Tuesday, April 17
Collins Family Softball Complex
6 PM
Tulsa
vs
Oklahoma
Tulsa Set to Host No. 2 Oklahoma in Sold-Out Contest on Tuesday
4/16/2018 12:35:00 PM | Softball
Weekly Notes
TULSA, Okla. — The University of Tulsa softball team will host No. 2 Oklahoma in a sold-out contest at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, April 17, at the Collins Family Softball Complex. No walk-up tickets are available for the matchup.
Gates open at 4:30 p.m. Limited parking will be available in the Delaware Lot and at College Hill Church. Fans parking on the west side of the stadium (including College Hill Church and side streets) can utilize a free pre-game shuttle, which will pick up at the corner of 7th Street and Columbia Ave. and drop off at the east entrance of the Collins Family Softball Complex.
The Golden Hurricane (26-17) is coming off a 3-1 win over USF on Sunday afternoon. Samantha Pochop pitched seven strong innings with six strikeouts in the victory, while Haley Meinen hit the go-ahead two-run single in the bottom of the sixth to give TU the lead for good. Meinen is hitting a team-leading .441 during conference action, a mark that ranks fourth in the circuit.
Meanwhile, the Sooners (38-2) enter Tuesday's matchup fresh off a sweep of Kansas last weekend in Norman. Oklahoma owns the nation's longest winning streak at 29 games and the squad is 18-2 away from home this season (8-0 in road games; 10-2 in neutral games). OU is hitting .343 as a team, led by Sydney Romero's .472 average, while Jocelyn Alo is batting .445 with 18 homers and 52 RBIs. Paige Parker anchors the pitching staff with a 0.73 ERA and 21-1 record.
Tuesday, April 17
6 p.m. — Tulsa vs. No. 2 Oklahoma — Stats/Video
Notes
Tulsa to Host No. 2 Oklahoma Before Series at Houston This Week
• Tulsa will host No. 2 Oklahoma in a sold-out contest at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, April 17 before heading south to Houston for a three-game series with the Cougars, April 20-22.
• TU is hosting OU for the first time since 2016, when the Sooners claimed a 4-1 win at Collins Family Softball Complex. Overall, the Sooners lead the series 42-10, with Tulsa's last win coming in 2011.
•TU then will return to conference action with a pivotal series at Houston. Both teams enter the series as part of a four-way for third place in the American Athletic Conference standings at 6-6.
• Tulsa leads the all-time series against the Cougars 21-17 and the Hurricane has won each of the last five meetings.
Trending
• Emily Watson leads The American and ranks eighth in the nation with 192 strikeouts this season. Watson has struck out at least 10 batters in a game 10 times, including a season-high 15 Ks against Saint Francis (Pa.).
• Haley Meinen leads the team with a .441 average during conference play. Over her last 20 games, she has hit .419 with five doubles, three homers and 15 RBIs. During that stretch, she has twice as many multi-hit games (6) as games where she has gone hitless (3).
Ahead Early
• Tulsa has gotten off to a quick start with runs in the first inning in 20 of its 43 games.
• The Hurricane has outscored its opponents 37-13 in the first inning and has only allowed its opponent to score in the first inning of nine games during the campaign.
• TU has capitalized on the early lead this spring, going 15-5 when scoring in the first inning. The Hurricane also is 20-7 when the team scores first.
• The early run support has been a big part of the team's success as TU is 19-3 when leading after four innings, 17-1 when leading after five innings and 14-1 when leading after six innings.
TU Bats Heating Up in Conference Play
• The Tulsa offense will enter play this weekend hitting .288 during conference play, a mark that ranks second in the league, just behind Wichita State's .298 average.
• Haley Meinen leads the way with a .441 average to rank fourth in the circuit during league action.
• TU also ranks near the top of several other offensive categories during conference play, including hits (2nd, 89), doubles (2nd, 16), total bases (3rd, 127), on-base percentage (3rd, .355) and slugging percentage (3rd, .411), while it's 41 strikeouts are the second-fewest in the circuit.
Hurricane Honors in The American
• TU has had several student-athletes honored by the American Athletic Conference and NFCA via its weekly awards this season.
• Emily Watson has been named The American Pitcher of the Week three times this season (12 times in her career), including on April 2 after she went 2-0 with a save and 23 strikeouts in 15 innings during last weekend's sweep of ECU. The senior also earned Louisville Slugger/NFCA National Pitcher of the Week honors for her efforts against the Pirates.
• Hurricane hitters also have had success as Tori Stafford was named Player of the Week on March 19. Meanwhile, Shelby Estocado and Morgan Neal have been named to the conference's weekly honor roll this season, as well.
Career Numbers Update
• Emily Watson ranks in the program's all-time top 10 in several categories, including ERA (2nd, 1.74), opposing batting average (2nd, .207), strikeouts (2nd, 803), shutouts (2nd, 29), wins (2nd, 66), games started (3rd, 97), complete-games (4th, 65), innings pitched (5th, 616.0), saves (6th, 5) and appearances (6th, 115).
• Shelby Estocado ranks third in program history with 30 homers, including seven round-trippers this season. She also ranks sixth with 124 RBIs and seventh with 312 total bases.
• Julia Hollingsworth currently owns the program-record with a .454 on-base percentage, while her career .362 batting average ranks second. She ranks sixth with 40 stolen bases and her seven triples are tied for fifth. Hollingsworth tied a single-game record with a pair of triples in Tulsa's win over Nicholls State (March 3).
Look Who's Back
• Tulsa returns 13 letterwinners, including six position starters, the designated player and three pitchers, from last year's team which went 41-17 and won its first American Athletic Conference regular-season title with a 15-3 league mark.
• The TU offense will bring back all of its home runs, 79.3-percent of its extra-base hits, 76-percent of its runs scored, 74.3-percent of its RBIs and 71.1-percent of its hits from last year's squad.
• The lineup will see the return of NFCA All-Region picks Julia Hollingsworth (OF) and Haley Meinen (DP), while the pitching staff will see the return of second-team NFCA All-American Emily Watson.
It's Elementary, Watson
• The Golden Hurricane pitching staff is anchored by NFCA All-American Emily Watson. The senior nearly set a program single-season record with 348 strikeouts, while her 14 shutouts set a new program standard and led the nation last season.
• Watson also set single-season records with 30 wins, 36 starts, 29 complete games and 246.2 innings pitched.
• The senior was announced as one of 50 players across the nation on the "Watch List" for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Award and she was one of 30 candidates for the Senior CLASS Award.
• So far in 2018, she has compiled a 16-8 record with a 1.73 ERA and 206 strikeouts in 157.2 innings pitched.
Tulsa Picked to Repeat as American Athletic Conference Champs
• Tulsa garnered six first-place votes and the squad was picked to repeat as American Athletic Conference champions by the league's coaches.
• TU earned 48 points in the poll, while Houston picked up a pair of first-place nods and 44 points to rank second.
• The duo was followed by USF, UCF, Wichita State, Memphis, UConn and ECU.
• Last season, TU won both the regular-season and tournament titles, sweeping those championships for the first time since 2014 when the Hurricane accomplished the feat in its final season as a member of Conference USA.
The Schedule
• Tulsa's 2018 schedule will see the team play 10 games against teams that participated in the NCAA Tournament a season ago.
• The schedule also will have the Hurricane matched-up with teams that started the season either ranked or receiving votes. Texas A&M is ninth in the NFCA Coaches Poll, while TU also will face defending national champion Oklahoma (April 17) and Oklahoma State (March 21, April 4).
• Meanwhile, McNeese State (Feb. 9-10), Texas State (Feb. 24) and St. Francis (Pa.) (March 17) also started the season receiving votes.
TU Success Under Coach Bargfeldt
• Now in his 13th season at Tulsa, head coach John Bargfeldt is the program's longest-tenured head coach and has the most wins and highest winning percentage in school history.
• Prior to Bargfeldt's arrival, the program had just four winning seasons in 13 years and did not win a conference title or appear in an NCAA Regional.
• Since his hiring prior to the 2006 season, the Golden Hurricane has had a winning record in all 12 campaigns with six regular-season and six conference tournament titles. In addition, TU has advanced to nine NCAA Regionals, including a spot in the postseason for six of the last seven years.
Up Next
• After facing the Sooners and traveling to Houston for a three-game set, TU will play its final road games of the regular-season when it heads to Memphis for a three-game series (April 27-29).
TULSA, Okla. — The University of Tulsa softball team will host No. 2 Oklahoma in a sold-out contest at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, April 17, at the Collins Family Softball Complex. No walk-up tickets are available for the matchup.
Gates open at 4:30 p.m. Limited parking will be available in the Delaware Lot and at College Hill Church. Fans parking on the west side of the stadium (including College Hill Church and side streets) can utilize a free pre-game shuttle, which will pick up at the corner of 7th Street and Columbia Ave. and drop off at the east entrance of the Collins Family Softball Complex.
The Golden Hurricane (26-17) is coming off a 3-1 win over USF on Sunday afternoon. Samantha Pochop pitched seven strong innings with six strikeouts in the victory, while Haley Meinen hit the go-ahead two-run single in the bottom of the sixth to give TU the lead for good. Meinen is hitting a team-leading .441 during conference action, a mark that ranks fourth in the circuit.
Meanwhile, the Sooners (38-2) enter Tuesday's matchup fresh off a sweep of Kansas last weekend in Norman. Oklahoma owns the nation's longest winning streak at 29 games and the squad is 18-2 away from home this season (8-0 in road games; 10-2 in neutral games). OU is hitting .343 as a team, led by Sydney Romero's .472 average, while Jocelyn Alo is batting .445 with 18 homers and 52 RBIs. Paige Parker anchors the pitching staff with a 0.73 ERA and 21-1 record.
Tuesday, April 17
6 p.m. — Tulsa vs. No. 2 Oklahoma — Stats/Video
Notes
Tulsa to Host No. 2 Oklahoma Before Series at Houston This Week
• Tulsa will host No. 2 Oklahoma in a sold-out contest at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, April 17 before heading south to Houston for a three-game series with the Cougars, April 20-22.
• TU is hosting OU for the first time since 2016, when the Sooners claimed a 4-1 win at Collins Family Softball Complex. Overall, the Sooners lead the series 42-10, with Tulsa's last win coming in 2011.
•TU then will return to conference action with a pivotal series at Houston. Both teams enter the series as part of a four-way for third place in the American Athletic Conference standings at 6-6.
• Tulsa leads the all-time series against the Cougars 21-17 and the Hurricane has won each of the last five meetings.
Trending
• Emily Watson leads The American and ranks eighth in the nation with 192 strikeouts this season. Watson has struck out at least 10 batters in a game 10 times, including a season-high 15 Ks against Saint Francis (Pa.).
• Haley Meinen leads the team with a .441 average during conference play. Over her last 20 games, she has hit .419 with five doubles, three homers and 15 RBIs. During that stretch, she has twice as many multi-hit games (6) as games where she has gone hitless (3).
Ahead Early
• Tulsa has gotten off to a quick start with runs in the first inning in 20 of its 43 games.
• The Hurricane has outscored its opponents 37-13 in the first inning and has only allowed its opponent to score in the first inning of nine games during the campaign.
• TU has capitalized on the early lead this spring, going 15-5 when scoring in the first inning. The Hurricane also is 20-7 when the team scores first.
• The early run support has been a big part of the team's success as TU is 19-3 when leading after four innings, 17-1 when leading after five innings and 14-1 when leading after six innings.
TU Bats Heating Up in Conference Play
• The Tulsa offense will enter play this weekend hitting .288 during conference play, a mark that ranks second in the league, just behind Wichita State's .298 average.
• Haley Meinen leads the way with a .441 average to rank fourth in the circuit during league action.
• TU also ranks near the top of several other offensive categories during conference play, including hits (2nd, 89), doubles (2nd, 16), total bases (3rd, 127), on-base percentage (3rd, .355) and slugging percentage (3rd, .411), while it's 41 strikeouts are the second-fewest in the circuit.
Hurricane Honors in The American
• TU has had several student-athletes honored by the American Athletic Conference and NFCA via its weekly awards this season.
• Emily Watson has been named The American Pitcher of the Week three times this season (12 times in her career), including on April 2 after she went 2-0 with a save and 23 strikeouts in 15 innings during last weekend's sweep of ECU. The senior also earned Louisville Slugger/NFCA National Pitcher of the Week honors for her efforts against the Pirates.
• Hurricane hitters also have had success as Tori Stafford was named Player of the Week on March 19. Meanwhile, Shelby Estocado and Morgan Neal have been named to the conference's weekly honor roll this season, as well.
Career Numbers Update
• Emily Watson ranks in the program's all-time top 10 in several categories, including ERA (2nd, 1.74), opposing batting average (2nd, .207), strikeouts (2nd, 803), shutouts (2nd, 29), wins (2nd, 66), games started (3rd, 97), complete-games (4th, 65), innings pitched (5th, 616.0), saves (6th, 5) and appearances (6th, 115).
• Shelby Estocado ranks third in program history with 30 homers, including seven round-trippers this season. She also ranks sixth with 124 RBIs and seventh with 312 total bases.
• Julia Hollingsworth currently owns the program-record with a .454 on-base percentage, while her career .362 batting average ranks second. She ranks sixth with 40 stolen bases and her seven triples are tied for fifth. Hollingsworth tied a single-game record with a pair of triples in Tulsa's win over Nicholls State (March 3).
Look Who's Back
• Tulsa returns 13 letterwinners, including six position starters, the designated player and three pitchers, from last year's team which went 41-17 and won its first American Athletic Conference regular-season title with a 15-3 league mark.
• The TU offense will bring back all of its home runs, 79.3-percent of its extra-base hits, 76-percent of its runs scored, 74.3-percent of its RBIs and 71.1-percent of its hits from last year's squad.
• The lineup will see the return of NFCA All-Region picks Julia Hollingsworth (OF) and Haley Meinen (DP), while the pitching staff will see the return of second-team NFCA All-American Emily Watson.
It's Elementary, Watson
• The Golden Hurricane pitching staff is anchored by NFCA All-American Emily Watson. The senior nearly set a program single-season record with 348 strikeouts, while her 14 shutouts set a new program standard and led the nation last season.
• Watson also set single-season records with 30 wins, 36 starts, 29 complete games and 246.2 innings pitched.
• The senior was announced as one of 50 players across the nation on the "Watch List" for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Award and she was one of 30 candidates for the Senior CLASS Award.
• So far in 2018, she has compiled a 16-8 record with a 1.73 ERA and 206 strikeouts in 157.2 innings pitched.
Tulsa Picked to Repeat as American Athletic Conference Champs
• Tulsa garnered six first-place votes and the squad was picked to repeat as American Athletic Conference champions by the league's coaches.
• TU earned 48 points in the poll, while Houston picked up a pair of first-place nods and 44 points to rank second.
• The duo was followed by USF, UCF, Wichita State, Memphis, UConn and ECU.
• Last season, TU won both the regular-season and tournament titles, sweeping those championships for the first time since 2014 when the Hurricane accomplished the feat in its final season as a member of Conference USA.
The Schedule
• Tulsa's 2018 schedule will see the team play 10 games against teams that participated in the NCAA Tournament a season ago.
• The schedule also will have the Hurricane matched-up with teams that started the season either ranked or receiving votes. Texas A&M is ninth in the NFCA Coaches Poll, while TU also will face defending national champion Oklahoma (April 17) and Oklahoma State (March 21, April 4).
• Meanwhile, McNeese State (Feb. 9-10), Texas State (Feb. 24) and St. Francis (Pa.) (March 17) also started the season receiving votes.
TU Success Under Coach Bargfeldt
• Now in his 13th season at Tulsa, head coach John Bargfeldt is the program's longest-tenured head coach and has the most wins and highest winning percentage in school history.
• Prior to Bargfeldt's arrival, the program had just four winning seasons in 13 years and did not win a conference title or appear in an NCAA Regional.
• Since his hiring prior to the 2006 season, the Golden Hurricane has had a winning record in all 12 campaigns with six regular-season and six conference tournament titles. In addition, TU has advanced to nine NCAA Regionals, including a spot in the postseason for six of the last seven years.
Up Next
• After facing the Sooners and traveling to Houston for a three-game set, TU will play its final road games of the regular-season when it heads to Memphis for a three-game series (April 27-29).
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