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Oklahoma Softball: Jocelyn Alo Climbs HR Chart as Sooners Roll Houston

The OU slugger hit two more bombs and is now within one home run of Lauren Chamberlain's all-time NCAA record.

John E. Hoover

Oklahoma Softball: Jocelyn Alo Climbs HR Chart as Sooners Roll Houston
Oklahoma Softball: Jocelyn Alo Climbs HR Chart as Sooners Roll Houston /

Jocelyn Alo sits on the cusp of softball history.

On Saturday afternoon against Houston, Oklahoma’s senior slugger smashed two more home runs — her third and fourth of the day and the 93rd and 94th of her career — as OU run-ruled host Houston 13-0.

Alo’s big day at the plate, before a packed house at Cougar Stadium, put her just one behind the all-time NCAA career home run record of 95, held by former Sooner Lauren Chamberlain.

OU coach Patty Gasso said Thursday she sees parallels in the careers of Alo and Chamberlain beyond their career home run numbers.

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“Jocy,” said Gasso, “really kind of follows in her footsteps.”

Alo finished the day 3-for-4 at the plate with five RBIs. She leads the OU regulars with a .519 average on the season, 14 hits, six homers and 16 RBIs.

Alo is also chasing OU’s career RBI mark and now sits at 253, one off the school record. The all-time NCAA mark is 299.

The Sooners have now outscored their nine opponents 87-2.

All four of OU’s wins so far in the Houston Classic came via run-rule. The No. 1-ranked Sooners (9-0) wrap up their weekend Sunday with a 10 a.m. game against Texas State.

Alo, who also blasted two home runs in an 11-0 victory over McNeese State earlier in the day, was hit by pitch in her first plate appearance and homered in her second, a line drive to left field that put the Sooners up 6-0.

Jana Johns followed immediately with her third home run of the weekend, a towering blast to center that made it 7-0. Johns might have had an even better day defensively at third base, with two defensive gems in the first game and another in the nightcap.

Kinzie Hansen then scored on Alyssa Brito’s sacrifice fly to left for an 8-0 lead.

With two out in the third, Alo climbed closer to Chamberlain’s hallowed mark with a tape-measure shot off Houston reliever Megan Lee. It sailed over the batter’s eye in center field, the 94th bomb of her decorated career.

The outcome was never in doubt because OU freshman Jordy Bahl was in complete control in the circle. Bahl, coming off National Pitcher of the Week honors following her 14-strikeout, complete-game effort against UCLA last week, followed Hope Trautwein’s no-hitter earlier in the day against McNeese State with yet another gem.

Bahl left with one out in the fourth inning for Macy McAdoo. Bahl struck out five and gave up just one hit without a walk in 3 1/3 innings. In 19 1/3 innings so far this season, Bahl has 33 strikeouts and no walks, has given up just six hits and hasn’t allowed an earned run.

McAdoo loaded the bases on three walks and didn’t record an out before giving way to Nicole May, who struck out the next two Houston batters to end the threat and finished the game.

It was Hansen who turned the scoreboard on in the first inning when she ripped a massive three-run blast that scored Alo and Tiare Jennings. Jennings opened the game by drawing a walk and Alo was plunked by Kenna Wilkey.

In the fourth inning, Grace Lyons led off with a walk and eventually scored on Mackenzie Donihoo’s groundout to make it 10-0.

Alo came to the plate with a chance to tie Chamberlain with one out in the fourth inning. Following a walk to Jayda Coleman, Alo ripped a sharp single to right field for her fifth RBI of the day and an 11-0 Sooner lead.

Freshman Turiya Coleman collected her first career RBI in the top of the fifth with a hard single off the glove of pitcher Mattie Boyd. Coleman’s shot scooted into center field and scored Lynnsie Elam from second base to put OU up 12-0. Coleman eventually came around to score her first career run on a sacrifice fly by Donihoo, giving the Sooners a 13-0 lead.

After Jayda Coleman walked to put runners on the corners with two out, Alo had another chance.

Houston turned to freshman pitcher Hannah Blincoe, who made her collegiate debut against the game’s most prolific hitter. Blincoe induced a popup on the infield to end the OU threat.

Published
John E. Hoover
JOHN E. HOOVER

John is an award-winning journalist whose work spans five decades in Oklahoma, with multiple state, regional and national awards as a sportswriter at various newspapers. During his newspaper career, John covered the Dallas Cowboys, the Kansas City Chiefs, the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma State Cowboys, the Arkansas Razorbacks and much more. In 2016, John changed careers, migrating into radio and launching a YouTube channel, and has built a successful independent media company, DanCam Media. From there, John has written under the banners of Sporting News, Sports Illustrated, Fan Nation and a handful of local and national magazines while hosting daily sports talk radio shows in Oklahoma City, Tulsa and statewide. John has also spoken on Capitol Hill in Oklahoma City in a successful effort to put more certified athletic trainers in Oklahoma public high schools. Among the dozens of awards he has won, John most cherishes his national "Beat Writer of the Year" from the Associated Press Sports Editors, Oklahoma's "Best Sports Column" from the Society of Professional Journalists, and Two "Excellence in Sports Medicine Reporting" Awards from the National Athletic Trainers Association. John holds a bachelor's degree in Mass Communications from East Central University in Ada, OK. Born and raised in North Pole, Alaska, John played football and wrote for the school paper at Ada High School in Ada, OK. He enjoys books, movies and travel, and lives in Broken Arrow, OK, with his wife and two kids.

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