Takeaways from the Sooners' uneven series against Oklahoma State

NORMAN — How do things look for Patty Gasso's squad heading into the postseason?

Well, it's complicated.

The Sooners dropped two games to Oklahoma State over the weekend, ending the regular season with a 46-6 record while finishing second in the Big 12 standings. The Sooners had a chance to secure another Big 12 regular-season title, but instead dropped their first home series to Oklahoma State in nearly 30 years.

The Sooners looked lost at times. They lost the first two games by a combined score of 12-5 as the offense stalled and the pitching was inconsistent. It was a slow start on Sunday, too, but a late sixth-inning rally that looked more Sooner-ish carred them to a much-needed 8-2 win.

Gasso is hoping Sunday's win is some much-needed momentum as the Sooners head into the Big 12 Tournament and beyond.

"There's been times when we've looked up at the scoreboard, and you're like, 'Oh, no,' and we've never been that team," Gasso said. "We've always felt like we have the bat in our hand, we could be down by any number and feel like we're still gonna win. Some of that kind of went away, and I was a little surprised. We were pressing. Pressing a little is unlike us.

"This was just a breath of fresh air before we go into finals tomorrow, before we go into Big 12 Tournament. We really need to use that platform to really have everything in good order before we start the postseason."

Here's a look at takeaways from the weekend and what they mean for the Sooners as they head into the postseason:

By most metrics, this is a silly question.

The Sooners finished the regular season ranked third nationally in runs per game (8.12), second in batting average (.363%), second in slugging percentage (.656%), first in on-base percentage (.473%) and first in total walks (279). They scored 10 or more runs in 16 games this season.

But against the Cowgirls, the Sooners' offense was legitimately slowed down in a way that isn't normally seen.

In the first two games, the Sooners logged just eight hits in 51 plate appearances for a batting average of .156%, well below their season average. Those eight hits represented their fewest in back-to-back games than any other point this season. It was similar to the Texas weekend, when the Sooners recorded a batting average of .247% across the three games.

The Sooners simply looked out of sync and, at times, hesitant to swing. But there were some encouraging signs of life on Sunday, when the Sooners scored six runs in the sixth inning. That was particularly the case for Tiare Jennings and Cydney Sanders. Jennings had recorded a hit in just of her previous 26 at-bats before hitting a solo home run.

Sanders hadn't recorded a hit in six-straight games before hitting a single that helped give OU momentum. The junior — who has posted a batting average of just .266% this season — has been able to offset some of her struggles with walks, but the hope is that late hit will give her momentum heading into next week.

In their defense, the Sooners struggled against Texas and Oklahoma State, two teams that rank ninth and 11th in ERA, respectively. But if they hope to win an unprecedented fourth-straight national championship, their offense will have to be better when they face postseason-level defenses.

There's one thing that should be emphasized before diving into Kierston Deal's season: she has been really good.

Heading into the weekend, the sophomore ranked third nationally in ERA (1.00) and second in the Big 12 in ERA during conference play behind OSU's Lexi Kilfoyl. Deal had given up just two runs in her last 19.2 innings pitched before facing Oklahoma State.

But if there's been one area of concern, it's been her performance as a relief pitcher. She had an ERA of 4.85 out of the pen this season before the weekend. That issue popped up against the Cowgirls. Pitching a total of one inning in two relief appearances, Deal gave up six hits and five earned runs. She gave up two runs in 0.1 innings on Sunday before the Sooners went back to Karlie Keeney.

When asked why Deal has struggled as a relief pitcher, Gasso didn't have much of an answer.

"I mean, KD has been our hottest pitcher as of late," Gasso said on Friday. "So if I felt like she wasn’t ready to come in, I wouldn’t put her in. It’s just, she had an off night, she left the ball over the plate too many times and she’ll tell you that herself. She is too much of a competitor to come in and say, ‘Oh, I’m not ready.’ Again, these are lessons learned when you come in from the bullpen, you better be ready to slam the door."

Deal has alternated between the No. 2 and No. 3 pitcher in conference play. But it was notable that Keeney earned the start on Sunday.

Keeney was fantastic the entire weekend. In 10 total innings — two relief appearances, one start — Keeney gave up just four hits and zero runs while walking five batters and striking out four. She was the most impressive OU pitcher and gave the Sooners stability in a rare weekend where Kelly Maxwell struggled.

Keeney has been very solid this season with an ERA of 1.4, though she hasn't appeared much in conference play. That's encouraging for the Sooners, who are still trying to sort things out with the pitching staff.

“It was probably the highlight of the game to us, because she's just been waiting in the wings," Gasso said of Keeney on Sunday," and she'll come in and fill in a hole here or there, but when we pulled her out, we thought, it's time, because we haven't let her go a full game. And then when KD got in trouble, the answer was bring her back in, and we'll see what that looks like, and she handled it like a pro. So it just makes us feel really confident going forward that she's ready to go in in the tough moments.”

The Sooners' pitching staff that has a collective ERA of 1.85, which ranks 10th nationally, and has been elite more times than not this season, But even as good as Maxwell has been, the Sooners need their depth to show out if they hope to make a run.. Against Oklahoma State, it was Keeney that stepped up. But it's gonna be up to Gasso and pitching coach Jen Rocha to figure out a plan that maximizes the staff.

The Sooners play the winner of Houston-Kansas at 1:30 p.m. on Thursday at Hall of Fame Stadium for the Big 12 Tournament. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.