'Elite Program!' Oklahoma Coach Patty Gasso Praises Texas Longhorns Softball

Oklahoma head coach Patty Gasso wasn't shy about showing respect to arch-rivals after her fourth consecutive national championship win.

Oklahoma outfielder Rylie Boone (0) celebrates a single next to Texas' Katie Stewart (20) in the fourth inning of Game 2 of the NCAA softball Women's College World Series Championship Series game between the Oklahoma Sooners (OU) and Texas Longhorns at Devon Park in Oklahoma City, Thursday, June, 6, 2024. / SARAH PHIPPS/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY

Oklahoma Softball swept Texas for its fourth-consecutive national championship and second over the Longhorns in two years, but head coach Patty Gasso can only acknowledge the strength and talent her rivals bring to the table.

“They are an elite program, and they’re going to maintain that for a while," Gasso said. "They’ve got a lot of very good young players, great coaching. They’ve done a great job with their staff. Their pitching staff is outstanding."

Oklahoma and Texas both left their marks in the Big 12 before the incoming move to the Southeastern Conference. In the programs' last year in the Big 12, the Longhorns won the regular season title, while the Sooners earned the conference tournament trophy.

“I would be remiss to make sure I didn’t shout that out because I do tell you we’re both going into a new conference together, but Texas always makes us better," Gasso said. "I think that we could both agree that we do that for each other. That’s how we get here. That’s why we’re looking at each other on the national championship stage.”

Texas head coach Mike White was also not shy on his admiration for what Gasso has done in Norman.

"It's an incredible feat," White said. "We know how tough it is just to get here, let alone win four. It's an amazing achievement, especially for those classmen that were freshmen and now have four rings, that's something that drives all of us to get better, to be able to come back and win."

Two of the teams' future SEC opponents, Florida and Alabama, made it to the Women's College World Series but fell short in the earlier rounds. Florida took the national champions to an extra game in the semifinals after defeating them 9-3 and losing a tight 6-5 match to miss out on the championship games. It was not an easy road for this remarkable four-peat.

“It’s not like that. It’s very difficult. Everything has to go right,” Gasso said. “The thing about them is they’re resilient. They have a lot of pride in that. With that, it’s hard for me to comprehend. I continue to say this one was the hardest to manage. We lost a lot in the summer. Players through the portal, brought in some great ones."