OU Weekly Sport Notes - May 5

A weekly look at the news and notes surrounding the University of Oklahoma athletics...

BASEBALL (29-20-1, 6-14-1 Big 12)

Last Week: The Sooners finished with a 1-3 record and started things off with a 12-11 victory in 10 innings over then-No. 8 Wichita State on Wednesday.  Following the second win this season over a top-10 opponent, the Sooners' momentum was halted in Lawrence, Kan. over the weekend.  The Jayhawks swept the Sooners in the three-game set after taking game one, 17-15, on Friday.  OU was unable to even the series on Saturday, falling 13-10, and then dropped the finale, 9-4, on Sunday.

This Week: Oklahoma will look to move back up the Big 12 standings as it hosts Kansas State (22-25, 7-14) in the final home series of the season this weekend.  The three-game set kicks off on Friday, May 9 at 6:35 p.m. at L. Dale Mitchell Park.  Game two on Saturday is slated for a 7 p.m. first pitch and the finale will get underway at 1 p.m. on Sunday.

Notes: Jamie Johnson extended his season-best hitting streak to 12 games with hits in all four games last week ... Mike Gosse's 16-game streak ended on Sunday in the Kansas series finale ... The streak is the longest by a Sooner this season and ties a career high for Gosse, who also hit in 16 straight earlier this season ... The OU offense has scored 10 or more runs in six of the last 10 games ... After suffering a three-game sweep at KU, the Sooners sit in ninth place in the Big 12 standings behind Kansas State ..  The Wildcats, OU's opponent this weekend, hold the eighth and final spot for advancing to 2008 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship.

Promotions:
Friday: Cheer Like a Champion Day - First 500 fans receive a free "Cheer Like a Champion" shirt
Saturday: Military Appreciation Day - First 200 fans receive a free OU camouflage hat
Sunday: Senior Day

Web: http://www.soonersports.com/sports/m-basebl/okla-m-basebl-body.html

SOFTBALL (43-11, 16-2 Big 12)

Last Week: The No. 7 Sooners wrapped up their regular season with a sweep of Baylor in Waco last Wednesday.  The Sooners took the first game, 4-0, as D.J. Mathis earned the complete game shutout while freshman Haley Anderson recorded all four of the game’s RBIs.  The second contest went 12 innings as the Sooners scored five runs in the top of the 12^th to earn the 9-4 win and sweep the Bears. 

This Week: The Sooners will be defending their 2007 Big 12 Postseason Championship as they begin Big 12 Championship action on Saturday, May 10, at 11 a.m., at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City.  Oklahoma is the No. 2 seed in the tournament and will face the winner of the Kansas/Nebraska contest, which will be played Friday night.  For the second straight season, the tournament is single elimination.  If Oklahoma wins on Saturday morning, it will advance to the 4:30 p.m. semifinal contest on Saturday afternoon.  That game will be televised live on Fox Sports Net.  The title contest will be played at Noon on Sunday and will also be televised live on Fox Sports Net. 

Oklahoma will also find out its seed and regional site for the NCAA Tournament when the seeds and pairings are announced this Sunday at 9 p.m. on ESPNU.

Notes: Oklahoma swept Baylor in Waco for the first time since 2002 … OU’s 16-2 final Big 12 record marked its second-best Big 12 record in school history as the 2000 National Championship team notched a 17-1 mark in Big 12 action … OU has finished in the final top two of the standings in 10 of the 13 years of the Big 12 Conference … Patty Gasso has recorded her 14^th straight 40-win season while the OU program has notched its 15^th consecutive 40-win season … Oklahoma owns an eight-game win streak heading into the Big 12 Championship … Susan Ogden owns a season-best eight-game hitting streak heading into the Big 12 Championship.

Web: http://www.soonersports.com/sports/w-softbl/okla-w-softbl-body.html

TRACK & FIELD

Last Week: OU athletes split to three different locations across the country as regular-season action winds down in advance of the 2008 Big 12 Outdoor Track & Field Championships, May 16-18.  Horizontal jumpers Shardae Boutte, Tydree Lewis and Toni Smith picked up five NCAA Regional qualifying marks at the Steve Scott Invitational in Irvine, Calif., while distance runner Jessica Eldridge did the same in Palo Alto, Calif., in the Payton Jordan Invitational.  Closer to home in Fayetteville, Ark., University of Oklahoma sprinters claimed four individual event titles while Scottesha Miller posted the top long jump this season in the Big 12 Conference at the Arkansas Twilight Friday night on the campus of the University of Arkansas.

This Week: Regular-season action comes to a close next Saturday with the Sooner Twilight in Norman.  The 2008 Big 12 Outdoor Track & Field Championships will be held one week later, May 16-18, in Boulder, Colo.

Notes: Latoya Greaves claimed an individual title in the 100-meter hurdles with a regional qualifying time of 13.23, giving the sophomore her fifth individual title of the season … Marcus Pugh ran a regional qualifying time of 20.86 to take the title in the men's 200-meter dash.  Pugh also took second in the 100-meter dash with a regional qualifying time of 10.43 and now has seven top-three finishes this season … Tijahnni Newton, Jalesa Walker, Greaves and Leslie Cole finished second in the women's 4x400-meter relay with an NCAA Regional qualifying time of 3:37.24.  Cole ran a regional qualifying time of 53.20 in the individual 400-meter dash to finish second.

Web: http://soonersports.com/sports/c-track/recaps/050308aaa.html


WOMEN’S GOLF

This Week: The OU women’s golf team will travel to Lincoln, Calif., May 8-10, for the 2008 NCAA West Regional at Lincoln Hills Golf Club.  OU is seeded 14^th in a 21-team field that includes Big 12 champion Oklahoma State and Pac-10 champion Southern California.

Notes: The Sooners’ NCAA bid is their first since 2004 … The top eight teams and top two individuals will advance from each of the three NCAA Regionals.

Web: http://www.soonersports.com/sports/w-golf/spec-rel/042808aab.html


MEN'S GOLF

Last Week: The Oklahoma men's golf team ended the 2008 Big 12 Championship in seventh place on April 27 at Whispering Pines Golf Club in Trinity, Texas.  The Sooners shot a final-round team score of 300 (+12) at the Par 72, 7470-yard layout, finishing the four-round tournament at 48-over. 

This Week: Oklahoma awaits the selection of the NCAA regional field which will be announced this afternoon (May 5).

Notes: Former Sooner All-American Anthony Kim became the youngest winner on the PGA Tour in six years, coasting to a tournament-record 16-under par mark for a five shot victory at the Wachovia Championship at Quail Hollow Golf Club in Charlotte, N.C.

Web: http://soonersports.com/sports/m-golf/okla-m-golf-body.html