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Oklahoma Softball: OU Sets Date to Break Ground on Love's Field

The Sooners are another step closer to Love's Field becoming a reality in Norman.

Ryan Chapman

Oklahoma Softball: OU Sets Date to Break Ground on Love's Field
Oklahoma Softball: OU Sets Date to Break Ground on Love's Field /

Love’s Field is one step closer to becoming reality.

Ground will be broken on Oklahoma’s new softball palace on Friday, Sept. 23 at 1:30 p.m., the OU Athletics Department announced on Thursday.

The groundbreaking event will be open to the public, with parking at Marita Hynes Field and the Lloyd Noble Center available on a first-come, first-serve basis. 

OU softball coach Patty Gasso will be joined by shortstop Grace Lyons, Chief Culture Officer of Love's Travel Stops Jenny Love Meyer, OU president Joseph Harroz Jr. and Athletic Director Joe Castiglione at the groundbreaking ceremony. 

The total $42 million budget for the Love’s Field project was approved by the Oklahoma Board of Regents in June.

Last October, Love’s Travel Stops and Oklahoma announced a $9 million donation toward the new softball stadium project.

The gift from Love’s Travel Stops also agreed to match an addition $3 million in donations dollar-for-dollar.

Currently, $28 million of the $42 million budgeted for Love’s Field has been raised from over 800 donors.

Love’s Field will more than double the size of the current Marita Hynes Field complex, as the new stadium will span 44,000 square feet on the northwest corner of South Jenkins Avenue and Imhoff Road.

The new stadium will hold 3,000 fans, an upgrade from the current 1,378-person capacity at Marita Hynes Field, while also doubling the size of the team areas and indoor facility for the players.

In addition to the 3,000-seat capacity, the stadium is also being designed with the potential for future expansion in mind.

Love’s Field is a long time coming for Patty Gasso, who has led her Oklahoma program to six National Championships since arriving in Norman.

In 28 seasons at the helm for the Sooners, Gasso has posted a 1,394-344-2 record, winning 80 percent of all contests as OU’s head coach.

Despite losing five super seniors, including college softball’s career home run leader in Jocelyn Alo, Gasso’s 2023 team is gearing up to win a third straight national title.

Gasso has brought in key transfers in former Arizona State players Cydney Sanders and Alynah Torres, Michigan pitcher Alex Storako and Texas A&M utility player Haley Lee. 

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Ryan Chapman
RYAN CHAPMAN

Ryan is deputy editor at AllSooners and covers a number of sports in and around Norman and Oklahoma City. Working both as a journalist and a sports talk radio host, Ryan has covered the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma City Thunder, the United States Men’s National Soccer Team, the Oklahoma City Energy and more. Since 2019, Ryan has simultaneously pursued a career as both a writer and a sports talk radio host, working for the Flagship for Oklahoma sports, 107.7 The Franchise, as well as AllSooners.com. Ryan serves as a contributor to The Franchise’s website, TheFranchiseOK.com, which was recognized as having the “Best Website” in 2022 by the Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters. Ryan holds an associate’s degree in Journalism from Oklahoma City Community College in Oklahoma City, OK. 

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