OKLAHOMA CITY – Fourth-ranked Oklahoma City hosts Central Christian this week in a four-game Sooner Athletic Conference softball series, starting on Thursday.
 
The Stars host the Tigers in a 2 p.m. doubleheader on Thursday and a noon doubleheader on Friday.
 
OCU Notebook
 
Previously: Oklahoma City completed its four-game sweep at Nelson on Saturday but not without a little drama in a 14-0, 6-5 day. The Stars had 17 hits in the opener, led by Hadley Gibsonand Carlee Mollett with three each. Iliana Ashford, Tara Hoehner, Analise Rayburn and Peyton Barrow had two apiece. Brynlee Alsip got the win in the circle and combined with two scoreless innings from McKenna Snyder for the shutout. In the second game, Nelson rallied for three runs in the sixth inning before the Stars got the eventual game-winner in the seventh on an RBI single by Barrow. OCU was listed with 13 hits on the scoresheet with four by Rayburn and two each by Gibson, Hoehner and Barrow.
 
Honors: Hadley Gibson won Sooner Athletic Conference Player of the Week honors on Monday. Gibson helped the Stars to a 6-0 conference record last week by going 14-of -23 at the plate for a .609 batting average. Gibson had seven extra base hits with five doubles and her first two collegiate home runs while driving in 10 runs and scoring 15 runs herself. Gibson had a 1.087 slugging percentage and a .679 on-base percentage last week and added five stolen bases to her stat line. With Gibson's award, the Stars have had the last five Players of the Week.
 
Win Streak: During the current 22-game winning streak, the Stars are averaging 11.4 runs per game and batting .474. Analise Rayburn is hitting .667 and Tara Hoehner is hitting .603. The opponents are averaging two runs per game and 1.75 earned runs.
 
SAC Standings: OCU sits atop the Sooner Athletic Conference standings at 18-0 with USAO just behind at 18-2. Central Christian is 4-16 in the conference.
 
Hitting: The Stars are hitting .423 as a team, led by Analise Rayburn at .524, Hadley Gibson at .510 and Tara Hoehner at .505. OCU leads the NAIA with that batting average along with its .489 on-base percentage, .678 slugging percentage and 312 runs. Rayburn also leads the nation with 17 home runs and 72 RBIs. Rayburn is fifth, Gibson ninth and Hoehner 10^th in the NAIA in hitting.
 
Pitching: Brynlee Alsip is 18-2 with a 1.03 earned run average this season. Teams are batting .199 against her. As a team, the Stars carry a 1.84 ERA and a .231 opponent batting average.
 
On the Bases: OCU is 86 of 93 in stolen bases this season. Hadley Gibson leads the team at 20 in 21 attempts and Gabby Moreno has not been caught in 17 attempts this season.
 
Stars at Home: The Stars are 9-1 at home and averaging 8.3 runs per game. Freshman Kaiden Spidell is the top hitter at Ann Lacy Stadium at .696 (16-23). Brynlee Alsip is 6-0 with a 0.75 ERA on the home diamond.
 
Hitting Streaks: Four Stars have current hitting streak over 10 games. Analise Rayburn has hit safely in 24 straight games, followed by Kaiden Spidell at 20, Tara Hoehner at 13 and Gabby Moreno at 11. Rayburn has reached base safely in 27 consecutive games while Spidell, Hoehner and Hadley Gibson have reached base safely in 22 consecutive games.
 
About Central Christian: Central Christian is 11-19 overall and 4-16 in the SAC after getting swept at home by Mid-America Christian last weekend. The Tigers have a game against McPherson College Tuesday evening. CCCK bats .255 as a team, led by Ciara Valadez and .378. The Tigers have a team ERA of 4.30.