#1 OKLAHOMA (35-3, 13-2) at WICHITA STATE (18-14, 9-6)
Tuesday, April 9 | 6:00 PM CT
Wichita, Kan. | Wilkins Stadium
Video: ESPN+ 
Stats: Statbroadcast.com
 

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TUE. APR. 9 6:00 PM

Yellow Wave at Wilkins - Wear YELLOW to be a part of the yellow wave taking over Wilkins! Giveaway – Yellow Poms (First 400 Fans)

 

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QUICK HITS
• Top-ranked Oklahoma invades Wilkins Stadium for a midweek matchup on Tuesday at 6 p.m. on ESPN+.
• Oklahoma is 52-5 all-time vs. Wichita State, having won the last 41 meetings.
• Wichita State has dropped back-to-back conference series for the first time since 2019. Wichita State has never been swept in an American Conference series. The last time they were swept by a conference opponent was in 2015 vs. Southern Illinois.
• Krystin Nelson is hitting .529 in American Athletic Conference games.
• CC Wong ranks 4th nationally in batting average (.486), 8th in on base percentage (.568), 12th in slugging percentage (.905), 18th in runs per game (1.13) and 19th in total bases (95).
• Softball America named Wong the No. 1 2nd baseman in its position rankings this week.
• Wichita State is 6-4 in its last 10 games.
• The Shockers are tied for 4th in the AAC standings at 9-6, one game back of 2nd and three games back of No. 1 FAU.
• Wichita State's RPI is 42 as of April 8 and the Shockers have played the nation's 20th toughest schedule.
• Of Wichita State's 32 games this season, eight have come against ranked opponents. They are 2-6 in those games.
• Wichita State has five wins against ranked opponents dating back to last season.
• The American Athletic Conference is rated the 6th best conference according to RPI behind only the SEC, Big 12, Pac-12, ACC and Big Ten.
• Wichita State ranks 5th nationally in home runs per game and 14th in slugging percentage.
• Chloe Barber ranks 4th nationally in strikeouts per 7.0 innings and 31st in saves.
• Softball America named Addison Barnard a Preseason First Team All-American.
• Barnard is one of 50 on the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Watch List.
• Barnard has 83 career home runs, the most all time at Wichita State and in American Athletic Conference history.
• Barnard became the 6th player in NCAA history with 70 career home runs and 50 career stolen bases, and is the only active DI player with 80+ HR and 60+ SB.
• Barnard ranks 3rd among NCAA DI active players in career home runs with 83, seven behind Miami's Karli Spaid and five behind Oklahoma's Tiare Jennings.
• Her 83 home runs are currently 13th most in NCAA history.
• Head Coach Kristi Bredbenner won her 700th career game on March 9 vs. Florida Atlantic.

SCOUTING OKLAHOMA
Under 30th year head coach Patty Gasso, the three-time defending National Champions are 35-3 this season but coming off back-to-back conference losses at Texas over the weekend. It marked the first time since 2011 the Sooners lost a conference series. Oklahoma again boasts one of the nation's most powerful offenses. The Sooners have five players hitting .400 or better and sport a team batting average of .382. OU leads the country in batting average, fielding percentage, on base percentage and walks. Jayda Coleman hits a team-best .449 with 9 home runs and 31 RBI. Rylie Boone is right behind at .443. Tiare Jennings leads the Sooners in doubles (11), home runs (15) and RBI (48) to go with a .432 batting average. Alyssa Brito is second in homers with 14 and 38 RBI. The Sooner pitching staff is also among the nation's elite. Opponents are hitting just .180 with a team ERA of 1.47. Oklahoma State transfer Kelly Maxwell is 11-1 with a 1.72 ERA in 73.1 innings. Nicole May is tied with Maxwell in victories with 11 to go with a 1.79 ERA in 54.2 innings.

SERIES HISTORY
Oklahoma has dominated the series vs. Wichita State, winning 52 of the 57 all-time meetings, including 41 straight. Wichita State's last win against the perennial powerhouse was back in 1990 when the Shockers won a doubleheader against the Sooners.

LAST MEETING VS. THE SOONERS
The matchup in 2023 was rained out, snapping a streak of 11 straight years the two teams had met on the diamond. Oklahoma won the lone matchup in 2022 in Norman in five innings, 10-1. Wichita State scored the opening run in the top of the 1st, only to see OU score 10 unanswered. Grace Lyons hit three of Oklahoma's four home runs in the contest.

LAST TIME OUT
Wichita State dropped its second straight American Athletic Conference series, dropping a pair of games to Tulsa over the weekend with a run-rule victory sandwiched in between. It's the first time since 2019 the Shockers have lost back-to-back conference series'. Tulsa won the opener, 5-4, thanks to a three-run top of the 7th. The Shockers went into the 7th with a 3-2 lead but couldn't hold onto it. In Game 2, Wichita State jumped out to a 6-1 lead behind a 2nd inning grand slam from Taylor Sedlacek. Wichita State added four more runs in the 4th and the final run in the 5th to complete a walk-off run-rule win, 11-3. CC Wong had three hits and a pair of RBI and Addison Barnard scored twice to go with two hits. Alison Cooper recorded the win in the circle behind 5.0 innings of work. In the finale Wichita State scored a pair of early runs, but Tulsa controlled the game from the 3rd inning on. The Golden Hurricane dominated the Shocker pitching staff to take the series, 14-5. Barnard homered twice and Krystin Nelson drove in the other two runs on a pair of hits.

THE WONG BALL
Wichita State hit the jackpot with the addition of CC Wong from the transfer portal. Wong ranks 4th nationally in batting average (.486), 8th in on base percentage, 12th in slugging percentage (.905), 18th in runs per game (1.13), 19th in total bases (95) and 21st in home runs per game (0.34). She is one of only three players hitting above .455 with at least 10 HR.

FOUR-HEADED ATTACK
In conference play Wichita State's offense has been powered by CC Wong, Addison Barnard, Taylor Sedlacek and Krystin Nelson. The quartet is responsible for 66% of Wichita State's hits, 73% of its home runs and 65% of its RBI's. Those four are 77-for-161 (.478) at the plate with 19 doubles, 22 home runs and 64 RBI. The rest of the team is hitting a combined 40-for-211 (.190) in AAC games.

NINE-HOLE NELSON
No Shocker has been hotter than Krystin Nelson over the past month. Since March 1, the junior is hitting .500 (26-for-52) with 8 doubles, 2 home runs, 11 RBI, 9 walks and has scored 18 runs after starting the season 1-for-26 (.038). Nelson has six multi-hit games during that stretch. In conference games only her numbers are even better. Through the first 15 games of American Athletic Conference play she's hitting .529 with 7 doubles, a home run, 7 RBI and 13 runs scored. Nelson is 8-for-12 (.667) at the plate with 2 outs in AAC games.

WONG COLLECTS NATIONAL, AAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS
Fresh off a four-home run weekend, CC Wong was named Louisville Slugger/NFCA National Player of the Week and American Athletic Conference Player of the Week on March 26. In the series vs. UTSA, Wong was 5-for-8 (.625) with four home runs, 11 RBI and five runs scored. Three of her four home runs came in the finale where she went 3-for-3 with a career-high six RBI. She's the first Shocker to earn National POW honors since Sydney McKinney in 2023.

SHOCKERS SELL OUT SEASON TICKETS
Four days before the home opener vs. Florida Atlantic on March 8, Wichita State announced it had sold out its season ticket allotment for the first time in school history.

TOUGH SLEDDING
Wichita State has never shied away from playing a tough schedule, and that is no different in 2024. The Shockers have already played eight teams ranked in the NFCA Top 25: No. 8 Clemson, No. 25 Auburn, No. 20 South Carolina, No. 15 Arkansas (twice), No. 14 Missouri (twice) and No. 4 Oklahoma State. No. 1 Oklahoma and No. 4 Oklahoma State come to Wilkins Stadium in the coming weeks.

RPI - WEEK SIX
Wichita State checked in at No. 42 in the sixth week of RPI rankings on April 8. The Shockers have already faced 11 teams in the Top 50, including No. 7 Oklahoma State, No. 9 Missouri (twice), No. 12 Arkansas (twice), No. 20 Clemson, No. 22 Auburn, No. 28 South Carolina, No. 29 Kansas (twice), No. 32 Charlotte (three times), No. 39 Florida Atlantic (three times), No. 45 Nebraska (twice), No. 50 Tulsa (three times). The Shockers still have games against No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 7 Oklahoma State, No. 72 South Florida (three times) and No. 73 North Texas (three times).

UP NEXT
Wichita State heads to the Sunshine State to face South Florida for a three-game series, April 12-14.