The defending champs are just a few months away from taking the field! With the conclusion of fall ball comes some time to focus on academics, celebrate the holidays with family, and then come back to campus for the fall semester, and then defend the title. The 2021 national champion Oklahoma Sooners will officially begin their 2022 campaign in Santa Barbara, Calif., on Feb. 10 vs. UC-Santa Barbara. The team will then meet four opponents at the Mark Campbell Invitational (Feb. 11-13) in Irvine, Calif. Oklahoma will open the tourney against Loyola Marymount, prior to contests versus Mississippi State, UCLA and UC-San Diego.
The second week of the season will send the Sooners to Houston for the Houston Classic, Feb. 18-20. OU will meet host Houston, along with Texas State and McNeese State. This will be the second consecutive season that Oklahoma has played in the classic.
Patty Gasso’s Sooners will make a 16th consecutive trip to the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic in Palm Springs, Calif., Feb. 25-27. The tournament was paused last year due to the COVID pandemic but other than that OU has played in the event every season it’s been held since 2006. The Sooners will meet Cal State Fullerton, Long Beach State, Arizona, Tennessee and Utah over the three-day tournament.
After an undefeated home season in 2021 the Sooners will return to Marita Hynes Field for the first time since winning the Super Regional to host Minnesota on March 7th. Then its off to Hawaii for the Rainbow Wahine Classic, March 10-12. Oklahoma will face host Hawaii, as well as Big 12 foe Baylor and California.
The Sooners will return to the site of the Women’s College World Series for the second annual Hall of Fame Classic at USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City, March 18-20. Oklahoma swept through the tournament in 2021 (4-0) and will face Sam Houston, Indiana, San Diego, Houston and Iowa in the 2022 edition.
Big 12 play begins for Oklahoma on March 25-27 in Norman against Baylor and will be followed by a midweek matchup at home agains Wichita State, March 29.
The Sooners will welcome UAB April 1-2 for a pair of games before another midweek contest April 6 versus Tulsa in Norman.
Big 12 play ramps back up with a trip Lubbock, Texas, to play Texas Tech April 8-10 and then on to Austin for the Texas Longhorns on Easter weekend, April 14-16.
Following a midweek game at North Texas on April 20, Oklahoma hosts Iowa State April 22-24 before playing its final non-conference game April 28 in Kansas City, Mo., against Kansas City.
The Sooners play Kansas, in Lawrence, April 29-May 1 and the get ready for Bedlam.
The Bedlam Series will close out the regular season in Norman, May 6-8. It will mark the first time three matchups versus the Cowgirls have taken place in Norman since 1997.
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