OU Softball: Oklahoma Meets Texas A&M in Heavyweight Clash for the SEC Championship

The SEC’s top two teams finally get to settle things on the field. 

Oklahoma and Texas A&M will play for the SEC Tournament title, with the winner potentially taking home the top overall seed in the NCAA Tournament as well. 

The top-seeded Sooners had to erase a 6-1 deficit on Friday, but Gabbie Garcia walked off Arkansas to punch OU’s ticket to the title game. 

The 2-seeded Aggies demolished Texas to bank their second run rule victory of the tournament. 

Oklahoma was crowned the conference’s regular season champions after finishing 17-7, and the Aggies were unable to share a piece of that trophy after finishing 16-7 due to a weather cancellation that could not be made up. 

Yet both teams will enter Saturday’s 12 p.m. title game (SEC Network) feeling as if they have something to prove. 

“The coolest thing is we talk about being the underdog,” freshman Sydney Barker said on Friday after she launched a pair of solo shots against Arkansas. “We totally are underestimated coming up and the best feeling is coming in and winning for us and not winning for whoever doesn’t believe in us.”

Both teams are riding a wave of momentum, but Oklahoma’s confidence from digging out of a five-run hole. 

The Sooners saved ace Sam Landry, instead starting with Kierston Deal on Friday. 

Deal and Isabella Smith combined to give up six runs before Paytn Monticelli and Audrey Lowry came in to stop the bleeding. 

The performances in relief gave OU’s offense a chance to get to work, and Garcia and Barker were just happy to have their pitchers’ backs. 

“Honestly I was just feeling confidence in our pitches and what they’re capable of,” Garcia said. We work really hard and at the end of the day, no matter how big the moment gets, just staying in the moment and not allowing that pressure to overwhelm you.”

OU set a single-game SEC Tournament record with six home runs in the comeback victory as the offense never let the moment get too big, regardless of the score. 

“It’s just a really relaxed environment telling us no matter how big the lead is, trust our bats,” said Garcia, “trust our skills and that we’re going to get back into it just one thing at a time.”

Oklahoma will need to bring that same energy in the program’s first SEC Tournament Championship game to have Landry’s back. 

But there shouldn’t be a large adjustment period to taking on the Aggies. 

The Sooners have battled the SEC’s best all year, including Arkansas who had won six-straight series leading into the tournament after OU swept the Razorbacks back in March. 

“The SEC is definitely the hardest conference,” Barker said, “and I think playing all these hard teams leading up to this is just getting us ready for everything we’re facing.”

With so many new faces, the Sooners feel they’ve been doubted and cheered against all year. 

The’ve tried to keep their focus on the personalities inside the locker room, and that approach won’t change with another trophy on the line. 

“We’re playing for each other and nothing more,” Garcia said.”I mean everyone’s gonna have haters, everyone’s going to have supporters at the end of the day.”