OU Softball: How Oklahoma is Using its Early Defeat to Make Quick Improvements
Oklahoma is in a place it hasn’t been in over two years.
The two-time defending National Champion Sooners dropped their first game of the season this past Sunday, a 4-3 loss to Baylor in OU’s finale at the Getterman Classic.
Head coach Patty Gasso embraced the difficulty of the schedule coming into the year, but the timing of the defeat still came as a surprise.
Oklahoma had lost just seven total games over its previous two title-winning campaigns. Not only have they been dominant, the past two Sooner teams took the fight to the rest of the country straight out of the gate.
In 2021, OU reeled off 33-straight victories before falling to the Georgia Bulldogs, and last year the Sooners started out 38-0 before dropping their series finale to the Texas Longhorns.
Both of the previous two campaigns included marquee non-conference victories in the preseason, including a 4-1 win over then-No. 3-ranked UCLA on opening weekend at the Mark Campbell Invitational.
Though the No. 2-ranked Sooners haven’t dropped many games early in the last two years, Gasso is far from panicked about the team’s loss in Waco this past Sunday.
“It's a learning experience,” Gasso said during her weekly press conference on Wednesday afternoon. “It's amazing. When we lose, everything starts to open up and all the things that we get away with are now brought to everybody's attention.
“(The team does) it themselves. They talk about how to get better and how we need to change and so forth. Some good things came from it.”
Part of Oklahoma’s approach at the plate against the Bears was disrupted by an early pitching change.
Baylor pitcher Dariana Orme pitched just four innings, giving up six hits and one run after facing 21 OU hitters.
But the Bears switched things up in the fifth inning, bringing on Aliyah Binford to close out the game.
For many of Gasso’s newcomers, it was the first time the lineup had to adjust to a new pitcher while playing from behind, which Gasso viewed as valuable experience gained over the weekend.
“We looked like we were not ready for the pitching change,” Gasso said. “We didn't have the right mindset at the plate. We came back. We made an effort to come back. They are always a feisty team. I'm not taking anything away from them. They earned that. They played harder, they hit better, they were timely, their pitching was fantastic. They earned that.
“And we walked away knowing exactly what we needed to do these last two days, which we did. I'm anxious to see it play out again.”
The Sooners wasted no time trying to make offensive adjustments in practice this week, and OU third baseman Alyssa Brito has been pleased with the response of the group since the defeat.
“It did sting but I think it’s a really great opportunity for us,” Brito said. “… It shows kind of what we need to work on. So we kind of hammered at that this week.
“I think it’s built a lot of hunger honestly. And we’re just excited to kind of show what we have and the potential that we have in our lineup and in our team.”
While the offense works out the early-season kinks, pitcher Jordy Bahl is also trying to get back into the groove after a phenomenal regular season in 2022.
Bahl only allowed five hits in six innings of work against Baylor, but four of those hits came in the third inning, including Shaylon Govan’s three-run shot that put the Bears up 4-1.
Outside of the third inning against Baylor, Gasso said she thought she saw progress from Bahl, and that she looked better at the Getterman Classic than she did during OU's opening weekend at the Mark Campbell Invitational.
“I thought it was just a little more settled, a little more Jordy-like,” Gasso said. “I think everybody is looking for like a dominant, where’s Jordy? Any freshman that has a great year, they go into their sophomore year, and it’s different. Who knows what they’re thinking? Are they trying to match it?
“… Some of my greatest players have gone through trying to find themselves their sophomore season. Jordy is making really good progress. I thought she threw really well. Threw well enough against Baylor for a win. It was just that one untimely hit that cleared the bases for them. I think she’s on the right path.”
Oklahoma will have a major opportunity to immediately erase any bad taste left from the defeat this weekend.
The Sooners are headed back to the West Coast to compete in the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic. Across five games, Oklahoma will Cal State Fullerton, Texas A&M, Utah, Loyola Marymount and the No. 1-ranked UCLA Bruins.
“It’s the journey, the process,” Gasso said. “We could end up losing two or three times this weekend, and we’re still going to be OK. We play over 60 games. I don’t want them to feel that kind of pressure. I want them to learn how to play free and confident and not be worried about the outcomes.
“… That’s what’s important is that we don’t change what we’re doing because what we’re doing is usually good enough.”
Want to join the discussion? Click here to become a member of the AllSooners message board community today!
Sign up for your premium membership to AllSooners.com today, and get access to the entire Fan Nation premium network!
Follow AllSooners on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest OU news.
Get your OU tickets from SI Tickets HERE.