Oklahoma announces its 2023 softball schedule on Wednesday.
The Sooners will return to the Mark Campbell Invitational and the Marry Nutter Collegiate Classic this year, as well as playing seven different participants from last year’s Super Regionals and four teams who qualified for the 2022 Women’s College World Series.
The non-conference slate is headlined with matchups against UCLA, Duke, Kentucky, Florida State, Washington, Northwestern and Auburn.
OU will also play 14 home contests at Marita Hynes Field this year, including a home tournament.
Patty Gasso’s Sooners will open the season at the Mark Campbell Invitational in Irvine, CA, on Feb. 9-12. OU will clash against Duke, Liberty, Stanford and Washington.
Next, the Sooners will head to Waco where Baylor is hosting the Getterman Classic from Feb. 17-19. Oklahoma will feature in contests against Longwood, Stephen F. Austin, Army and Baylor before headed back to the West Coast for the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic.
From Feb. 24-26, OU will meet Cal State Fullerton, Texas A&M, Utah, Loyola Marymount and UCLA over the course of the three-day event.
Oklahoma will open up its home slate from March 3-5, hosting Kentucky and the UIC Flames in OU’s home tournament.
The following weekend, the Sooners will participate in the Bulldog Invitational hosted by Mississippi State. From March 10-12, OU will complete against Saint Louis, Omaha and former Sooner great Samantha Ricketts’ Mississippi State team.
Then, history will be made on March 14.
Florida State, Oklahoma’s opponent in the 2021 Women’s College World Series Championship Series, will make its first ever trip to Norman to play the Sooners in a midweek clash of the college softball titans.
Oklahoma will host one last event, the Hall of Fame Classic at Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City, before opening Big 12 play.
From March 17-19, the Sooners will play Weber State, Northwestern and Auburn.
OU will open up conference play on the road as the Sooners visit the Iowa State Cyclones on March 24-26.
The Sooners will return home to host the Texas Longhorns on March 31-April 2 in the first meeting of the two programs since the 2022 Women’s College World Series Championship Series.
After Texas, OU will then host Texas Tech on April 6-8.
Gasso put another midweek trip to SEC country on the schedule this year, as the Sooners will make the trip to Baton Rouge to play LSU on April 11.
On April 15-16, OU will play in Oxford, OH, in a tournament hosted by Miami (OH) against Louisville, Oakland and Miami, before headed to Waco to face Baylor in Big 12 play on April 21-13
Oklahoma will hit the road to play Wichita State and Tulsa on April 25-26, before rounding out its home games for the season by hosting Kansas on April 28-30.
OU’s season finale will be Bedlam in Stillwater on May 4-6.
The Big 12 Tournament will take place on Oklahoma City from May 11-13 at Hall of Fame Stadium.
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