5th with no outs to push the lead to 8. Cyd Sanders with a walk-off 3-run blast to end it. Jayda had a 3-run shot as well, and Pickering with a solo dinger. The bats finally came alive in the 5th with 4 straight hits to put it away. Maxwell with a good outing to get the shut out.

[OU_Tom]

Can't do better than a shutout and a run rule.

I am so happy that after Jordy dumped us and went back that to corn country, that we were able to land one of the top pitchers in NCAA history. Things wouldn't be so rosey without Maxwell.

[OUBeliever56A]

Sooners pick up the Offense and Maxwell throws another Gem on the Diamond.

The Oklahoma Sooners softball team picked up their 20th Run-Rule and 18th Shutout of the season with their 8-0 win in 4+ innings of hitting for the Sooners and in 5 innings. It was their first such game since Game #2 against Kansas where May, Geurin and Monticelli tossed a 2 hitter and OU scored 17 runs.

Last night the Sooners almost got started in a big way in the first inning on offense. Coleman lined a single to CF to leadoff the game. After a FC ground out and a K (oh those change ups) Parker walked. Hansen hit a scorcher of a line drive a bit to the LC side of CF. The BYU CF made a nice play to reach up and make the catch on the edge of the warning track. 25 years ago, the families laundry could have been hung on that line drive but it was an out and the inning was over. (I guess that bloop double Hansen hit in Wichita make up for not getting this one.)

In the second, OU had one of their 2-out rallies. After a K looking (I was told the pitch was definitely outside) and a ground out, Torres managed a walk. Boone followed with a double to LC to move runners to 2nd and 3rd. BYU changed pitchers as the lineup turned over to face Coleman. Coleman picked on the second pitch and hit an opposite-field 3 run HR for her 10th HR of the season for the 2nd consecutive season of double digit HRs. Before the inning was over, Jennings walked and Brito singled off the pitcher's glove on the first pitch to move Jennings to 2B. Parker then flew out to CF to end the inning.

In the 3rd, Hansen grounded out to SS before Pickering hit a HR to LC on the second pitch (that is twice) to make it 4-0. BYU changed pitchers again and Sanders walked in an 7-pitch at bat. Bland entered the game to pinch run for Sanders and was throw out trying to steal when it looked like she was safe as she got the right hand on the bag before the tag was made on the left shoulder. But after review, the call of out was confirmed. Torres walked again before Boone flied out to CF.

In the 4th inning, Dahle (BYUs pitcher) picked up a 1, 2, 3 inning on two ground outs and a swinging strike out against the firs three hitters int he lineup for the Sooners.

In the 5th inning, the Sooners opened the inning with two hard singles up the middle by Parker and Hansen. Ludlam was sent in to pinch-run for Hansen at first base. BYU removed Dahle and brought back the starting pitcher, Temples, to pitch to Pickering. Temples had the looking strikeout against Pickering in the 2nd inning. On a 2-1 pitch, Pickering singled hard down the RF line to plate Parker and move Ludlum to 3B. Coor was sent it to run for Pickering and promptly stole 2B without a throw (I think I remember that right). On a 1-2 pitch, Sanders found a pitch to her liking and drove a line drive HR to LC for 3 more runs and the 8-0 win in run-rule fashion. The HR was Sanders' 12th of the season and her first hit since her 2-run HR in Kansas in Game #2.

While the offense getting four EBH and 9 hits in 20 at bats is good news, the story of the game WAS Kelly Maxwell. Maxwell tossed four innings of 1, 2, 3 softball to open the game. In the 5th inning Maxwell picked up her 6th round ball out to open the inning. (Yeah, that was 13 straight batters that were retired.) Then, between the first and second pitch to the next batter, two of my friends sitting next to me, said out loud, "she has not allowed a base runner and she has not allowed a hit". I was shaking my head and saying, SHHHHH!

Well the hitter, Owens, picked up a single through the 5/6 hole for the first hit of the game for BYU. Maxwell struck back with a K of the next batter before Owens stole second on a close play at 2B. The throw from Hansen was just short of the bag and skipped into Torres' glove just a smidgen late. The next hitter walked on 7 pitches to put runners on 1st and 2nd. Remember, the game's score was 4-0 at this point. But Maxwell, bowed her back and struck out BYU's final hitter on a 2-2 pitch.

Maxwell allowed 1 single and 1 walk and had 5 Ks in her outing for a 5-inning CG shutout and her 12th win against 1 loss. Maxwell has pitched very well in her last 8 starts since Big 12 play started. That streak includes one non-conference start against Tarleton State. In those 8 starts, Maxwell has thrown 47.0 innings and allowed only 17 hits with 17 walks with 59 Ks. She has allowed only 6 runs in that stretch also. That is a 0.89 ERA in that stretch. She is 7-1 during that stretch also. During That stretch excludes one relief appearence against Baylor in which she pitched 1.1 innings where she allowed 3 hits and 3 runs. I did not include that outing in the numbers cited. Her ERA including that outing is only 1.30.

Today, it is game #2 against BYU. Since Mares, another lefty, did not pitch for BYU, I think she starts in Game 2 for BYU. It will by May starting in the circle for OU I believe.

Good luck to the Sooners today against BYU.

Boomer Sooner!

[TropicalSooner]

BYU lists 7 pitchers on staff and we got 3 of them last night.
2 of the three, Temples and Dahle have the most IP at 73 and 63, with #3 being the freshman Gianna Mares with 59.
The other pitcher we saw in relief yesterday, Aguilar, only has 16 IP. Not seen yet, Kaysen Korth only has 13. The remaining 2 have less than 10 each.
Mares tonight makes sense.

[Brisket]

BYU lists 7 pitchers on staff and we got 3 of them last night.
2 of the three, Temples and Dahle have the most IP at 73 and 63, with #3 being the freshman Gianna Mares with 59.
The other pitcher we saw in relief yesterday, Aguilar, only has 16 IP. Not seen yet, Kaysen Korth only has 13. The remaining 2 have less than 10 each.
Mares tonight makes sense.

I believe those 4 - Temples, Dahle, Mares, & Aguilar - are all BYU has active at the moment. They said on the broadcast last night that BYU's pitching staff is eat up with injuries. Korth, their ace, has been out for over a month with an undisclosed injury. Huber had surgery in January & is out for the season.

[jmac11]

Yikes! No consistent pitching (other than maxwell), no rhythm at bat...ugh. I think it is clear grace lyons was the glue that held us together.

[MsProudSooner]

I didn't get to start watching until the end of the 4th inning and I turned it off in the top of the 7th. We might come back to win this game but we don't deserve to win this game. We have younger players who need to step up and veteran players who aren't playing like veterans. I'm no expert, but if they don't correct the mistakes they are making they won't make it to the Supers this year.

[VNSooner]

OU's pitching and hitting are suspect. Lack of focus, enthusiasm and execution is a recipe for failure. Wish I could be more positive.

[inconnu]

Seems that at the present time, we just don't have enough confidence, nor dedication for excellence. Perhaps the spiritual lift that Lyons provided was THAT helpful?!

[SoonerTony]

They’re just not the same team without Lyons and Bahl.

[inconnu]

Bahl Schmahl! She might be laughing right now.