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OU Softball: Former Oklahoma Catcher Finds New Home

The former Sooner entered the transfer portal last week and will join two former teammates at her new destination.

John E. Hoover

BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN-USA TODAY NETWORK

A former Sooner has a new home: Rocky Top.

Sophia Nugent was announced on Wednesday as the latest Oklahoma player to transfer to Tennessee.

Tennessee head coach Karen Weekly announced the signing. 

Last year, Mackenzie Donihoo and Zaida Puni went to UT via the NCAA Transfer Portal and became immediate starters.

A catcher, Nugent spent the past two seasons at Oklahoma. She will join the team over the summer and has two years of eligibility remaining. 

"We recruited Sophia when she was in high school and knew then what a great fit she was for our program," Weekly said. "Her character, work ethic and team-first attitude are the attributes we look for in the process. I couldn't be more thrilled for the opportunity to coach her and watch her finish her college career in the Orange & White."

During her time with the Sooners, Nugent appeared in 73 games and made 19 starts. She hit .278 with 22 runs scored, seven doubles, eight home runs and 28 RBIs. In the field, she recorded 153 putouts with seven assists and zero errors. 

Hailing from Seal Beach, CA, Nugent helped win two national titles at Oklahoma. This past season, she hit .274 with 19 runs scored, five doubles, seven homers and 23 RBIs. 

The Los Alamitos High School product was ranked as the No. 3 player in the class of 2021 by Extra Inning Softball and Softball America. She was also tabbed as the No. 1 catcher in the class by Extra Innings.

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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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