OU Softball: Should Oklahoma Add a Transfer Portal Pitcher?

OU also has Sophia Bordi, who reclassified to redshirt with the team in 2025 though her season was cut short when she left Norman to return home, as well as Allyssa Parker and Berkley Zache who will all be members of Jennifer Rocha’s pitching staff. 

Before Bordi reclassified, she was rated as the No. 1 pitcher in the country by Softball America, with Parker rated as the second-best prospect and Zache as the No. 6-ranked pitcher in the nation. 

Bringing three freshmen along in the SEC will be a tough endeavor, and Deal posted a 3.42 ERA in 2025, well behind her 1.09 mark as a freshman in 2023 and her 1.97 ERA as a sophomore in 2024.

Gasso and Rocha have excelled bringing in veteran pitchers out of the transfer portal, from Giselle Juarez to Hope Trautwein, Alex Storako, Kelly Maxwell and Landry in recent years, and the Sooners could use an ace to help stabilize the rotation while the underclassmen gain valuable experience. 

And there’s a name in the transfer portal that would make plenty of sense for the Sooners — Sydney Berzon. 

The LSU transfer is an SEC veteran and a two year All-American. 

The right-hander finished her freshman year with a 1.91 ERA in 143 innings, and got better as a sophomore to post a 1.78 ERA while throwing 204 innings for the Tigers. 

This season, she ended the year with a 2.46 ERA in 139 1/3 innings, and she struck out 104 batters while issuing 44 walks. 

She fits the profile of pitcher Rocha has had plenty of success with, and with one year of eligibility remaining, Berzon wouldn’t block the path of OU’s young pitchers for more than a season. 

The Sooners could also pursue UCLA left-hander Kaitlyn Terry, though the competition for her signature may be fierce. 

Texas Tech is expected to be active in the transfer portal again this offseason to add talent around NiJaree Canady, a source told Sooners on SI, and Terry is a major target for the Red Raiders. 

Rostering seven pitchers for a year may be a tough sell, but relying solely on underclassmen could be risky. 

Freshman pitchers have had success in the SEC, but it’s not a certainty. 

Berzon thrived as a new face in Baton Rouge, but even a pitcher as talented as Karlyn Pickens can struggle, as she finished her first season with a 3.05 ERA wading through the SEC with the Volunteers. 

Gasso and Rocha know exactly what it takes to return to the WCWS Championship Series, and all of OU’s most recent titles have had at least one senior arm — a transfer — that could be relied upon. 

Oklahoma’s 2026 roster is already loaded with talent, and the pieces returning from this past season all gained crucial experience in the NCAA Tournament. 

Adding an additional veteran pitcher could take the Sooners over the top once again, and the work will begin at the conclusion of the WCWS when the recruiting dead period expires and teams across the country will once again direct all efforts at recruiting out of the transfer portal.