Oklahoma Softball: Sooners Can Punch Ticket to Super Regionals in Rematch With Texas A&M
NORMAN — Oklahoma is one win away from a 12th straight Super Regional appearance.
But first, they’ll have to navigate a rematch against the Texas A&M Aggies.
The top-seeded Sooners (51-2) were pushed by the Aggies (31-27) on Saturday afternoon at Marita Hynes Field.
A late home run by Aggie catcher Haley Lee cut the OU lead to one, but OU pitcher Hope Trautwein was able to finish out the contest.
Saturday night, Texas A&M bounced back and beat Minnesota 10-7 to secure a spot in the Regional Final, but now the Aggies will have to upset the Sooners twice on Sunday to chart an unlikely path to Super Regional weekend.
How to Watch:
- Oklahoma vs. Texas A&M: Sunday, 1 p.m., ESPN2
Though the contest on Saturday was close, the Aggies did have to throw three different pitchers, allowing the Sooners to collect plenty of data ahead of Sunday’s rematch.
“It was tough to kind of figure them out,” Oklahoma head coach Patty Gasso said after the win on Saturday. “But at least we got to see all three, which is really important for us going forward.”
Gasso will work with the team to help make adjustments, as the Sooners will need to improve on Saturday’s 1-for-8 hitting performance with runners in scoring position.
Oklahoma should have plenty of opportunities to improve on that mark due to the production Gasso is getting from the top of her lineup.
Jayda Coleman, Jocelyn Alo and Tiare Jennings have combined to hit 10-for-14 across the two regional games so far, and Gasso has put even more pressure on opposing defenses by keeping those runners in constant motion on the base paths.
Gasso even said she’s calling plays to get runners on the move in spots she wouldn’t normally, as she thinks it’s allowed the team to play loose.
“If it’s allowing them to swing freely,” said Gasso, “then those are things that we need to start doing a little more.”
Sans true freshman Jordy Bahl, Oklahoma’s pitching has been good all regional long.
Through two games, Nicole May and Hope Trautwein have only allowed the lone home run, and the duo combined to pitch a no-hitter against Prairie View A&M on Friday night.
The duo will have to navigate one more hurdle on Sunday, though the Sooner defense has also been excellent all weekend and will certainly be on hand to help.
Oklahoma will get its first chance to advance to Super Regional play on Sunday at 1 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on ESPN2.
If the Sooners drop the first contest to Texas A&M, they’ll have a second chance to punch their ticket in a second game on Sunday.
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