Oklahoma
Weekend Wrap: Oklahoma’s Sweep Keeps it Squarely in SEC Fight
NORMAN — Oklahoma’s sweep of Mississippi State has the Sooners still right in the middle of the SEC fight.
The No. 2-ranked Sooners are tied with No. 3 Texas at 13-5 in league play, trailing only No. 1 Texas A&M (13-4).
No. 4 Tennessee looms just one game back of the Sooners and the Longhorns, and the Red River Rivals will be in Norman to meet for the first time at Love’s Field.
The weekend was far from perfect. OU had to battle out of a pair of 4-0 deficits after the top of the first inning in Sunday’s double header, but Patty Gasso’s team found the offense it needed to take all three wins against the No. 16-ranked Bulldogs.
Friday’s 4-0 victory over Mississippi State at Love’s Field was comfortable, but it left Gasso wanting more.
Her team put up two runs in each of the first two innings, but there was no further damage inflicted.
To hold pace with Texas and Florida in the coming weekends, the Sooners will have to keep scoring, but Gasso struck a balance between wanting more and continuing to build the confidence of her young lineup.
“This team is going to start clicking at a different cylinder and you’re going to know it. You won’t even have to ask me. You’re gonna see it,” Gasso said on Friday. “I know it’s coming, we’re just working through that right now. And it’s coming. I know it will happen before we finish the end of this season. So that’s where we’re at right now. Wins are great but if we can start clicking in that way, we’re going to be pretty unstoppable.”
Against Tennessee, Gasso said her team has to produce in more than just two spots in the lineup.
Sunday, the runs came from all over.
Kasidi Pickering hit a homer in the first game of the double header, then Ailana Agbayani and Cydney Sanders helped string together hits to get OU back in the game.
Sunday’s finale was all about the long ball.
Gabbie Garcia struck first, Hannah Coor went yard once, Nelly McEnroe-Marinas homered twice and catcher Isabela Emerling hammered a three-run shot to put the Sooners in front.
Gasso was proud of the team’s response. They didn’t panic, and they slowly chipped away to come from behind twice on Sunday.
“Not trying to over-swing because it was still early in the game,” Gasso said. “We don’t want to give up runs that way, but if we do it and do it early, we have that time. They started to pull rallies together.”
The second option out of the bullpen behind Sam Landry has been a rotating door this season.
Freshman Audrey Lowry excelled in the first SEC series against South Carolina. Kierston Deal won the only contest against Tennessee.
Sunday, it was Isabella Smith’s turn.
Lowry’s day lasted just six batters, and OU pitching coach Jennifer Rocha turned to the Campbell transfer out of the pen.
Smith has struggled lately, but she settled the game for the Sooners. She pitched 4 1/3 innings, allowing three hits, three walks and one run while firing back with a strikeout — a performance that provided a much-needed mental boost.
“Coach Rocha and I have been working really, really hard just getting my mental right,” Smith said on Sunday. “I think that’s probably where I’ve struggled the most. But I came in today and this week I’ve really just been trusting my stuff and trusting the talents that God has given me.”
She was close to getting her swagger back against Alabama last Sunday, but a pair of bunt-singles loaded the bases and ended her day.
“I think I felt I was definitely getting closer too,” said Smith, “and I was allowed to take that into this week for bullpens and keep it going throughout the rest of the season.”
Shortly after Smith exited the first game on Sunday, the ball was given to Landry to close.
She threw 27 pitches and secured the win.
Then she started the series finale.
Landry pitched all seven innings, throwing 123 more pitches, to secure the sweep.
It wasn’t perfect, but Landry bounced back from allowing four runs in the first to enjoy a solid outing.
“I think (she battled) just a little bit of fatigue and she was pushing through it,” Emerling said. “Sam is always mentally in it, is always driven to compete. And I think it was just the physical tiredness that got her a little bit.”
Gasso doesn’t want to rely on just one pitcher, but Landry has proven against Arkansas, Tennessee, Alabama and Mississippi State that she can put OU in a winning position while still pitching 14 innings or more in a series.
The Sooners have to battle through the postseason, but stacking wins will only allow Landry to bank rest in Oklahoma City — a hopeful prospect for a program looking to rewrite the record books again in June.
New Iowa State wrestling coach Brent Metcalf outlines vision for team
New Iowa State wrestling coach Brent Metcalf outlines vision for team
Iowa State wrestling’s first commitment of the Brent Metcalf era will be a transfer portal addition.
The Cyclones added Oklahoma State transfer Brayden Thompson, who announced his commitment on April 18 via Instagram. Thompson is a one-time NCAA qualifier at the 2024 NCAA Championships, doing so as a true freshman. He redshirted in 2024-25, but competed in open tournaments at 184 pounds and was 9-0. He did not wrestle a match in 2025-26 and will have at least two years of eligibility remaining.
Out of high school, Thompson was ranked the No. 3 pound-for-pound wrestler and No. 1 at 182 pounds in the 2023 recruiting class by Flowrestling. He also won Powerade and Ironman titles, two of the more prestigious high school tournaments in the nation. Assuming Thompson returns to 184 pounds where he last wrestled, he should fill in nicely as a potential replacement for Isaac Dean after his graduation.
Thompson is Iowa State’s first transfer portal addition after several departures, including Anthony Echemendia and Christian Castillo, who also entered the portal.
Eli McKown covers high school sports and wrestling for the Des Moines Register. Contact him at Emckown@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @EMcKown23.
NORMAN — The Oklahoma Sooners liked their wide receiver room a year ago. They want 2026 to be even better.
Isaiah Sategna’s return helps that desire. Earning experienced pass catchers Trell Harris and Parker Livingstone via the transfer portal gives you added play makers. But after the Sooners Spring Game on Saturday, an unlikely hero emerged.
When Jahsiear Rogers flipped from Penn State to Oklahoma last December, he drew the usual excitement that comes with a new commitment. But few expected him to climb the depth chart this quickly, even with the injuries that hit Emmett Jones’ room.
Rogers did just that and more on Saturday. He led all pass catchers with five receptions for 70 yards in Oklahoma’s annual Red/White game.
“I knew it was time to showcase,” Rogers said after the game. “It was amazing to see the fans and get used to the OU way. I’m a playmaker. They really want to put the ball in playmakers hands. I pretty much knew I had to lead the white team.”
Rogers got the ball rolling early. On the second offensive play for the white team, backup quarterback Whitt Newbauer rolled to his right wide, then stopped and looked towards the middle of the field where he saw Rogers running open. Newbauer connected with Rogers for a 39-yard gain.
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With Rogers on the white team, he is running against (most of) Oklahoma’s starting defense. As fate would have it, on that 39-yard reception, Rogers beat his favorite teammate to compete against — Reggie Powers.
“He is just a leader, good guy,” Rogers said of Powers. “Me and him go after it every day in practice. Reggie is strong. When I come at him, I have to really come at him.”
Rogers’ big play over Powers was the second-longest catch of the spring game — Sategna’s 50-yard reception that appeared to be a touchdown before coaches pulled it back to set up a red-zone rep. The other four catches weren’t flashy, but they were important in their own way, and Rogers looked like he belonged on the field.
“I love it. As long as I can get the ball, I can be me. I love it,” Rogers said. “When I am on the field, I am ready to go. I am ready to be a playmaker.”
The season is still months away, and Rogers hasn’t earned a spot high on the depth chart yet. A strong spring and an encouraging Red/White Game can only lead to early playing time if he carries that momentum into summer and fall camp.
More experienced players will return from injury and receivers who’ve been in the program for a few years will have an extra leg-up.
But Rogers is taking everything in stride and leaving no stone unturned in his development.
“Just learning from the older guys,” Rogers said. “Manny Choice, Isaiah Sategna, Trell Harris, Mackenzie Alleyne. Really all of them. We lean on each other, learn from each other. That is kind of how our room is.”
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The Oklahoma baseball team is back in the mix and trending upward.
After a rough few weeks in Southeastern Conference play, the 14th-ranked Sooners have won three of their last four games to get to .500 at just beyond the halfway point of the league slate. Friday’s 9-6 win over Missouri allowed Oklahoma to move to 8-8, tied with three other teams for eighth in the standings.
Friday’s win wasn’t truly that close, even. OU took a 9-3 lead into the ninth before Mizzou made it somewhat interesting with three runs in the frame. Two of them came with two outs, though, and Mason Bixby induced a groundout with the bases empty to hold on.
The large edge came via a home run-happy night. The Sooners popped four over the wall at Kimrey Family Stadium, including three in a four-run seventh inning that gave OU a four-run lead.
Jason Walk, who hit one of the four homers, had the best day at the plate. He went 2 for 5 with the shot, three RBIs and a run. Camden Johnson, who also homered, went 2 for 3 with a walk, a double and two runs, and Dasan Harris went 2 for 4 with a home run, two RBIs, and three runs. Trey Gambill hit the Sooners’ other jack.
Oklahoma jumped out to a four-run lead in the second behind four hits and a walk. Missouri helped the Sooners out with an error that resulted in a bases-loaded situation and three unearned runs registered to Tigers starter Josh McDevitt.
The runs were more than enough for Oklahoma’s LJ Mercurius, who pitched six strong innings, giving up three runs on six hits with no walks and nine strikeouts.
Game 2 in the series is set for 4 p.m. Saturday and the finale will be played Sunday at 2 p.m., weather permitting.
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