Oklahoma first baseman Lauren Chamberlain tied the NCAA career home run record on Saturday as the Sooner softball team routed Baylor 11-3 in a five-inning run rule at Marita Hynes Field in Norman.
Chamberlain connected for a line drive home run to center field, a 2-run shot in the fourth inning for her 90th career home run, tying the NCAA career record held by former UCLA star Stacey Nuveman.
Chamberlain’s home run was part of a seven-run fourth inning for Oklahoma, who took two out of three from the Bears and took control of the race for the Big 12 title.
The Sooners are now 38-6 on the season, 11-1 in Big 12 play, and three and a half games ahead of Baylor for first place in the conference.
OU also got back-to-back home runs in the first inning from Shelby Pendley, who hit her nation-leading 23 rd home run of the season, and Erin Miller, who connected for her sixth homer of the year.
For Chamberlain, tying the record was as much of a relief as anything, as she had struggled in the first two games of the series, and was 0-for-7 before a single in the second inning.
The home run came in her next at-bat, and the relief, along with the excitment, was visible on her trip around the bases.
“It feels good. It is a little bit of a relief, and I feel a lot of weight off my shoulder,” said Chamberlain. “Honestly, the best feeling was meeting my teammates at home plate and seeing how excited they were for me. I believe me beating this record is just as much their record as it is mine, just because of the last four years and the different players I have met and the lineup I am surrounded by that make it possible for me to get those at-bats. Honestly, it is just cool to share it with my teammates.”
“She knows how I feel about her, but I just want to win,” said OU head coach Patty Gasso. “I love what is happening, but Lauren will tell you this, if it was up to her she would turn down all the noise and say this is a team effort. That is what we are trying to do. Right now we are trying to stay about the Big 12 race. So pleased, we are all relieved. I think we all let out a big exhale, but we just keep grinding. I am really excited for Lauren because the chains are free. The chains have been cut free and now she will have the freedom to swing. That is what this team is ready for. That is what she is ready for. It would be a tough thing on anybody, and she has handled it like a champion.”
Chamberlain, a senior from Trabuco Canyon, California, is a three-time All-American, and is on pace to set the NCAA career record for slugging percentage as well.
She is the OU and Big 12 career leader in home runs, runs, RBI’s, total bases, slugging percentage, and walks.
The fifth-ranked Sooners host North Texas on Monday night at 6:00 in Chamberlain’s next chance to break the record.
