Oklahoma
Oklahoma Duo Captures SEC Weekly Awards
A pair of Patty Gasso’s Sooners earned recognition for clutch performances against Ole Miss over the weekend.
Veteran Isabela Emerling was named SEC Co-Player of the Week after her clutch grand slam powered Oklahoma past the Rebels on Monday, and sophomore Audrey Lowry earned SEC Pitcher of the Week after two outstanding appearances.
Emerling, a redshirt senior, needed just one pitch to change Monday’s series finale.
She stepped in to pinch hit for freshman Allyssa Parker in the sixth inning and ruined Kyra Aycock’s outing.
Emerling connected with the first pitch she saw and parked a grand slam deep beyond the fence in left field to put OU on top 5-2.
It was Emerling’s 11th homer of the year, which is three shy of her career-high, and it was the seventh grand slam of her career.
She also homered in the Sooners’ mid-week triumph over Memphis and hit .545 for the week with a 1.091 slugging percentage.
Lowry pitched 7 2/3 total innings across two appearances against the Rebels and allowed zero runs.
She got the start in Saturday’s opener, then stepped in for Sydney Berzon with OU down 2-1 and shut the Rebels out to earn the victory in relief.
Lowry accounted for five strikeouts and gave up four free passes (two walks and two hit batters) in the pair of appearances.
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For the season, she’s now 15-1, which ranks third nationally in wins, and has a 2.08 ERA with a 52-9 strikeout to walk ratio across 67 1/3 innings of action.
Emerling and Lowry became the second OU duo to capture recognition in the same week, and it was the first time both have been honored individually by the SEC this season.
The No. 5 Sooners will be back on the road this weekend to take on No. 20 LSU.
The series will serve as a reunion for Avery Hodge and Paytn Monticelli, who are both former Sooners, as well as Berzon, who spent the first three years of her collegiate career in Baton Rouge.
Hodge transferred to LSU following the 2024 season, and Monitcelli departed Norman this past offseason.
Berzon is coming off her longest outing as a Sooner, where she threw 57 pitches and allowed zero earned runs on Monday against Ole Miss.
The series opener is scheduled to get underway at 6 p.m. on Friday.
Oklahoma
Analyst says Oklahoma is an overlooked team in college football
The Oklahoma Sooners surprised the college football world with their breakthrough 2025 season. The Sooners made the College Football Playoff after a 6-7 season in 2024.
The Sooners navigated one of the toughest schedules in college football and still finished the regular season with a 10-2 record. With another offseason of development and the return of several key contributors, expectations are high around Norman heading into 2026. However, that optimism has not carried over to the national conversation.
ESPN’s Football Power Index (FPI) projects the Sooners will finish with a 7-5 record this season. Despite that projection, FPI still ranks Oklahoma as the No. 12 team in the country. That disrespect likely comes from the up-and-down tenure under head coach Brent Venables. So far, he’s had two double-digit-win seasons, while also having two losing seasons. Oklahoma hadn’t had a losing season since 1998 until Venables took over before the 2022 season.
On3’s Ari Wasserman said that Oklahoma has been overlooked nationally on his show with Andy Staples.
Oklahoma has already shown it can compete at the highest level after making the College Football Playoff in its first season as an SEC member. Now, the challenge is proving that last season was not just a one-year breakthrough.
With a talented roster, an elite defense, and key players returning, the Sooners have the opportunity to exceed national expectations and establish themselves as a consistent contender in the SEC.
Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X (formerly known as Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Jaron on X @jaronspor.
Oklahoma
Main Card Results | UFC Oklahoma City
Du Plessis returns to the Octagon for the first time since losing his middleweight title to Khamzat Chimaev last August. Standing across from him is Usman, a former welterweight champion who defended his title five times, with signature wins over Jorge Masvidal and Colby Covington. The pair headline a stacked card filled with rising contenders and can’t-miss prospects.
Where To Watch UFC Oklahoma City
Live results, highlights, fight recaps, post-fight interviews and more will be added throughout the event. Preview each matchup below before the action begins. The main card kicks off Saturday at 8pm ET/5pm PT live on Paramount+ in the United States.
UFC Oklahoma City Main Card Results:
Oklahoma
‘ALWAYS OPTIMISTIC!’ Tulsa’s U.V. Okies level up with Nintendo donation
TULSA, Okla. — Tulsa’s U.V. Okies are six-time undefeated Wii bowling champions of the Tulsa Senior Inter-League — and now they’re leveling up.
Nintendo America contacted University Village Retirement Community after the senior bowling team’s story went viral- thanks to their Instagram reels, and features by news outlets like the New York Times and 2 News Oklahoma.
WATCH: POSITIVELY OKLAHOMA: Tulsa Gaming Seniors level up to Nationals:
POSITIVELY OKLAHOMA: Tulsa Gaming Seniors level up to Nationals
Inspired by their story, the company is donating Nintendo Switch 2 systems to each retirement community in the Tulsa league.
Wayne Wall, Life Enrichment Coordinator at University Village, said the outreach came as a surprise.
“I did not expect to hear from Nintendo at all,” Wall said.
GALLERY: “ALWAYS OPTIMISTIC!” Tulsa’s U.V. Okies level up with Nintendo donation
The company reached out to Wall about what the team had come to represent.
“They contacted me and said we’re excited about how Wii bowling is bringing people together at this stage of their life and helping them to have that camaraderie and have fun in this stage of their life and we would like to do something to contribute to that, to be a part of that,” Wall said.
Nintendo donated two Nintendo Switch 2 systems for each retirement community in the league, along with additional gear like extra Joy-Cons, and games. Teams from across Tulsa picked up their gifts at the championship celebration on July 16, 2026, at University Village in Tulsa — and the timing could not have been better. The old equipment had run its course.
“The Wii systems were becoming obsolete and hard to replace,” Wall said.
Come spring 2027, the Tulsa league will make the switch to bowling on the Switch 2. Competing Tulsa teams hope the new systems evens things out.
Fritz Gernandt of the Town Village Strikers had a message for the six-time champions.
“I can only say it once and really loud, look out,” Gernandt said.
The U.V. Okies are not intimidated. Phyllis Wimer, 95 — known on the lanes by nicknames like “The GOAT” and “The Killer” — has already been putting in work on the Switch 2.
KJRH
“I’ve got the new system at home, and I have bowled a 300 on it, and I’m the only one so far that has,” Wimer said.
Dorothy Salen, 101, who led the U.V. Okies in the national league last fall and goes by “Dangerous Dorothy,” is keeping her trademark outlook heading into the new season.
“Always optimistic!” Salen said.
For the U.V. Okies, the game — and the fun — is never over.
The team has one more Wii bowling match planned before their equipment gets retired. They will play the staff at University Village to raise money for Alzheimer’s awareness next week.
2 News Oklahoma was the first to bring you the story of the U.V. Okies success, and we’ve been updating you along the way.
You can learn more about University Village HERE.
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