Sooner Softball Sweeps Weekly Big 12 Awards

Sooner sophomore Lauren Chamberlain and senior Keilani Ricketts have once again swept the Big 12 Player and Pitcher of the Week awards.

For Chamberlain, it’s the fifth time she has been named Big 12 Player of the Week in her career, including the second time this season. Ricketts has been named Big 12 Pitcher of the Week 14 times as a Sooner, with three coming in 2013.

Between Ricketts and fellow senior Michelle Gascoigne, the Sooners have won four of the six weekly pitching honors handed out by the Big 12, while Chamberlain and sophomore Shelby Pendley have combined to win three of the six on the hitters’ side.

Of the 12 awards given out by the Big 12 this season, seven have gone to an Oklahoma player.

Chamberlain was red-hot during the Sooners’ 5-0 weekend at the Judi Garman Classic in Fullerton, Calif. Starting all five games at first base, she hit.556 with six runs scored, three home runs and six runs batted in. She recorded 14 total bases for a 1.556 slugging percentage, while nine walks helped boost her on-base percentage to .778. Chamberlain was also 1-1 in stolen bases and did not strike out over the weekend.

She saved her best performance for Oklahoma’s toughest competition. Facing No.14/19 Arizona, Chamberlain went 2-2 with a pair of solo home runs and two walks in a 4-0 victory.

In the circle, Ricketts did not allow a single run as she threw 17.0 shutout innings in three complete-game starts. She struck out 27, walked three and allowed only six hits to post an opponents' batting average of .103.

Ricketts has now thrown four straight shutouts and her personal scoreless streak stands at 23 innings. As a staff, Oklahoma has tied a school record with seven consecutive shutouts, while the team's scoreless run is at 40 innings.

Like Chamberlain, Ricketts was at her best against the Wildcats as she limited the Arizona bats to just three hits. Ricketts and the Sooners retired 19 batters in a row from the first through the seventh inning. After two singles in the first, Ricketts' only other hit allowed was a two-out single in the seventh. She walked one and struck out seven, including four in a row between the fifth and sixth innings.

Oklahoma returns home this weekend to face No. 11/11 Louisville (23-4). Saturday features a doubleheader that starts at 2 p.m., while Sunday’s finale is scheduled for noon.