All Sooners

How Oklahoma P Kierston Deal Rebounded From a 'Nervous' Opening Weekend

The sophomore left-hander went the distance this past weekend against Lamar, firing 10 strikeouts in a five inning shutout.

Ryan Chapman

NORMAN — Kierston Deal’s sophomore season didn’t quite start off how she imagined.

The talented left-hander, who started her strong close to 2023 during the Bedlam series, had to shake off some early-season jitters at the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge.

Deal started Oklahoma’s weekend finale against Long Beach State, allowing four hits, two earl’s and three earned runs while recording just five outs.

OU coach Patty Gasso withdrew Deal in favor of senior transfer Karlie Keeney, who promptly settled things down and helped the Sooners roll to an 11-3 win.

But one bad outing was just that for Deal, a singular occurrence.

Gasso gave her the ball again last weekend as Oklahoma took on Lamar at McNeese State’s Cowgirl Challenge, and the sophomore thrived.

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She pitched five shutout innings, striking out 10 batters while allowing just one hit and two walks, and her day was merely cut short by the Sooners ending the game early in the bottom of the fifth inning.

Gasso was proud of the response, but she was even more excited about what Deal’s performance meant for her entire pitching staff.

“t's extremely important for us right now,” Gasso said on Tuesday. “… She went out in Puerto Vallarta and she will tell you that she was definitely nervous and you could see it. You could see it in her face. She came in (against Lamar) locked in and it really didn't matter to me who the opponent was. She was going to have a good game.”

Deal, like every Oklahoma returner, has to guard against last year’s success.

The adjustment once she returned to Norman after opening weekend was simple, however.

Simplify the game, because no team is clinching a championship in February.

“(There was) a big shift with my mental game for sure,” Deal said Tuesday. “Just understanding that we have an amazing offense here and an amazing defensive behind me that I was able to come out last weekend and just throw very free and just own the moment.

“We've been talking a lot about that as a pitching staff with Coach (Jennifer) Rocha, just going out there and owning your moments there just knowing you can pitch free and have an amazing defense behind you.”

Rocha, Oklahoma’s associate head coach and pitching coach, is used to building a large staff. But this year, she has an embarrassment of riches.

The Sooners have three veterans in their last year of college softball in Nicole May, who has spent her entire career in Norman, Oklahoma State transfer Kelly Maxwell and Keeney.

Maxwell joins Deal as the two left-handers on staff, providing balance, and Oklahoma has another pair of hard-throwing righty’s in Paytn Monticelli and SJ Geurin.

Not only does OU have a rich tradition of dominating with left-handers, but Deal ensures that opposing coaching staffs have to prepare for both her and Maxwell from the left side, balancing out the Sooners’ rotation.

“It's just amazing to have this depth in our staff and just the amount of veterans that we have on our staff,” Deal said. “It's so great being an underclassmen to learn from those pitchers.”

Now, Gasso just needs Deal to replicate her mindset from last weekend’s trip to Lake Charles, LA.

“Consistency. I don't need 10 strikeouts. It's nice but I don't need it,” Gasso said. “There were times when she let the count get away from her so she's digging out of a 3-0, 3-1 count. She was ahead of the count quite a bit. She did take some to 3-2, but she would get the strikeout from it.

“So for her, it's staying ahead and executing that kind of punch-out pitch that she needs.”

The competition will heat up again for the top-ranked Sooners this weekend.

Oklahoma will head west to the yearly showcase that is the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic, where OU will face No. 25 Mississippi Sate, Wisconsin, San Diego State, Seattle and Loyola Marymount.

Gasso and Rocha are sure to use the entire pitching staff again, and there’s nothing but confidence in Deal after her resurgent performance against Lamar.

“Our pitching staff just got stronger in one outing,” Gasso said. “She needed that. We needed that, especially going into Palm Springs.”

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Ryan Chapman
RYAN CHAPMAN

Ryan is deputy editor at AllSooners and covers a number of sports in and around Norman and Oklahoma City. Working both as a journalist and a sports talk radio host, Ryan has covered the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma City Thunder, the United States Men’s National Soccer Team, the Oklahoma City Energy and more. Since 2019, Ryan has simultaneously pursued a career as both a writer and a sports talk radio host, working for the Flagship for Oklahoma sports, 107.7 The Franchise, as well as AllSooners.com. Ryan serves as a contributor to The Franchise’s website, TheFranchiseOK.com, which was recognized as having the “Best Website” in 2022 by the Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters. Ryan holds an associate’s degree in Journalism from Oklahoma City Community College in Oklahoma City, OK. 

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