Head coach Mark Carr is optimistic heading into his second season with Oklahoma.
After finishing with a 1-12-2 record last year, OU added 13 freshmen to its roster this offseason. Among them is freshman forward Leonie Weber, was named one of Top Drawer Soccer’s best international prospects on Aug. 11 after picking up a goal in a 2-0 exhibition win over Air Force on Aug. 9. Her arrival, alongside the rest of the Sooners’ newest class, has Carr’s team ready to take the field for its season opener Thursday against Houston.
“At this early point in the season, every team is still learning about themselves,” Carr said. “So, a big focus for us on Thursday will be to take care of what we can control. Houston is going to be a tough test and we know that they’re going to push us. They’ll be well coached and organized, so we’ll have to be ready for a test, but we look forward to the game and opportunity.”
𝙊𝙉𝙀 𝙏𝙊 𝙒𝘼𝙏𝘾𝙃Leo Weber was named one of the top international prospects by Top Drawer Soccer today. After what we saw on Monday night, we're going to agree ⏬🔗 » https://t.co/oCCx19lK9c#Sooners | #PunchUp pic.twitter.com/bUCDVoDa0B
— Oklahoma Soccer (@OU_WSoccer) August 11, 2021
Weber said OU set high expectations for itself. The 19-year-old comes to Norman from Munich, Germany, where she was a member of the German U17 national team. She represented Germany in the U17 World Cup in Uruguay and played prep soccer for Wittelsbacher Gymnasium München, scoring 55 goals in only 23 matches.
In addition to freshman talent, the Sooners acquired three new players from the transfer portal this offseason in junior forward Alexis Strickland from North Carolina, senior forward Molly Feighan from Virginia Tech and senior forward Makala Thomas from Florida State. Thomas won the National Championship with FSU in 2018, and will look to implement that experience to Oklahoma’s success.
"There is so much sacrifice on and off the field that goes into winning a championship,” Thomas said. “Coming to Oklahoma has been a breath of fresh air for me, and as I get to know the coaches and my teammates more, I just get more and more confident that the right mentality is there and gets better with every training. The closer we become as a team, the easier it will be to fight for each other and bring a ring back to Norman, which is what our goal always is."
One of Carr’s biggest focuses this offseason has been his team’s mental fortitude. While he’s made an effort to keep the Sooners’ spirits high, he also wants his team to set a new standard at OU.
“It’s really just the expectation that we have of ourselves,” Carr said. “We call it internal accountability. It’s all about trusting the training that we’ve had the last few weeks and all the work that was done over the summer. Then we must take all of that and replicate that when we step on the field.”
The Sooners kick off their regular season at 7 p.m. CT on Thursday, Aug. 19 in Houston. OU’s game can be streamed on ESPN+.
