Texas A&M softball team reaches out to people hit by the tornado
When the Texas A&M softball team arrived in Norman Tuesday prior to their Super Softball Regional on Thursday against the Oklahoma Sooners, the Aggies brought more than normal softball equipment and attire. The Aggies had a large truck accompany the team from College Station, which was filled with thousands of clothing items and nearly $4,700 in monetary donations for the people of Moore, Oklahoma, who were hit May 20th by a category EF-5 tornado.
A&M Coach Jo Evans and the Aggie softball team took charge of the relief effort for both communities Monday night when social media posts went viral through Bryan-College Station. A drop-off area was established in the Reed Arena parking lot and was quickly overwhelmed with donations. Conlee-Garrett Moving Company donated a truck to transport the items to Norman, Oklahoma.
Volunteers from the A&M Athletics Department helped by unloading the donors’ cars and loading the moving truck, while the softball team took practice before getting on the bus. Items donated included clothing and shoes, baby toys, diapers, bottled water, a walking cane, a tricycle and nearly $4,700 in cash. The items filled 180 large t-shirt boxes and 60 large trash bags. The truck arrived at Journey House Church in Norman Tuesday as OU players Lauren Chamberlain and Brianna Turang watched. “That was awesome for them to do that,’” said Chamberlain, one of the two OU finalists for the Player of the Year.
In the Super Regional, OU will wear on the front of their helmets an emblem of the state of Oklahoma with the word “home” written in the middle. Head Coach Patty Gasso said the emblem will appear in other places. A sticker will also be placed on the back of the helmets with the initials of one of the children killed by the Monday tornado. The 9-year-old played softball for a team in Moore.
The Sooners (50-4) and Aggies (42-16) will kick off the Super Regional round in front of a national television audience on ESPN on Thursday night at 6 p.m. at Marita Hynes Stadium. The two teams will then meet again on Friday at 3 p.m. on ESPNU. If necessary, a third game will be played at 6 p.m. on Friday night on ESPN. This will be the third time in its history that the Sooners have hosted a Super Regional since the format was introduced in 2005. OU has won four straight Super Regional games, sweeping Arizona in Tucson in 2011 and again in Norman last season. All-time, Oklahoma is 6-8 in this stage of the postseason.
Oklahoma and Texas A&M have a long history dating back to 1977. Both teams were in the Big 12 from 1995 until last season when the Aggies moved to the Southeastern Conference. The teams had met every year since 1994 prior to the conference realignment. OU holds a 43-30 edge in the all-time series and have won eight of the last 10 meetings. The Sooners are 18-8 all-time in Norman against the Aggies. The teams have met seven teams in postseason action. Oklahoma is 4-1 against Texas A&M in Big 12 Tournament play, and the Sooners also took two games in the 2002 NCAA Regional.
