Junior Pitcher Mariah Lopez Transfers To Arizona
Junior Pitcher Mariah Lopez Transfers To Arizona
Mariah Lopez joins her former Batbuster teammates at Arizona for the 2020 season.
TUCSON, Ariz. -- Oklahoma's career winning percentage record holder and 2019 NFCA first-team all-region pitcher Mariah Lopez will transfer and complete her collegiate eligibility at Arizona, UA head softball coach Mike Candrea announced on Tuesday. Lopez will be a senior for the Wildcats in 2020.
"I'm excited to welcome Mariah to the Wildcat family," said Candrea. "She's a great fit on our team and will make an excellent addition to our already accomplished pitching staff. She brings Women's College World Series experience and comes to Arizona with already decorated collegiate career. She played with many of our current players in travel ball and has worked with Susie Parra, so there's a level of familiarity that you don't often get with transfers. I'm very excited to add Mariah and the incoming freshmen to our great group of returners and can't wait to see this team compete in 2020."
Lopez will join Arizona's excellent pitching staff, which finished sixth in the NCAA with a 1.61 ERA in Taryne Mowatt's second season as UA pitching coach.
Lopez went 51-2 with a 1.61 ERA in three seasons at Oklahoma and struck out 355 batters compared to just 55 walks in 295.0 innings pitched. She leaves OU as the career leader in winning percentage (.962), fourth in program history in strikeouts per seven innings (8.42), fifth in walks per seven innings (1.31) and 10th in opponent batting average (.191).
The 2019 NFCA All-Central Region first-team selection had her best season in an OU uniform as a junior in 2019, going 19-1 with a 1.25 ERA and holding opponents to a .159 batting average with 159 strikeouts in 117.2 innings pitched. She threw a pair of no-hitters in 2019, two of her seven shutouts on the season. Lopez ranked sixth nationally in hits allowed per seven innings (3.87), 11th in ERA (1.25) and 11th in strikeouts per seven innings (9.5).
Lopez pitched in a pair of Women's College World Series, including 2017 when she was the winning pitcher in OU's national-title-clinching-victory over Florida. The Saugus, California native was a finalist for NFCA Freshman of the Year and a Big 12 all-freshman honoree in 2017.
Lopez will join Arizona's solid returning core that includes four All-Americans and six all-Pac-12 players from a 48-14 team that advanced to the program's 23rd Women's College World Series in 2019.