Patty Gasso looking for 'fearless mentality' from Oklahoma pitchers
Oklahoma advanced to its seventh consecutive Big 12 Tournament Championship game on Friday after taking down BYU by a 13-2 mercy rule.
Sophomore LHP Kierston Deal carried a no-hitter through 4.2 innings — falling just shy of the mark in the game’s final inning. She finished the game allowing two hits, a pari of runs and two walks while striking out four Cougars batters.
Despite Deal’s success, Sooners head coach Patty Gasso challenged her pitching staff ahead of a blockbuster showdown between OU and No. 1 Texas on Saturday night.
“They know that they’re needed at their best right now, but so to our hitters,” Gasso said after the semifinal win. “So if we can put this all together at the right time, we’ve got something really special. But that fearless mentality is what we’re looking for. From top to bottom the entire team, but the pitching staff needs to just kind of breathe a little fire.”
After falling to the likes of Texas and Oklahoma State during series in the regular season, Gasso called the Big 12 Tournament — the final featuring the Longhorns and OU before their move to the SEC later this summer — a “revenge tour.” They’re one win away from completing that effort.
Obviously, that’s easier said than done. However, with OU being the program to beat over the last several years in college softball — they’re looking forward to proving they’re still on top of the mountain with a win over softball’s current No. 1 heading into the NCAA Tournament.
“We were kind of hoping for this opportunity,” Gasso continued. “Just, one, to face Texas and two, to get better from it. So, yeah. I think everybody’s going to be really excited about the matchup.”
Regardless of the outcome, both of these programs are going to be hosting Regionals, and likely Super Regionals as well barring any tournament-shifting upsets. With fireworks expected during the planned seven-inning affair — softball fans across the board will be tuned in to the Big 12 Championship game.
The first pitch between the Sooners and Longhorns is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET and will air live on ESPN2 will be available to stream on the ESPN app. OU will be looking to win its third conference tournament title in four seasons.
If the Sooners win, Gasso would have won her 10th Big 12 Conference Tournament since taking over as head coach of the Sooners in 1995. Spanning four-decades, her tenure has also seen her complete seven national championship-winning seasons, 15 Big 12 regular season titles (1x Big Eight), among numerous individual accolades.