With the arrival of a new season comes a new set of goals for Jocelyn Alo.
Following a 2021 NCAA Women’s College World Series championship and a USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year nomination, many would think the redshirt senior slugger doesn't have much left to achieve in her final year with Oklahoma.
Last season, Alo was the force behind OU’s fifth national championship, breaking school single-season records for home runs and total bases with 34 and 203, respectively. Alo’s batting average of .475 was also the highest in program history.
Despite a platter of accolades, Alo fell short of her dream to represent Team USA during the 2020 Olympic Trials following OU’s championship win over Florida State. While her next chance at the Olympics is nearly seven years away, due to the Olympics skipping softball in 2024, she’s already preparing with a chip on her shoulder. OU coach Patty Gasso has worked her out at first base this offseason, which should help her chances in the Olympic Trials.
Simultaneously, Alo has her sights on breaking former Sooners’ standout Lauren Chamberlain’s all-time NCAA home run record of 95, which she is eight away from. Alongside her hopes of more accolades, Alo knows this is her last chance to wear crimson and cream, and she’s reslishing every moment.
“It'd be nice to be the last team standing,” Alo said. “I think you guys kind of know about the other record going, but honestly, I'm just here to enjoy my last year. I want to enjoy every moment and just be present in every moment. Coach Gasso said ‘you won't ever get this again,’ and I really won't.
“I won't get to grind the same way that they push me to. I won't get to play for these coaches again. I won't get to play with this team again. I won't get to wear Sooners across my chest again.”
Alo’s final season hasn’t come without challenges. Oklahoma’s new right-handed pitchers — redshirt senior North Texas transfer Hope Trautwein and freshman Jordyn Bahl, the 2020-21 National Gatorade Softball Player of The Year — have given OU’s hitters trouble during training camp.
In past seasons, Oklahoma’s pitching rotation struggled against the Sooners’ potent lineup in scrimmages, but that’s not the case this season. As Gasso described, it’s an example of “iron sharpening iron” in the best way.
“I can say that as a hitter I'm very excited to not have to face them anymore,” Alo said. “Jordyn Bahl, everyone in the United States of America, get ready because she is legit. She's one of the best pitchers I've ever seen. … She’ll be a great asset for the Oklahoma Sooners and hopefully one day for Team USA. That's how good I think she is.”
The Sooners return several proven standouts to their lineup, like sophomore stars Tiare Jennings and Jayda Coleman and junior catcher Kinzie Hansen, a member of the 2022 USA Softball Women’s National Team. They also have newcomers like Oregon transfer utility Alyssa Brito, who's getting up to speed ahead of her sophomore season and should contribute.
With Oklahoma looking to defend its title in 2022, Gasso feels she has one of the most complete teams in all of college softball.
“This offense was demoralizing, literally demoralizing, our pitching staff last season,” Gasso said. “This year, our pitchers are handling our hitters, and that's good news for us. It's not fun for our hitters, but it should be good news for them as well because in my mind, they're facing some of the best pitchers in the country right now.
“It's a good feeling for us as coaches, because we know we've got a very good pitching staff. And we also know that we have very good hitters.”
As Oklahoma looks forward to its season-opening matchup against UC Santa Barbara at 4:30 p.m. CT on Thursday, Feb. 10 in Santa Barbara, California, it has a tough string of matchups looming beyond that. OU will face No. 3 UCLA, No. 11 Arizona and No. 16 Tennessee this season.
Alongside those matchups, Gasso announced she scheduled a midweek game against Kentucky for Tuesday, March 22. The game could aid preparation for OU’s transition to the SEC, slated to take place no later than 2025.
Realignment notwithstanding, SEC games prove an ample challenge anyway. Last season, Gasso similarly scheduled a midweek doubleheader against Georgia, which handed the Sooners their first loss of 2021.
Gasso hopes all of OU’s daunting games, especially the early ones, will help it find its best self ahead of conference play.
“These games always show us where our weaknesses are and it still allows me to tinker some with the lineup, whether it's the batting order or the defense or matchups with pitchers,” Gasso said. “So the first three or four weeks are really important for us to get prepared for the conference.
"I always like to put us in the fire and see what we look like in that way.”
