Texas’ Reese Atwood (Player) and Oklahoma’s Kelly Maxwell (Pitcher) secured weekly awards following the first week of the 2024 softball season. Both players led their teams to a combined 4-0 mark against top 25 teams and a combined three top 10 victories. OU remains No. 1 in the USA Today/NFCA poll while the Longhorns jumped to No. 3. 

Atwood hit .733 (11-15) in the Longhorns’ five games including a team-leading four multi-hit games as well as four multi-RBI contests to clinch her second league weekly award. In the first nationally televised softball game of the year (ESPN) against then-No. 10/8 UCLA, the sophomore catcher broke a 0-0 tie with a solo home run over the left field fence in an eventual 3-2 UT victory. The native of Sandia, Texas hit two home runs in the Longhorns’ second game against San Diego before collecting two RBIs in UT’s 16-0 run rule in the rematch with the Bruins. Atwood finished the week leading the Big 12 in hits (11), RBIs (12), total bases (22) and slugging percentage (1.467) while being tied for first in home runs (3) and runs scored (7). Atwood was also named the Division I Louisville Slugger/NFCA Player of the Week. 

Maxwell earned two wins against NFCA top-11 opponents in her debut outings for the Crimson and Cream. The left-hander tossed 5.0 shutout innings of one-hit ball with a walk and two strikeouts against then-No. 11/9 Duke in a 3-0 victory. The 2023 USA Softball Women’s National Team member followed by firing 2.2 scoreless innings of relief against No. 7/10 Washington, which included entering with runners on the corners with one out in the sixth inning. The victory over the Huskies gave the Sooners the longest winning streak in NCAA history, breaking the previous all-division record held by then-Division II program Western Kentucky (55 games). Opposing batters hit just 1-for-23 against Maxwell as she limited hitters to a .043 average and a .197 OPS in her two appearances. This is the graduate student’s seventh time being named Big 12 Pitcher of the Week.