Before NCAA softball regional play commences this weekend, the Big 12 Conference handed out some hardware Wednesday afternoon.
The conference champion Oklahoma Sooners dominated the postseason Big 12 honors after going 45-7 this season.
Coach Patty Gasso was named the conference's Coach of the Year for the fourth consecutive season and the eighth time in her career as OU's head coach.
Senior Shelby Pendley won the Big 12 Player of the Year award for the second time in her career after winning it in 2013. She joins former Sooner Amber Flores (2009, 2010) as the only players in Big 12 history to earn the award twice.
Freshman pitcher Paige Parker was named Pitcher of the Year award and shared the Big 12 Freshman of the Year award with Kansas' Daniella Chavez.
Parker is the fourth player in Big 12 history to win both the Pitcher of the Year and Freshman of the Year awards in the same season and the third Sooner to win the Pitcher of the Year award.
Parker and Pendley joined senior Lauren Chamberlain and junior Erin Miller on the All-Big 12 first team.
Junior Kady Self and senior Georgia Casey were selected to the All-Big 12 second team. Junior Whitney Ellis made the All-Big 12 second team as well, but she joined freshman Kesley Arnold on the Big 12's All Defensive team.
Arnold and Parker were named to the Big 12's All Freshman team along with Nicole Pendley to give Oklahoma the most overall honorees of any Big 12 school.
OU and its award winners earned the No. 11 overall seed in this year's postseason field by the NCAA softball selection committee. Their postseason journey begins Friday afternoon in Norman, Oklahoma at 3 p.m. against Central Arkansas.
