Oklahoma wins 48th straight game to set NCAA DI softball record

Oklahoma softball won its 48th straight game to establish a new NCAA Division I record.

The 8-7 win on Saturday, May 27, to close out a super regional sweep over Clemson and clinch a 2023 Women’s College World Series berth put the Sooners past Arizona on the all-time list. The Wildcats won 47 straight games across the 1996-97 seasons.

Oklahoma’s historic victory also served as a fitting farewell to Marita Hynes Field, OU’s home stadium since 1998. Saturday’s super regional finale was the final game at the venue before the Sooners move to the new Love’s Field in 2024.

Oklahoma now takes its win streak into Oklahoma City for WCWS play. Here’s a deeper look at the longest winning streaks in DI college softball history.

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Oklahoma, 2023 (current)

The Sooners have currently won 48 games in a row, through May 27. That puts them alone on top, with a chance to extend further in the 2023 Women’s College World Series. Oklahoma’s only regular-season loss in 2023 came to Baylor in February. The 48th win of the season came in Game 2 of the super regionals — the Sooners trailed 7-4 in the seventh and down to their last out and last strike when Kinzie Hansen sent an 0-2 pitch over the fence for a three-run bomb. OU then came back to take the lead in the top of the ninth and hold off Clemson to advance to its seventh-straight trip to the WCWS. The record-breaking win, that beat Arizona’s record set in 1997, was even more significant because of what was likely the Sooner’s last game played on Marita Hynes Field. 

Arizona, 1996-1997

The Wildcats owned the longest streak in NCAA softball history until 2023 Oklahoma came around. Arizona won 47 games in a row from April 5, 1996 to March 23, 1997. The team took home the championship in both seasons, and finished with a combined 119-16 record in those two seasons.

Oklahoma, 2019

Oklahoma’s win streak ended at 41 games after the Sooners lost to Wisconsin in their third NCAA tournament game. OU was creeping up on Arizona’s all-time streak of 47 but fell six short. Oklahoma’s finished conference play with a pristine 18-0 record. The Sooners’ 41 consecutive wins is the longest win streak in the span of a single season.

Oklahoma, 2021-2022

Oklahoma put 40 wins together, a run that started in the 2021 WCWS Finals, including winning the national title, and extended to a 38-0 start in the 2022 season — breaking the record to best start to a season. Star Jocelyn Alo also broke the career home run record during the streak as OU won 31 of their 38 games in 2022 by run-rule. But Texas halted the streak with a 4-2 win on April 16.

Oklahoma, 2020-2021

The Sooners won 40 games in a row, starting when they won their last seven games of the 2020 season, which got halted due to COVID-19. OU then continued to win in 2021, not falling until Georgia upset the No. 1 Sooners on April 20. Oklahoma would end the season 56-4 with a national championship.

South Carolina, 1997

The Gamecocks went 38 games without a loss or tie right around the same time Arizona was on its own streak. South Carolina went 63-5 that season. After securing its first SEC regular season and tournament championships, the Gamecocks advanced to their first ever Women’s College World Series, where they bowed out after losing to Washington and Michigan.

Florida, 2008

Florida’s 37-game win streak from March 12 to May 18 helped the team make its first Women’s College World Series. The Gators went 70-5 overall and 27-1 in SEC play. In a show of just how much talent this group had, Stacey Nelson, Kim Waleszonia, Aja Paculba, Francesca Enea, and Ali Gardiner all made the All-America team.

Princeton, 1996

The Tigers notched what was then an NCAA record with 37 wins in a row from March 20 to April 28 before losing 3-1 to Brown. Of course, Princeton wouldn’t hold onto this record for long. But only a few teams have passed them in the 20-plus years since. The 1996 team also finished the year ranked No. 1 in the Northeast Region for the second straight year. Before that, the Tigers had been the top ranked team only once before in 1985.

Oregon, 2017

The most recent team on the list got here with a 35-game win streak that lasted from February 9 to April 4. The Ducks tied an NCAA record because their win streak came in the first 35 games of the season. They didn’t register a loss on the year until April 7, when UCLA handed Oregon the first of back-to-back losses. The Ducks finished 54-8 on the season.

UCLA, 1999

UCLA’s 35-game win streak is one of only a few on this list to come in a championship-winning season. The Bruins broke school records for wins, runs, total bases, home runs, RBIs, doubles, hits, walks and steals. They ended the season with a 63-6 record.

Canisius, 1993

Under coach Mike Rappl, Canisius ripped off a then-NCAA record 35-game win streak that put both the coach and the team on the map. The team went 36-3 that season. The Golden Griffins also had their win streak come in the first 35 games of the season. After losing game two of a doubleheader against UMass on May 8, the team went 1-2 the rest of the way.

Cal State Fullerton, 1987

Cal State Fullerton was the first team in NCAA softball history to get to 35 consecutive wins. The Titans were no strangers to the spotlight by then, having won a national championship in 1986. They’d get there again in 1987 after going undefeated from March 6 to April 21.

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Florida, 2015

Another recent winner, the Gators had a 34-game winning streak. They didn’t match their 37-game win streak from 2008, but this Florida team outdid its predecessor where it counts: these Gators took home the national championship with a win over Michigan in the Women’s College World Series final.

Arizona, 2000

Arizona’s own 34-game win streak was bookended by losses to Washington. The Wildcats went on to rip off a 13-game winning streak before losing in the opening round of the Women’s College World Series. It was only the second time since 1990 that the Wildcats didn’t make the national title game.