April 11, 2008
The stage is set for a Top 10 showdown in the battle for the Big 12 lead as the fifth-ranked Texas A&M softball team (37-6, 9-0) and the seventh-ranked Oklahoma Sooners (35-9, 8-0) face off in a key weekend series. First pitch of game one is slated for Saturday at 2 p.m. at the Aggie Softball Complex.
?This weekend is going to be a tremendous series,? A&M head coach Jo Evans said. ?I hope people will come out, if they love softball or even if they?â„¢ve never seen it this is the game they should come out to. I have a lot of respect for OU. Their coaches do a fantastic job of developing their players. You are going to see two teams go nose-to-nose and it?â„¢s going to be a lot of fun.?
The Aggies and Sooners are the only two undefeated teams remaining in the league at 9-0 and 8-0 respectively. A&M?â„¢s making its best start since 2005 when the Aggies opened Big 12 play with a 5-0 mark. OU is a game shy of tying it?â„¢s best start set in 2002 when the Sooners went 9-0 to open conference play.
Oklahoma will have to make a quick turnaround after sweeping Texas Tech in a doubleheader in Norman on Thursday. The first win didn?â„¢t come easy for the Sooners as both teams headed into extra innings deadlocked at 2-2. Junior Jessica Legendre?â„¢s bases-loaded single in the bottom of the 10th gave OU the 3-2 victory and the momentum heading into the second game of the twinbill. Oklahoma scored eight runs on 10 hits to defeat the Red Raiders, 8-3 and remain perfect in league action.
Amber Flores leads the Sooners and the Big 12 at the plate, hitting .426 on the season. The sophomore outfielder leads the conference in runs scored (47), total bases (101), and on base percentage (.525). She ranks second in hits (55), runs batted in (39) and slugging percentage (.783).
In the circle for OU, D.J. Mathis owns a league-best 0.93 ERA. The junior leads the Big 12 in strikeouts (186), shutouts (10), innings pitched (158.2), appearances (31), and opponents?â„¢ batting average (.143). Mathis also ranks second in wins (22) and complete games (16).
The Aggies are coming off a pivotal win against rival Texas in Austin on Wednesday. Megan Gibson threw a three-hitter, striking out 12 Longhorn hitters and Holly Ridley blasted a two-run homer in the fifth to propel the Aggies to a 3-1 victory.
For the last 15-straight games Gibson has posted a sub-one ERA, currently sitting at 0.94. The two-time All-American has registered seven of the Aggies?â„¢ nine Big 12 wins, topping her career high. The Spring, Texas native leads the conference in wins (23), walks (38), shutouts (10), and complete games (22).
Gibson?â„¢s 24 consecutive victories dating back to May 20, 2007 ranks 11th nationally in the NCAA record book.
Although Oklahoma owns the all-time series lead at 33-17, the Aggies and Sooners have split the last three series. The last time a team swept the series was in 2004, with A&M winning both games, 1-0 and 5-4 in College Station. Since the 2004 season the Aggies are 6-5 against OU.
The two teams met twice in 2007, with a then third-ranked Oklahoma winning the first game 4-2 and A&M taking the second 9-4.
Both teams had successful ?'07 campaigns. A&M made its first NCAA Women?â„¢s College World Series appearance in 19 seasons while Oklahoma captured the Big 12 Championship title for the third time in school history and fell just short of a trip to Oklahoma City, losing to DePaul in Super Regional action.
Fans can listen to the game live and free of charge on aggieathletics.com through the new Aggies All-Access. Free, live video of the game will also be available through Aggies All-Access.
Aggie students can bring their parents to the two-game series at the Aggie Softball Complex for only $2 general admission all weekend.
Following Saturday?â„¢s game the softball team will host an autograph session with free posters, magnets and schedule cards.
The Aggies and Sooners will conclude the two-game series on Sunday at noon at the Aggie Softball Complex.