OU Softball: Oklahoma Battling Fatigue, Stout Field at Hall of Fame Classic

By the time the dust settles on Sunday, Patty Gasso's No. 1-ranked Oklahoma Sooners will have played 10 games in 10 days by the end of the Hall of Fame Classic.

Oklahoma’s busy stretch rolls into this weekend’s Hall of Flame Classic.

The top-ranked Sooners will play five games across the weekend, meaning OU’s total number of contests dating back from last Friday through this Sunday will end at 10 games.

Patty Gasso’s team will get an extra boost, however, as more fans donning Crimson and Cream will be able to pack into Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City than the loyal continent that continually sellout Marita hynes Field in Norman.

Though the 10-game stretch may seem daunting, the high volume of competitive action was by design.

“It’s great to have them feel like what it feels like when you body is just worn out,” Gasso said on Monday, “and how to get through games and how to come through when your body is pushing against you. And that is something that you always feel in postseason because you’re at the end and you’re exhausted.

“And I want them to know that you just don’t stop. You’ve got to feel what it feels like and find a way to get through it. And that’s what this week is going to end up feeling like. On Sunday they’re going to be zonked, but they gotta keep fighting… That’s a championship mindset.”

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How to Watch the Hall of Fame Classic:

• Game 1: Friday vs. Weber State, 4 p.m., ESPN+

• Game 2: Friday vs. Northwestern, 6:30 p.m., ESPN+

• Game 3: Saturday vs. Weber State, 4 p.m., ESPN+

• Game 4: Saturday vs. Auburn, 6:30 p.m., ESPN+

• Game 5: Sunday vs. Auburn, 2 p.m., ESPN+

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The Sooners won’t just have a daunting slate in front of them as far as the number of games go — they’ll face quality competition at the Hall of Fame Classic.

Oklahoma will play one game against Northwestern, a rematch of last year’s Women’s College World Series opener, and the Wildcats (9-7) are receiving votes in the USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll.

Saturday and Sunday will bring another pair of matchups against a future SEC foe in the No. 19-ranked Auburn Tigers (21-5), marking the third straight weekend OU will take on members from its future conference.

And while the Sooner roster is littered with veterans, there are still plenty of new faces who haven’t experienced a postseason-style grind with Oklahoma.

Transfers Haley Lee, Cydney Sanders, Alynah Torres and Alex Storako never reached the WCWS at their previous schools, and haven’t undergone the entire NCAA Tournament journey Gasso is trying to simulate with this stretch of the season.

Neither have freshman contributors in Jocelyn Erickson, who is still leading the team in batting average and RBIs while she is also tied with Jayda Coleman, Lee and Alyssa Brito in home runs, nor utility player Avery Hodge.

The weekend at Hall of Fame Stadium will also provide a postseason atmosphere.

Last year, the support for the Hall of Fame Classic neared 5,000 fans every day, more than doubling the attendance of a sold out Marita Hynes Field.

Oklahoma dominates attendance at the WCWS every year, and this weekend’s games will simulate that kind of fan support on a smaller scale.

And while Gasso will be tracking how the newer faces react this weekend, she may also get the services back of one of the team’s most seasoned leaders.

Shortstop Grace Lyons hasn’t appeared in a game for the Sooners since OU’s 18-0 win over Kentucky on March 3.

The super senior has been away from the team with an illness, but she’s nearing a return.

Lyons was back in the dugout on Monday for Oklahoma’s win over South Dakota State, and she went through warmups ahead of Tuesday’s 5-4 win over the No. 6-ranked Florida State Seminoles.

Gasso said her shortstop could take the field again this weekend after the win over Florida State.

“It’s nothing serious,” she said. “It’s just energy-wise. The hope is to see her on the field in some capacity this weekend if things work out that way.”

Lyons’ return would see the Sooners essentially return to full strength, as Oklahoma has remained fairly healthy throughout the season thus far, just losing Hannah Coor to a medical redshirt this year.

OU’s weekend will start against Weber State (6-15) on Friday at 4 p.m. at Hall of Fame Stadium, and it will continue with Northwestern at 6:30 p.m.

All five games will be broadcast on ESPN+. 

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