Oklahoma Bashes NCAA-Record 13 Home Runs in 29-0 Victory

Oklahoma tortured UTEP pitching in its blowout victory in Thursday afternoon's opener, posting a score one would expect from its football team against a cupcake in the fall.

The Sooners smacked an NCAA record 13 home runs in Thursday's 29-0 win, getting off to quite the hot start in the 2021 Miner Invitational. The matchup was called after five innings due to a run rule, likely saving UTEP from further humiliation on the diamond.

That's 𝐅𝐈𝐕𝐄 home runs...in the first inning... Grace Lyons sends this one!

💣💣💣💣💣

T1 | OU 9, UTEP 0 (0 outs) pic.twitter.com/3YxOWuzJl6
— Oklahoma Softball (@OU_Softball) February 11, 2021

Seven Sooners finished with at least one home run on Thursday. Freshman Tiare Jennings ripped three homers in her Oklahoma debut, as did junior Grace Lyons.

RECORD SMASHED 💥@OU_Softball tallied 13 home runs in its 29 run win over UTEP, breaking the NCAA single-game record for most home runs. Oh, and did we mention it's the first day of the season? 🤯#NCAASoftball pic.twitter.com/bfoXuhQ3oi
— NCAA Softball (@NCAASoftball) February 11, 2021

Oklahoma's pitchers matched the team's collection of bats on Thursday. Redshirt senior Giselle Juarez started the game with six strikeouts in three innings, followed by a two-inning shutout performance from sophomore Olivia Rains.

The Sooners certainly hit the ground running in their season opener. And while they could compete for the national championship this spring, it's hard to see any performance matching Thursday's rout.