# 2021 Oklahoma Sooners softball team

The 2021 Oklahoma Sooners softball team was an American college softball team that represented the University of Oklahoma during the 2021 NCAA Division I softball season. The Sooners were led by Patty Gasso in her twenty-seventh season, and played their home games at OU Softball Complex. They competed in the Big 12 Conference, where they finished the season with a 56–4 record, including 16–1 in conference play.
The Sooners won the 2021 Big 12 Tournament, and qualified for the 2021 NCAA Division I softball tournament. They advanced to the 2021 Women's College World Series, where they defeated Florida State in three games to win their fifth championship in program history. The Sooners homered in 58 of their 60 games, including 45 multi-home run games, and set the NCAA Division I single-season record for team batting average (.405), team slugging percentage (.778), on-base percentage (.490), home runs (161), runs scored (638), runs per game (10.63), home runs per game (2.68) and total bases (1,279). They also set Women's College World Series records for home runs (15), runs scored (49) and hits (67).

## Schedule

2021 Oklahoma Sooners softball game log :
Regular season (42–2) :
February (12–0) :
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site/stadium | Score | Win | Loss | Save | Attendance | Overall Record | Big 12 Record |
| February 11 | at UTEP | No. 4 | Helen of Troy Field El Paso, TX | 29–0 $^{(5)}$ | Juarez (1–0) | Salazar (0–1) | Rains (1) | 0 | 1–0 | – |
| February 11 | vs Abilene Christian | No. 4 | Helen of Troy Field | 9–0 $^{(5)}$ | May (1–0) | White (0–1) | — | 0 | 2–0 | – |
| February 12 | vs Abilene Christian | No. 4 | Helen of Troy Field | 11–0 $^{(5)}$ | Juarez (2–0) | Sinnott (0–1) | — | 0 | 3–0 | – |
| February 12 | at UTEP | No. 4 | Helen of Troy Field | 21–2 $^{(5)}$ | May (2–0) | Collins (0–1) | — | 86 | 4–0 | – |
| February 21 | at Houston | No. 2 | Cougar Softball Stadium Houston, TX | 12–4 $^{(6)}$ | Juarez (3–0) | Hertenberger (1–1) | — | 120 | 5–0 | – |
| February 21 | at Houston | No. 2 | Cougar Softball Stadium | 5–3 | May (3–0) | Lee (0–1) | Saile (1) | 120 | 6–0 | – |
| February 22 | vs. Tarleton | No. 2 | Cougar Softball Stadium | 13–0 $^{(5)}$ | Saile (1–0) | Bridges (0–3) | — | 0 | 7–0 | – |
| February 26 | vs. New Mexico | No. 2 | Farrington Tempe, AZ | 8–0 $^{(5)}$ | Saile (2–0) | Guindon (1–3) | — | 147 | 8–0 | – |
| February 26 | at No. 13 Arizona State | No. 2 | Farrington | 5–3 | Juarez (4–0) | Royalty (3–1) | Saile (2) | 285 | 9–0 | – |
| February 27 | vs. New Mexico | No. 2 | Farrington | 33–4 $^{(5)}$ | May (3–0) | Hannappel (0–1) | — | 0 | 10–0 | – |
| February 27 | at Grand Canyon | No. 2 | GCU Softball Stadium Phoenix, AZ | 14–0 $^{(5)}$ | Saile (3–0) | Hambrick (2–4) | — | 65 | 11–0 | – |
| February 27 | vs. Portland State | No. 2 | GCU Softball Stadium | 8–0 $^{(5)}$ | Juarez (5–0) | Grey (1–1) | — | 45 | 12–0 | – |
March (13–0) :
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site/stadium | Score | Win | Loss | Save | Attendance | Overall Record | Big 12 Record |
| March 5 | Sam Houston State | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex Norman, OK | 7–0 | May (5–0) | Billmeier (0–1) | — | 184 | 13–0 | – |
| March 6 | No. 18 Missouri | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex | 5–2 | Juarez (6–0) | Krings (3–1) | — | 0 | 14–0 | – |
| March 6 | ULM | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex | 9–0 $^{(5)}$ | Saile (4–0) | Chavarria (1–2) | — | 216 | 15–0 | – |
| March 7 | No. 18 Missouri | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex | 11–0 $^{(5)}$ | Saile (5–0) | Weber (5–1) | — | 150 | 16–0 | – |
| March 7 | Sam Houston State | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex | 17–0 $^{(5)}$ | Thiede (1–0) | Fitzpatrick (0–2) | — | 200 | 17–0 | – |
| March 10 | UT Arlington | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex | 14–0 $^{(5)}$ | May (6–0) | Gardiner (1–1) | — | 405 | 18–0 | – |
| March 12 | Houston | No. 1 | Hall of Fame Stadium Oklahoma City, OK | 9–1 $^{(5)}$ | Saile (6–0) | Lee (2–4) | — | 0 | 19–0 | – |
| March 12 | Kansas City | No. 1 | Hall of Fame Stadium | 6–2 | Juarez (7–0) | Hoveland (5–3) | — | 0 | 20–0 | – |
| March 14 | Liberty | No. 1 | Hall of Fame Stadium | 5–4 | May (7–0) | Wagoner (2–2) | — | 550 | 21–0 | – |
| March 14 | Liberty | No. 1 | Hall of Fame Stadium | 16–0 $^{(5)}$ | May (8–0) | Kirby (4–3) | — | 1,083 | 22–0 | – |
| March 26 | at Iowa State | No. 1 | Cyclone Sports Complex Ames, IA | 9–7 | Juarez (8–0) | Charles (10–3) | — | 527 | 23–0 | 1–0 |
| March 27 | at Iowa State | No. 1 | Cyclone Sports Complex | 10–2 $^{(6)}$ | Saile (7–0) | Swain (1–2) | — | 560 | 24–0 | 2–0 |
| March 28 | at Iowa State | No. 1 | Cyclone Sports Complex | 22–2 $^{(5)}$ | May (9–0) | Charles (10–4) | — | 0 | 25–0 | 3–0 |
April (14–1) :
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site/stadium | Score | Win | Loss | Save | Attendance | Overall Record | Big 12 Record |
| April 1 | Kansas | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex | 14–0 $^{(5)}$ | Saile (8–0) | Goff (7–3) | — | 449 | 26–0 | 4–0 |
| April 2 | Kansas | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex | 6–2 | Juarez (9–0) | Mills (1–2) | — | 445 | 27–0 | 5–0 |
| April 3 | Kansas | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex | 10–1 $^{(5)}$ | Juarez (10–0) | Hamilton (3–6) | — | 465 | 28–0 | 6–0 |
| April 10 | vs. Mississippi State | No. 1 | Dr. Billy Bundrick Field Ruston, LA | 9–0 $^{(5)}$ | Juarez (11–0) | Williams (3–4) | — | 500 | 29–0 | – |
| April 10 | at Louisiana Tech | No. 1 | Dr. Billy Bundrick Field | 10–0 $^{(5)}$ | May (10–0) | Hernandez (6–6) | — | 500 | 30–0 | – |
| April 16 | No. 7 Texas | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex | 11–1 $^{(5)}$ | Juarez (12–0) | O'Leary (9–1) | — | 459 | 31–0 | 7–0 |
| April 17 | No. 7 Texas | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex | 10–2 $^{(5)}$ | Saile (9–0) | Jacobsen (11–3) | — | 484 | 32–0 | 8–0 |
| April 18 | No. 7 Texas | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex | 9–0 $^{(5)}$ | May (11–0) | O'Leary (9–2) | — | 497 | 33–0 | 9–0 |
| April 20 | at No. 21 Georgia | No. 1 | Jack Turner Stadium Athens, GA | 6–7 $^{(9)}$ | Mary Wilson (15–5) | May (11–1) | — | 400 | 33–1 | – |
| April 20 | at No. 21 Georgia | No. 1 | Jack Turner Stadium | 12–3 $^{(5)}$ | Saile (10–0) | Cutting (6–5) | — | 400 | 34–1 | – |
| April 24 | Texas Tech | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex | 15–0 $^{(5)}$ | Juarez (13–0) | Zoch (9–10) | — | 766 | 35–1 | 10–0 |
| April 24 | Texas Tech | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex | 5–0 | Saile (11–0) | Edmoundson (7–9) | — | 766 | 36–1 | 11–0 |
| April 25 | Texas Tech | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex | 20–0 $^{(5)}$ | Juarez (14–0) | Zoch (9–11) | — | 752 | 37–1 | 12–0 |
| April 27 | at Baylor | No. 1 | Getterman Stadium Waco, TX | 7–1 | Juarez (15–0) | Rodoni (9–7) | — | 600 | 38–1 | 13–0 |
| April 27 | at Baylor | No. 1 | Getterman Stadium | 11–0 $^{(6)}$ | Saile (12–0) | Mansell (7–4) | — | 600 | 39–1 | 14–0 |
May (3–1) :
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | Score | Win | Loss | Save | Attendance | Overall Record | Big 12 Record |
| May 4 | at No. 25 Wichita State | No. 1 | Wilkins Stadium Wichita, KS | 14–3 $^{(5)}$ | Saile (13–0) | Lange (19–6) | — | 730 | 40–1 | – |
| May 7 | at No. 9 Oklahoma State | No. 1 | Cowgirl Stadium Stillwater, OK | 4–6 | Eberle (19–1) | Juarez (15–1) | — | 609 | 40–2 | 14–1 |
| May 8 | at No. 9 Oklahoma State | No. 1 | Cowgirl Stadium | 6–4 | Saile (14–0) | Maxwell (14–3) | May (1) | 652 | 41–2 | 15–1 |
| May 9 | at No. 9 Oklahoma State | No. 1 | Cowgirl Stadium | 11–8 | May (12–1) | Eberle (19–2) | — | 663 | 42–2 | 16–1 |
Post-season (14–2) :
Big 12 tournament (3–0) :
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | Score | Win | Loss | Save | Attendance | Overall Record | B12T Record |
| May 14 | vs. Baylor | No. 1 | Hall of Fame Stadium | 10–2 $^{(5)}$ | Saile (15–0) | Binford (5–4) | — | 3,839 | 43–2 | 1–0 |
| May 14 | vs. Texas Tech | No. 1 | Hall of Fame Stadium | 8–2 | Juarez (16–1) | Edmoundson (7–11) | — | 3,839 | 44–2 | 2–0 |
| May 15 | vs. No. 9 Oklahoma State Final | No. 1 | Hall of Fame Stadium | 10–2 $^{(6)}$ | Saile (16–0) | Eberle (21–3) | — | 3,879 | 45–2 | 3–0 |
Norman Regional (3–0) :
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | Score | Win | Loss | Save | Attendance | Overall Record | Regional Record |
| May 21 | vs. Morgan State | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex | 19–0 $^{(6)}$ | Juarez (17–1) | Rundlett (12–8) | — | 1,555 | 46–2 | 1–0 |
| May 22 | vs. No. 23 Wichita State | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex | 7–5 | Juarez (18–1) | Lange (22–6) | May (2) | 1,556 | 47–2 | 2–0 |
| May 23 | vs. No. 23 Wichita State | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex | 24–7 | May (13–1) | Lange (22–8) | — | 1,668 | 48–2 | 3–0 |
Norman Super Regional (2–0) :
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | Score | Win | Loss | Save | Attendance | Overall Record | Super Reg. Record |
| May 28 | vs. No. 6 Washington | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex | 4–2 | May (14–1) | Plain (32–4) | — | 1,758 | 49–2 | 1–0 |
| May 28 | vs. No. 6 Washington | No. 1 | OU Softball Complex | 9–1 $^{(5)}$ | Saile (17–0) | Plain (32–5) | — | 1,800 | 50–2 | 2–0 |
Women's College World Series (6–2) :
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | Score | Win | Loss | Save | Attendance | Overall Record | WCWS Record |
| June 3 | vs. No. 22 James Madison First round | No. 1 | Hall of Fame Stadium | 3–4 $^{(8)}$ | Alexander (17–1) | Saile (17–1) | — | — | 50–3 | 0–1 |
| June 5 | vs. Georgia First round | No. 1 | Hall of Fame Stadium | 8–0 $^{(6)}$ | Juarez (19–1) | Wilson Avant (20–12) | — | — | 51–3 | 1–1 |
| June 5 | vs. No. 2 UCLA Second round | No. 1 | Hall of Fame Stadium | 10–3 | Juarez (20–1) | Garcia (18–3) | — | — | 52–3 | 2–1 |
| June 6 | vs. No. 22 James Madison Semifinals | No. 1 | Hall of Fame Stadium | 6–3 | May (15–1) | Alexander (18–2) | — | — | 53–3 | 3–1 |
| June 7 | vs. No. 22 James Madison Semifinals | No. 1 | Hall of Fame Stadium | 7–1 | Juarez (21–1) | Alexander (18–3) | — | — | 54–3 | 4–1 |
| June 8 | vs. No. 8 Florida State Final – Game 1 | No. 1 | Hall of Fame Stadium | 4–8 | Watson (12–1) | May (15–2) | — | 12,173 | 54–4 | 4–2 |
| June 9 | vs. No. 8 Florida State Final – Game 2 | No. 1 | Hall of Fame Stadium | 6–2 | Juarez (22–1)) | Sandercock (27–4) | — | 12,115 | 55–4 | 5–2 |
| June 10 | vs. No. 8 Florida State Final – Game 3 | No. 1 | Hall of Fame Stadium | 5–1 | Juarez (23–1)) | Watson (12–2) | — | 10,830 | 56–4 | 6–2 |
Win  Loss  PostponementBold: Sooners team memberReference: Rankings from NFCA:(#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. :

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Final |
| NFCA / USA Today | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Softball America | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| ESPN.com/USA Softball | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| D1Softball | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |

## Awards and honors

Weekly Awards :
| Player | Award | Date Awarded |
| Tiare Jennings | Big 12 Player of the Week | February 16, 2021 |
| Tiare Jennings | Big 12 Player of the Week | March 9, 2021 |
| Shannon Saile | Co-Big 12 Pitcher of the Week | March 9, 2021 |
| Jocelyn Alo | Big 12 Player of the Week | March 16, 2021 |
| Jocelyn Alo | Big 12 Player of the Week | March 30, 2021 |
| Tiare Jennings | Big 12 Player of the Week | April 7, 2021 |
| Tiare Jennings | Co-Big 12 Player of the Week | April 20, 2021 |
| Shannon Saile | Big 12 Pitcher of the Week | April 27, 2021 |
Individual Awards :
| Player | Award | Ref. |
| Jocelyn Alo | Big 12 Player of the Year USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year | [14] [15] [16] |
| Tiare Jennings | Big 12 Freshman of the Year NFCA National Freshman of the Year | [14] [15] [16] |
| Grace Lyons | Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year | [14] [15] [16] |
| Patty Gasso | Big 12 Coach of the Year | [14] [15] [16] |
All-Big 12 :
| Player | Selection |
| Jocelyn Alo | First Team |
| Jayda Coleman | First Team |
| Tiare Jennings | First Team |
| Grace Lyons | First Team |
| Shannon Saile | First Team |
| Mackenzie Donihoo | Second Team |
| Lynnsie Elam | Second Team |
| Giselle Juarez | Second Team |
| Jayda Coleman | Freshman Team |
| Tiare Jennings | Freshman Team |
| Nicole May | Freshman Team |
All-American :
| Player | Selection |
| Jocelyn Alo | First Team |
| Jayda Coleman | First Team |
| Tiare Jennings | First Team |
| Kinzie Hansen | Second Team |
| Grace Lyons | Second Team |