Clay Horning

5 days ago | open.substack.com | Clay Horning

Watching Cade Crossland pitch in Lexington, Kentucky, on Saturday was much like a root canal. Painful. The first batter he faced, Tyler Bell, struck out on three pitches, which hardly ever happens. The 0-2 pitch, a dying changeup as it reached the plate, was a thing of beauty. Bell couldn’t lay off and it could not have been a better sign for the southpaw Sooner starter.

1 week ago | oklahomacolumnist.com | Clay Horning

Once again, the way coach Patty Gasso chooses to employ her pitching staff this week should be fascinating. Oklahoma could lose its SEC tourney opener Thursday morning at Georgia’s Jack Turner Stadium and that would be that until regional pairings are announced.

1 week ago | oklahomacolumnist.com | Clay Horning

Oklahoma is in the race to bring an NCAA regional to L. Dale Mitchell Park. Were the Sooners to pull it off, it would make for two Norman Regionals in the space of two seasons, looking to return to the super regional round for the first time since 2022, when OU caught fire in the postseason to reach the College World Series’ best two-of-three championship series, falling short to Ole Miss.

1 week ago | normantranscript.com | Clay Horning

Once again, the way coach Patty Gasso chooses to employ her pitching staff this week ought to be fascinating. Oklahoma could lose its Southeastern Conference tourney opener Thursday morning at Georgia’s Jack Turner Stadium and that would be that until regional pairings are announced. kAm*6E[ 2D =@?8 2D E92E 5@6D?’E 92AA6?[ H6 D9@F=5 =62C? D@>6 DEF77 2?5 BF6DE:@? }@] ` H@F=5 36 E9:Dik^Am kAm(:== v2DD@ D6== @FE E@ H:? E96 4@?76C6?46 E@FC?2>6?E[ 2D :E’D =:<6=J E96 @?=J H2J E@ 62C?

1 week ago | oklahomacolumnist.com | Clay Horning

Author’s note: Though I’ll continue to write about Oklahoma softball during the program’s postseason run, this will be the final weekly update. The Sooners are now a postseason team, with the SEC tournament, regional play and, they hope, super regional and Women’s College World Series play remaining. I will be doing the same with Oklahoma baseball once coach Skip Johnson’s team turns toward the postseason.