Oklahoma
Virginia Tech
NCAA Blacksburg Super Regional / Friday-Sunday, June 10-12 / Blacksburg, Va. / English Field and Atlantic Union Bank Park
| Matchups | ||
|---|---|---|
| Game Time | OU Projected Starters | VT Projected Starters |
| Friday, 2 p.m. CT | LHP Jake Bennett | RHP Griffin Green |
| Saturday, 11 a.m. CT | TBA | TBA |
First Pitch
• Oklahoma (40-22, 15-9 Big 12) plays in the NCAA Blacksburg Super Regional against No. 4 national seed Virginia Tech (44-12, 19-9 ACC) this weekend at English Field at Atlantic Union Bank Park. • Game times for the best-of-three series are 2 p.m. CT Friday on ESPN2 and 11 a.m. CT Saturday on ESPNU. A third contest, if necessary, will be played on Sunday, with game time and TV network to be announced later.• The Sooners are seeking their 11th College World Series appearance, and first since 2010.
• OU is making its first Super Regional appearance since 2013 and fifth since the tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1999.
• This is Oklahoma's 39th NCAA postseason appearance, and second under head coach Skip Johnson. The Sooners reached the postseason in 2018, Johnson's first year at the helm of the program.
• Oklahoma earned the Big 12 Conference automatic bid to the 2022 NCAA Baseball Championship by winning the Big 12 Championship at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas. It was OU's third Big 12 tournament title (also won in 1997 and 2013). Virginia Tech received an at-large bid out of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Watch/Listen/Follow
• The Blacksburg Super Regional games will air on the ESPN family of networks (ESPN2 on Friday and ESPNU on Saturday), with John Schriffen and Lance Cormier calling the action.• The games will be broadcast on the Sooner Radio Network (locally on Sportstalk 99.3 FM/1400 AM KREF, Sportstalk1400.com and the Varsity Network app anywhere), with Toby Rowland on the radio call.
• Live stats will be available at NCAA.com.
Leading Off
• Oklahoma is making its 39th appearance in an NCAA postseason, and first since 2018. The Sooners are 89-77 all-time in NCAA tournament games, have appeared in 10 College World Series and won national championships in 1951 and 1994.• The Sooners have won 13 of their last 17 games and are 22-9 since April 12. OU closed its Big 12 regular season slate by winning five straight series and 11 of its last 15 contests, won all four Big 12 Championship contests and went 3-1 in the Gainesville Regional.
• Oklahoma is hitting .296 as a team and averaging 7.7 runs, 9.9 hits and 3.3 extra base hits per game (124 doubles, 63 home runs). The pitching staff has compiled a 5.45 ERA, 547 strikeouts to 218 walks and 591 hits in 543.1 innings and has allowed a .277 opponent batting average.
• Virginia Tech is hitting .313 as a team. The Hokies average 8.8 runs, 11.2 hits and 4.9 extra base hits per game (138 doubles, 118 home runs). The pitching staff has compiled a 4.21 ERA, 526 strikeouts to 210 walks and 489 hits in 504.0 innings and has allowed a .253 opponent batting average.
• Oklahoma has drawn 153 more free passes this season than its opponents. OU batters have registered 341 walks and been hit by a pitch 86 times this season, totaling 427 free passes. The Sooners have allowed 218 walks and 56 hit batters (274 free passes).
• The Sooners allowed four or fewer runs in six straight games from the start of the Big 12 Championship through the first two games of the Gainesville Regional. That was the longest streak of the season, and the next closest streak was five games, from Feb. 20-27. OU has now allowed four or fewer runs in six of its last seven contests.
• The Sooners have registered 40 wins for the 24th time in program history, and first since the 2013 season
• Oklahoma's 63 home runs this season ties the total from 2021 as the most since the 2010 team hit 105 home runs.
• Oklahoma is in its fifth season under the direction of head coach Skip Johnson (including the 2020 season that was shortened due to the COVID-19 pandemic). Johnson, who spent the 2017 season on staff as an assistant coach, has led the Sooners to a 152-101 record since taking over as head coach prior to the 2018 season.
Series History
• Oklahoma and Virginia Tech have met three times. The Hokies lead the all-time series 2-1.• OU and VT met in the 2013 Blacksburg Regional final, a game the Sooners won 10-4 to advance to the Super Regional.
• Oklahoma and Virginia Tech first met in 1978 at a regular season tournament hosted by Vanderbilt in Nashville, Tenn. VT won that game 4-2. The Hokies also won 4-2 during the 2018 regular season at a season-opening event in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Oklahoma NCAA Postseason History
• This is Oklahoma's 39th NCAA Tournament appearance and 13th since 2000. The Sooners are 89-77 all-time in the NCAA postseason, and won national championships in 1951 and 1994.• Oklahoma has won 14 regionals, appeared in five Super Regionals (including 2022) and has advanced to the College World Series 10 times (1951, '72, '73, '74, '75, '76, '92, '94, '95 and 2010)
• The Sooners are making their fifth appearance in a Super Regional. OU won the 2010 Super Regional vs. Virginia in Charlottesville, Va., and played in Super Regionals in 2006 (at Rice), '12 (at South Carolina) and '13 (at LSU). Overall, Oklahoma is 4-7 in Super Regional games.
• Prior to this season, the Sooners last won a regional in 2013 at Blacksburg, Va. OU won three regionals in four seasons (2010, '12 and '13), winning the 2010 Norman Regional and the 2012 and '13 regionals on the road.
• This is the fourth time (all since 2010) that Oklahoma is playing NCAA postseason games in the state of Virginia. OU holds a 9-2 record in such contests. The Sooners swept the 2013 Blacksburg Regional, won two of three games at Virginia in the 2010 Charlottesville Super Regional and went 4-1 to win the 2012 Charlottesville Regional.
Season Turning Second Half
• Oklahoma is 22-9 since April 12, when it carried an 18-12 record into a non-conference midweek game against Texas Tech in Amarillo, Texas. Beginning with that Tuesday night, the offense has blossomed. OU is batting .308 and averaging 9.2 runs and 10.8 hits per game. The Sooners have also registered 44 home runs, 69 doubles and 192 walks over their last 31 contests.• Oklahoma has won at least two games in each of its last seven weekends of play, dating to the April 14-16 non-conference set against Pacific and Lamar. Included are a road series sweep at Kansas and road series victories at TCU and Texas Tech.
• The Sooners scored at least 40 runs in three of their final five Big 12 series (46 vs. Kansas, 43 vs. Kansas State and 40 vs. West Virginia) and in the other two, scored 23 runs (at TCU) and 24 runs (at Texas Tech). OU scored 28 runs during its non-conference weekend against Pacific and Lamar, winning six straight weekends to end the regular season, and put up 32 runs in four games during the Gainesville Regional.
• Oklahoma, which tied for second place in the Big 12 conference standings, posted an aggregate 21-9 record against Big 12 opponents this season. OU is ranked 19th in the RPI and went 18-12 against the top 50 teams in the RPI rankings, which was the third-most top-50 wins nationally, behind only Tennessee and North Carolina (20 wins each).
• Oklahoma's overall strength of schedule was ranked 14th in the country when the NCAA Baseball Championship bracket was announced on May 30. That was the highest strength of schedule ranking among Big 12 schools, and three spots higher than next highest program (Oklahoma State, 17th).
#LaunchPad
• The #LaunchPad is back for 2022. For the second straight year, pledged donations to a customized dollar amount for every homer that OU baseball hits in 2022 will go towards the the stadium renovation project. For more information, visit TheSoonerClub.com/LaunchPad.• All donations from the Pledge Per Home Run Campaign will be treated as charitable donations supporting either the OU Softball Stadium Project or the OU Baseball Stadium Renovation Project and are tax-deductible.
Noting the Sooners
• Redshirt sophomore first baseman Blake Robertson ranks second nationally in walks (65) and is third nationally in walks per game (1.07). His 23 doubles rank 18th nationally and second in Big 12. Peyton Graham leads the Big 12 and ranks 35th nationally by averaging 1.2 runs scored per game, and his 70 total runs scored rank second in the Big 12 and 26th in the nation. Graham's 19 home runs rank 36th nationally and second in the Big 12.• Since May 13 (17 games), Kendall Pettis has batted .391 (18 for 46) with two doubles, two home runs, 11 RBIs and 18 runs scored. He hit his third and fourth home runs of the season (has five career) in the Gainesville Regional. He has drawn nine walks, been hit by a pitch four times, stolen six bases and registered a .525 on-base percentage. Pettis was named Most Valuable Player of the NCAA Gainesville Regional.
• Jimmy Crooks has thrown out 17 of 60 potential base stealers this season, and threw out 11 of 34 runners in Big 12 conference play. Since April 23, Crooks has thrown out 10 of 29 runners stealing. He threw out three runners stealing in four attempts in the regular season series vs. West Virginia, which ranks second nationally in stolen bases. Crooks has reached base in 18 consecutive games, and has a hit in seven straight contests.
• Robertson has reached base in 58 of his 61 games played this season. He did not reach base during the second game of a March 13 doubleheader vs. UTSA (which preceded his 35-game reached base streak), but drove in two runs. He did not reach base vs. Texas Tech in the Big 12 tournament, but was credited with a sacrifice bunt. In other words, Robertson has had at least one productive plate appearance in all but one game this season (each of the first 49 contests and the 11 since May 16). He reached base in 35 consecutive games from March 15 through May 15.
• Jake Bennett has lasted at least 6.0 innings in 10 of his 16 starts and allowed three or fewer runs 11 times.
• Wallace Clark has reached base in 25 of his last 28 games, and in 31 of the 40 games in which he has appeared this season. The true freshman third baseman from Tulsa, Okla., led the Sooners in batting in Big 12 conference play with a .377 average and is hitting .291 for the season.
• Peyton Graham has been particularly effective at the plate in the second half of the season. In 32 games since April 10, Graham has batted .366 (49 of 134) with 44 RBIs and 44 runs scored. He has posted a .739 slugging percentage and a .460 OBP while recording 18 of his 23 walks and 12 of his 19 home runs. He is 22 of 23 in stolen base attempts and has committed only five errors over the last 32 contests.
• Tanner Tredaway has registered 204 career hits and is the 43rd Sooner to notch at least 100 hits, 100 RBIs (109) and 100 runs scored (122) in his career. Since April 15 (29 games), Tredaway has batted .425 with 14 extra base hits (seven doubles, two triple, five homers), 32 RBIs and 34 runs scored. Of his 57 RBIs this season, 26 have come with two outs. Tredaway has hit safely in 11 straight games.
Base Snatchers
• The Sooners have registered 140 stolen bases in 177 attempts during the 2022 season. OU surpassed its total from all of last year (46 steals) in the 18th game of this season.• This is the first time an Oklahoma team has collected at least 100 stolen bases since 1996 (104) and the current total of 140 steals is the most since the 1989 season (168). This is the 13th time since 1962 that an OU team has totaled at least 100 stolen bases in a single season. The school record for steals is 192, set in 1975.
• Oklahoma ranks fourth nationally in stolen bases (140) and steals per game (2.30). Both figures rank second in the Big 12, only to West Virginia's 156 steals and average of 2.84 steals per game.
• Peyton Graham leads OU with 31 stolen bases, while Tanner Tredaway has 23 steals, Kendall Pettis has 22, Blake Robertson has 12 steals, John Spikerman has 11 steals (in 27 games) and catcher Jimmy Crooks has 10 steals. A total of 14 players have recorded at least one stolen base this season.
• Graham's 32 steals are the most by a single player since current OU volunteer assistant coach Reggie Willits had 37 steals in 2003.
• This is the first time five Sooners have recorded double digit steals in the same season since 1994, which was also the last time three players notched at least 20 stolen bases. That national title-winning group included: Rick Gutierrez (32 steals), Chip Glass (27 steals), Aric Thomas (23 steals), Jerry Whittaker (14 steals) and Rich Hills (10 steals).
• Oklahoma has registered at least 10 steals in a game twice this season. OU collected 11 steals against Wichita State on Feb. 22 (one shy of the school record set against East Central [Okla.] University in 1937), and stole 10 bases on April 16 against Pacific.
• On six occasions this season, a player has stolen three bases in a game. Three players — Graham, Pettis and Tredaway — each stole three bases in the Feb. 22 game vs. Wichita State. Tredaway has three games this season with three stolen bases (also May 6 at TCU and May 20 at Texas Tech). Graham notched three steals vs. Texas on April 2. Prior to Feb. 22, no single Sooner had stolen three bases in a game since Erik Ross against Hartford in 2012.
Recapping the Gainesville Regional
• Oklahoma went 3-1 in the NCAA Gainesville Regional, defeating Liberty 16-3 and Florida 9-4, before dropping a 7-2 contest to the Gators and winning the Game 7 final 5-4 over Florida.• The OU pitching staff was once again excellent during the Gainesville Regional. In four games, OU allowed a combined 18 runs, striking out 33 and walking only eight.
• In the opener against Liberty, Peyton Graham hit a grand slam and John Spikerman went 4 for 5 with a home run and four RBIs. The Sooners scored 16 unanswered runs after the Flames scored three in the top of the first inning. Kendall Pettis and Spikerman hit back-to-back homers to give OU the lead in the second inning. Jake Bennett struck out seven batters over 5.2 innings to earn his fourth consecutive victory.
• On Saturday, Jimmy Crooks homered twice, and OU blasted four home runs on its way to a 9-4 victory over Florida. The Sooners overcame a 2-0 deficit with a four-run third inning, taking the lead once again on back-to-back home runs. Graham hit a two-run blast and Blake Robertson followed with a solo shot. David Sandlin struck out six batters over 6.0 frames and Trevin Michael pitched the final 2.1 innings, allowing only one hit and striking out one batter.
• On Sunday, Florida broke a 2-2 tie with a run in the seventh inning and four runs in the eighth inning to force a winner-take-all contest. Cade Horton struck out eight over a season-long 6.1 frames.
• Oklahoma trailed 2-1 with two outs in the seventh inning on Monday when the game was halted for more than five-and-a-half hours for inclement weather. After the contest resumed, Florida extended its lead to 3-1 with a run in the bottom of the seventh, but OU took the lead with a four-run eighth inning. Graham tied the game with a two-run homer, Wallace Clark put OU on top with an RBI groundout and Jackson Nicklaus singled in a run to give the Sooners a 5-3 lead. Bennett pitched the final two frames, working around a solo home run in the ninth, and sent Oklahoma to the Super Regional with a strikeout to end the game. Michael allowed one earned run and struck out five over 6.0 innings in his second start of the season.
