When Oklahoma takes the field against Prairie View A&M on Friday it will mark the beginning of the Sooners’ chase for a sixth national championship, it’s second straight and its fifth in 10 years.

It’s heady, heady stuff.

Particularly so when thrown against the program and the facilities Gasso inherited prior to the 1995 season, taking over for Jim Beitia, who spent exactly one year at the helm after taking over for Michelle Thomas-Grost, who took over for the legendary Marita Hynes* prior to the 1985 season.

* Honestly, Hynes deserves a statue in front of the about-to-be-built Love’s Field, the Sooners’ planned new softball digs. After becoming an administrator, she hired Patty Gasso and a short time after that Sherri Coale. All that and she’s a fabulous person, who helped brings women’s collegiate athletics from the dark ages to what you see now. 

If they want a statue of Gasso, too, terrific, she’s earned it, and still OU can’t honor Hynes enough

I digress.

It’s not like Gasso took over a struggling program. In his one season, Beitia went 58-15, a record Gasso would not quite equal nor better until 2000, when the program claimed its first WCWS trip and national championship, finishing 66-8, back when you could play a million games.

It was, though, a long, long time ago, chronologically and in the imagination of what women’s sports might be or become at OU and everywhere else.

Gasso recalls those days.

Specifically, speaking to media earlier in the week, she remembered the first time her program hosted an NCAA regional.

It was May of ’97.

The Sooners got to host … at Reaves Park.

The OU Softball Complex had not yet been built.

So, on the same diamonds men and women played beer league softball across Jenkins Avenue from campus, the Sooners were trying to win their way to Hall of Fame Stadium.

“It was at Reaves Park and the dugout was so small that the entire team can’t fit in this dugout, so they’re sitting in the first bleacher of the grand … they’re not even grandstands … of the wooden benches out there,” Gasso said. 

“To me, I’m more concerned not with how many fans are there, but how do I fit everyone in the dugout … People can come in anywhere they want, so they can’t charge. Yeah, it was quite different. I’m in a city park, hosting a regional. So we have grown with the times to say the least.”

Crazy.

That story in the books, here’s a look at the four teams vying to reach the NCAA’s super regional round through the Norman Regional.

Oklahoma

Coach: Patty Gasso

Record: 49-2, 17-1 Big 12

Team batting average: 367

Team on-base percentage: .474

Team slugging percentage: .727

Team earned run average: 0.80

Hitters to watch: Jocelyn Alo .481/.622/1.128 25 HRs, 62 RBIs; Grace Lyons .415/.494/.873, 18 HRs, 53 RBIs; Tiare Jennings .379/.503/.883 22 HRs, 68 RBIs; Alyssa Brito .370/.472/.810, 13 HRs, 38 RBIs

Pitchers to watch: Hope Trautwein 16-1, 91 1/3 IP, 135 SO, 32 BB, 0.31 ERA; Nicole May 12-0, 69 2/3 IP, 76 SO, 24 BB, 1.11 ERA

Texas A&M

Coach: Jo Evans

Record: 29-26, 6-18 SEC

Team batting average: .280

Team on-base percentage: .388

Team slugging percentage:.475

Team earned run average: 3.59

Hitters to watch: Lee Haley .410/.553/.769 14 HRs, 41 RBIs; Katie Dack .299/.426/.710, 12 HRs, 37 RBIs; Trinity Cannon .304/.439/.527, 8 HRs, 41 RBIs

Pitchers to watch: Emily Kennedy 11-11, 128 2/3 IP, 103 SO, 62 BB, 2.77 ERA; Makinzy Herzog 9-7, 99 IP, 115 SO, 58 BB, 2.47 ERA

Minnesota

Coach: Piper Ritter

Record: 26-24-1, 11-12 Big 10

Team batting average: 281

Team on-base percentage: .387

Team slugging percentage: .482

Team earned run average: 4.49

Hitters to watch: Natalie DenHartog .340/.426/.728 18 HRs, 36 RBIs; Chloe Evans .329/.433/.617, 10 HRs, 44 RBIs; Lauren Espalin .349/.450/.539, 6 HRs, 24 RBIs

Pitchers to watch: Autumn Pease 11-14, 151 2/3 IP, 150 SO, 55 BB, 4.15 ERA; Emily Leavitt 14-9, 158 2/3 IP, 121 SO, 55 BB, 4.59 ERA

Prairie View A&M

Coach: Vernon Bland

Record: 20-28, 16-8 SWAC

Team batting average: .272

Team on-base percentage: .368

Team slugging percentage: .408

Team earned run average: 7.29

Hitters to watch: Viviana Figueroa .447/.517/.667 5HRs, 38 RBIs; Jaylyn Davis .317/.424/.619 10 HRs, 34 RBIs

Pitchers to watch: Cailin Massey 11-10, 145 IP, 98 K, 49 BB, 4.90 ERA

Norman Regional schedule

Friday

Game 1: Texas A&M vs. Minnesota, 4 p.m. (ESPN2)

Game 2: Oklahoma vs. Prairie View, 6:30 p.m. (ESPN+)

Saturday

Game 3: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner, TBA

Game 4: Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser, TBA

Game 5: Game 3 loser vs. Game 4 winner, TBA

Sunday

Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner, TBA

Game 7: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner, if necessary

In case you missed it

Sooner dominance hardly fair, April 9

Sooner regular-season finale good for everybody, May 7

The road to Hall of Fame Stadium, an NCAA softball overview, May 16

Sooner ace Jordy Bahl not back yet, May 17