OU softball: Fall preview

For the last few years, Oklahoma softball's fall schedule was mostly an opportunity to tune up and work on conditioning before the spring rolled around.

But this year, things are a little bit different.

The Sooners, fresh off a fourth consecutive national championship, are down 10 key contributors after graduating the most highly-decorated senior class in softball history. Considering how much those seniors meant to the program — and how incredibly successful they were over the last four seasons — it's certainly not going to be easy to replace them.

Add in the three players who departed via the transfer portal, and the 13 players who've been added through the portal and the 2025 freshman class, and the Sooners essentially have a brand new team heading into next season.

"I am excited because I get to coach again," OU coach Patty Gasso said last month. "And no offense to our last year's team, they were all so good. All I did was kind of manage. I didn't really need to coach. This year we're going to be coaching and they're just really, they're prideful young athletes. They're so proud to be here. And they really want to kind of pick up the torch and continue to carry it."

Gasso's squad begins the fall season on Wednesday with a battle series — an intrasquad scrimmage — and the slate includes three battle series exhibitions and five scrimmages against other teams. And this fall, more than ever, there will be a ton of things to watch over the next few weeks.

Here's a preview of the Sooners' fall slate and some things to watch:

DEPARTURES

RHP Karlie Keeney

C Kinzie Hansen

LHP Kelly Maxwell

UTL Riley Ludlam

OF Rylie Boone

RHP Nicole May

INF Tiare Jennings

OF Jayda Coleman

UTL Alyssa Brito

UTL Alynah Torres

INF Avery Hodge (transferred to LSU)

LHP SJ Guerin (transferred to Auburn)

UTL Quincee Lilio (transferred to South Carolina)

ADDITIONS

INF Sydney Barker

INF Gabbie Garcia

C/INF Riley Zache

C/1B Corri Hicks

INF Kadey Lee McKay

C Isabella Emerling (transferred from North Carolina)

INF/RHP Ailana Agbayani (transferred from BYU)

RHP Sam Landry (transferred from Lousiana)

RHP Isabella Smith (transferred from Campbell)

LHP Audrey Lowry

OF Abby Dayton (transferred from Utah)

OF Chaney Helton

UTL Tia Malloy

RETURNERS

OF Maya Bland

OF Hannah Coor

OF Kasidi Pickering

LHP Kierson Deal

RHP Payton Monticelli

INF Nelly McEnroe-Marinas

INF Cydney Sanders

UTL Ella Parker

PITCHER

This is likely the biggest thing to watch this fall.

With the departures, the Sooners lost three of their top four pitchers from a year ago. That includes Nicole May, who was the team's unsung hero the last three years and pitched the second-most innings last season, including some key moments in the postseason run. The Sooners also lost Karlie Keeney, who was a key part of the rotation in the regular season.

But the biggest departure, obviously, is Kelly Maxwell. She wasn't just the team's best player in the postseason, which including earning most outstanding player at the Women's College Series. But more importantly, her performances at the WCWS were the engines behind their title run. In 27 innings, she gave up just 12 hits and seven earned runs while striking out 32 batters.

That's going to be tough to replace, and they'll largely do it with new pieces.

The good news is that Kierston Deal is returning for her third season after a solid sophomore campaign. She logged an ERA of 1.97 and 68 strikeouts while allowing just 50 hits, 22 earned runs and a batting average of .176%. She enters the season as the head of the pitching staff with the most institutional knowledge and after getting key experience in big games.

Paytn Monticelli is the other returning pitcher on the roster. She pitched 18.1 innings and did post some good numbers last season (1.09 ERA, .149 batting average).

But as we've seen with Gasso and OU pitching coach Jennifer Rocha, the Sooners want a real pitching staff. In 2023, the Sooners had three pitchers throw at least 103 innings. Last season, four different pitchers logged at least 61 innings.

So, who emerges as trusted options this fall?

Outside of Deal, the Sooners have five pitchers on the roster. As far as experience, two of them standout the most. Isabella Smith is by far the most seasoned, throwing over 593 innings in her three seasons at Campbell with 638 strikeouts and a 2.37 ERA. Sam Landry pitched over 460 innings at Lousiana and provides more D1 experience than Smith.

Ailana Agbayani is more of a short stop than a pitcher, but did show she can be used as a utility-type pitcher. She pitched 54.2 innings in her two seasons at BYU, recording an era of 3.84. The Sooners will likely lean on other options more, but it'll be interesting to see how much time she sees in the circle during the fall.

There is real excitement about true freshman Audrey Lowry, and there's real potential she could play right away. Her resume at Tri-West High School was impressive. She holds the program record for career strikeouts (1,084), ERA (0.69), wins (78), opponent batting average (.131), base hits (171), batting average (.503) and RBIs (133).

She also holds the single-season record marks for strikeouts (302), wins (22), ERA (0.42), fewest walks (7), opponent average (.092) and base hits (54) — all of those came senior year, when she was named 2024 Indiana Gatorade Player of the Year. Plus, there's precedent for true freshmen seeing playing time. Deal saw 27.1 innings in 2023 and even played in the super regionals against Clemson, and that came on a pitching staff that included Jordy Bahl, Alex Storako and May.

INFIELD

Cydney Sanders will almost certainly reclaim her spot at first base. The departures of Tiare Jennings, Alynah Torres, Avery Hodge, Alyssa Brito and Kinzie Hansen doesn't make things easy, but the Sooners still have clear options in the infield.

At catcher, the Sooners have a readymade replacement with Isabella Emerling, and they added her as someone who could provide a veteran presence and play right away. She started 95 games in two seasons at North Carolina and threw out 15 bases stealers. After a tough offensive season in 2023, she bounced back in 2024 with .323/.418/.685 splits, 53 RBIs and 14 home runs.

Agbayani should fit in nicely at short stop. She appeared in 105 games the last two seasons and was fantastic at the plate last year, recording 70 hits, 58 home runs and 30 RBIs while batting .424.

Second and third base will be bigger questions this fall. The Sooners have several new freshmen who have infield experience and could see opportunities everywhere, particularly at second and third base. But at third base, keep an eye on redshirt freshman Nelly McEnroe-Marinas. She was injured all of last season but she should have a real opportunity to play. She was the No. 6-ranked recruit in the 2023 class, per Extra Inning Softball, and was an excellent offensive player in Waianae, Hawai'i — the home of OU legend Jocelyn Alo.

OUTFIELD

Nobody will fill the shoes of Coleman and Boone, arguably the greatest outfield duo softball has ever seen. But the outfield could still be the strength of the Sooners' team in 2025.

Kasidi Pickering was outstanding as an outfielder as a true freshman, and she was even better at the plate. She started 64 of 66 games and was an invaluable part of the offense (58 hits, 45 runs, 51 RBIs, 12 HRs). Barring anything unexpected, she'll be the starter likely in right field.

Abby Dayton has a clear pathway to start in centerfield. She was one of the best hitters in softball last season, winning the Pac-12 regular-season batting title behind 72 hits, 38 runs, 28 RBIs and a .444 batting average.

The other outfield spot, however, will be one to watch. The Sooners have a ton of candidates there, including Maya Bland, Hannah Coor and true freshman Chaney Helton. Coor appeared in 63 games last season primarily as a pinch runner, but she did see some time in the outfield and the only thing holding her back has been her health. Bland was the team's go-to pinch runner due to her speed, and could earn a starting role if she flashes a bit more potential at the plate.

Sophomore Ella Parker was used exclusively as a designated hitter last season and figures to lead the offense after an unbelievable freshman campaign. But she does have experience in the outfield, from high school and maybe the Sooners try her out there more in the fall.

Of the Sooners 21 players, 13 of them are entering their first season at OU. Eight of them are freshmen. Regardless of how things shake out, this coaching staff is simply going to have to rely on first-year players and new transfers. This is unchartered territory for a team who had the same nucleus for four consecutive titles.

That means there will be more focus on the fall. In addition to seeing the new-look Sooners on the field, this is also a prime opportunity for Gasso and the coaching staff to experiment with lineup combinations and move players around the infield and outfield.

OU fans have largely known what to expect from this team the last several years. But this fall, fans should be in for a treat as Gasso puts her coaching skills fully on display.

Oct. 2, Oklahoma Battle Series Game One, Norman, 6:30 p.m.

Oct. 9, Oklahoma Battle Series Game Two, Norman, 6:30 p.m.

Oct. 16 at Texas A&M Commerce, Commerce, Texas, 6 p.m.

Oct. 23, Seminole State College, Norman, 6:30 p.m.

Oct. 26, ULM, Norman, Noon

Oct. 26, ULM, Norman, 2:30 p.m.

Oct. 30, MACU, Norman, 6:30 p.m.

Nov. 6, Oklahoma Battle Series Game Three, Norman, 6:30 p.m.

Bold indicates home game. Games will be broadcast on SECN+.