Team USA Notebook: Offense Ruled the Day in Patty Gasso's First Team USA Showcase
Jocelyn Alo high fives Patty Gasso after hitting a home run in the USA Softball Showcase at Devon Park. | SARAH PHIPPS/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
OKLAHOMA CITY — Friday was a crucial step in Patty Gasso’s early days as Team USA coach.
USA Softball staged a showcase at Devon Park pitting Team USA, primarily made of the 18 athletes selected to represent the Red, White and Blue at the 2025 World Games, and the USA All-Stars, which featured a number of collegiate stars as well as a handful of softball superstars who were not named to the World Games roster.
Team USA won both encounters, posting a 5-4 victory in Game 1 and a 10-9 win in Game 2, but the most valuable moments of the weekend came from both teams battling in the days leading up to the showcase in Gasso’s camp over a four day stretch.
Oklahoma Stars Show Out in Game 1
Former Oklahoma catcher Kinzie Hansen talks with Patty Gasso at the USA Softball Showcase at Devon Park. | SARAH PHIPPS/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Any OU softball fans who made their way into the stands at Devon Park were treated to familiar scenes in the first contest of the day.
Of the nine runs scored, six came off the bat of a former Sooner.
Jocelyn Alo gave the All-Stars the first lead of the day with a two-run shot in the top of the fourth inning, which seemingly kicked off the offense for both teams.
Team USA responded in the bottom of the inning when Jessi Warren grounded into a fielder’s choice to pull one run back, then the former Sooners took over properly in the sixth for Team USA.
Kinzie Hansen, who played first and was used as a mid-game substitution for Tiare Jennings who started at first, ripped a single through the right side of the infield to drive in a pair of runs.
Then three at-bats later, Jayda Coleman hammered a two-run shot.
Coleman, who constructed an extensive highlight reel in center field at Devon Park throughout her OU career, also robbed a homer in the second game of the day after camping out at the foot of the wall for good measure.
Coleman, Hansen, Alo and Alyssa Brito added six hits and Coleman had an additional RBI in the second game of the night, which capped off a successful showing for the players most familiar with Gasso and her coaching style.
Aubrey Leach Shines
Though she was named as an alternate to the 2025 World Games roster, former Tennessee star Aubrey Leach suited up for the All-Stars.
And she proved again why she’s been a common selection for Team USA since graduating in 2019.
Leach had a pair of hits in the first game of the afternoon, including a two-run homer in the seventh to pull the All-cars within one, which proved to be a warmup for her Game 2 heroics.
She crushed a grand slam in the bottom of the third of Game 2, then returned to add another RBI off a single in the sixth.
There are familiar faces to USA Softball in Gasso’s coaching pool, but Leach was pleased to get to work with the new head of the program over the first couple of Team USA camps.
“It’s only been four days,” Leach said on Friday night, “but I think with all the training that we’ve been doing and how much we’ve actually been together — we’ve been a pretty cohesive bunch and it’s been cool to just see each other grow.
“We have amazing coaches that Coach Gasso brought in and learning from each of them has been pretty neat and helpful and I think it paid off tonight in a really competitive ballgame.”
No Pitching Concerns
Team USA's Lexi Kilfoyl throws a pitch during the USA Softball Showcase at Devon Park. | SARAH PHIPPS/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Gasso was quick to say she’s not worried about her pitching staff with the higher run totals posted on Friday.
“I don’t care about how high the score is,” Gasso said. “Pitchers and catchers are not, some of them are just not familiar with each other and that does make a little bit of a difference. But just the fight to come back was really fun to watch.”
Both sets of pitchers, the veterans with Team USA and the college aces on the All-Stars, were rolled out in three inning increments.
Megan Faraimo started the first game for Team USA and she was probably the most effective pitcher all day. She recorded four strikeouts and allowed just one hit and one walk.
Ally Carda trusted her defense behind her after Faraimo, and Lexy Kilfoyl fell victim to Leach’s first homer of the day.
Tennessee flamethrower Karlyn Pickens finished Game 1 and started Game 2 for the All-Stars, and Team USA was able to consistently put the ball in play. Texas Tech transfer Kaitlyn Terry settled the second game down for the All-Stars, but Team USA started to dial in on her in the closing stages of her outing.
Terry retired eight of the first nine batters she faced before a pair of two-out singles by Amanda Lorenz and Coleman put a pair of runners aboard in the fifth.
Team USA finished the rally against Texas ace Teagan Kavan, one of the stars of the Women’s College World Series, as the game finished with Kavan battling former Oklahoma State and Oklahoma star Kelly Maxwell in the circle.
Maxwell allowed three runs, three hits and four walks in 2 2/3 innings, but battled back with four strikeouts and got stronger as her outing continued.
In all, it was a crucial four days for USA Softball as Gasso prepares to lead the program in the 2025 World Games from August 13-17 in Chengdu, China.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/oklahoma as Team USA Notebook: Offense Ruled the Day in Patty Gasso's First Team USA Showcase.
