April 07, 2006
The 16th-ranked Texas A&M softball team (26-10, 5-1) will host the 21st-ranked Oklahoma Sooners (25-13-1, 2-5) this weekend in a two-game series, starting Saturday at 11:00 a.m. at the Aggie Softball Complex.
| SERIES INFO |
| Saturday, April 8, 11 a.m. (CDT) Sunday, April 9, 3:30 p.m. (CDT) Aggie Softball Complex (1,750), College Station, Texas Tickets: |
| RECORDS |
| Texas A&M: 26-10, 5-1 Big 12 (T-1st) Oklahoma: 25-13-1, 2-5 Big 12 (8th) |
| RANKINGS |
| A&M is ranked 16th in the USA Today/NFCA poll and 17th in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll. OU is ranked 21st in both polls. |
| TV (both games) |
| ESPN (National) Tracy Warren, play-by-play Lisa Fernandez, commentary |
| RADIO |
| (available inside stadium on 89.9 FM) Matt Simon, play-by-play Clint Netherland, commentary |
| INTERNET |
| Live Stats (Sat): (aggieathletics.com) Live Stats (Sun): (aggieathletics.com) Live Audio: (aggieathletics.com-subscription service) |
| SERIES |
| OU leads, 30-15 Last Meeting: (3/18/06) Last Time in College Station: & (3/27-28/04) |
| UP NEXT |
| A&M at Oklahoma State (DH) Wednesday, April 12, 5 p.m. (CDT) Cowgirl Stadium, Stillwater, Oklahoma |
"Oklahoma is a very good hitting team," commented A&M head coach Jo Evans. "They have the ability to put a lot of runs on the board, so our pitchers will have to be sharp. I am happy with the way our team is playing at this point in the season. We are continuing to be more aggressive at the plate and to play solid defense in the field. Our pitchers are leading us in the circle and giving us the opportunity to win every ballgame we play. I feel like it should be a great series."
The Aggies enter the weekend fresh off a 4-2 mid-week win over No. 1 Texas in the State Farm Lone Star Showdown in Austin. A&M tallied four runs on six hits, including a Megan Gibson double and Holly Ridley home run off Longhorn pitcher Meagan Denny. Amanda Scarborough (11-5) earned the complete game victory giving up just two runs on two hits.
The Sooners handed the Oklahoma State Cowgirls a 15-1 loss in Stillwater on Wednesday in a Bedlam series showdown. Oklahoma posted four runs in the first, three in the second, six in the third and two in the fourth to bring the run-rule into effect.
Number-wise, Gibson continues to lead the Aggies at the plate with a .319 batting average. She's driven in a team best 25 RBI on nine homeruns and six doubles. Gibson's nine home runs is a Big 12 second best along with her 23 walks. Gibson (13-3) has a 2.30 ERA. She's worked 100.1 innings in the circle, racking up 71 strikeouts, 10 complete games and two shutouts.
For OU, Kristin Vesely has posted a highly impressive .492 batting average. She currently leads the Big 12 in hitting, recording 37 RBI on three home runs, three triples and 12 doubles. On the mound for the Sooners, D.J. Mathis (9-3) holds a 2.36 ERA with 83 innings pitched. She leads the team in strikeouts with 53 and complete games at five.
Last season the two teams split the regular season series in Norman. OU won the first game 15-7 while the Aggies took game two 4-1. The schools met again in the Big 12 Championship in Oklahoma City. The Sooners won, 6-2.
More recently A&M and Oklahoma met in March at the Judi Garman Classic in Fullerton, Calif. The Aggies beat the Sooners 7-6 to advance in tournament play. OU holds the all-time series record at 30-15.
The final game of the two-game set will be played at 3:30 p.m. on Sunday at the Aggie Softball Complex.
ESPN will provide a live broadcasting of both games. Live audio and stats will also be available at AggieAthletics.com. Fans attending the games can listen to the broadcast inside the stadium on 89.9 FM.
Tickets for this weekend, and all home games, are available at the gate and by calling 1-888-99-AGGIE.