Corri Hicks bolsters Oklahoma softball’s 2024 class
SAN JOSE, Calif. (BVM) – Oklahoma softball commit Corri Hicks likes to be in control. The No. 7-ranked player in the Class of 2024, according to Extra Inning Softball, plays the perfect position for her personality.
“I wouldn’t say I’m a control freak but I like being involved in everything so being a catcher, I get to be involved in everything on every pitch,” Hicks said. “I like having a good relationship with my pitchers and being able to help them through times when they’re struggling.”
Hicks operates like the quarterback of her Archbishop Mitty softball team behind the plate and the results through two seasons have brought her recognition as one of the country’s top prospects. But despite entering high school with plenty of travel softball success under her belt, Hicks’ freshman season for the Monarchs was a learning experience.
She batted a respectable .269 with a pair of home runs and 14 RBIs but didn’t play up to the high standard she holds herself to.
“Freshman year, I came in kind of doubting myself and what I could do even though I was succeeding in travel ball,” Hicks said. “I feel like it was the intimidation factor that got to me.”
After another strong summer with Sorcerer Softball 18U, the intimidation factor didn’t last long for Hicks. She batted just under .400 (.398) with 13 home runs and 42 RBIs as Archbishop Mitty (26-5) finished the season as the Open Division runner-up.
As impressive as Hicks’ sophomore campaign was in totality, she was at her best when the Monarchs needed her most. After going more than three weeks without a home run to begin the season, Hicks went yard in seven of the team’s final nine games, including a homer in three straight playoff games.
“I look back and it was just a mindset (change),” Hicks said of her development from one season to the next. “My sophomore year, I was just like, ‘Go out there and play.’ At that point, I already knew what I could do so I was able to play free because I didn’t have anything holding me back.”
@Sorcerer18UGold finished 2nd in the @PGFnetwork Shootout this weekend losing to a tough Hotshots Nelson squad in the championship! Total team effort as we have so many talented players! Big weekend for me w/5HRs 💣 #BOOMER@ExtraInningSB @Los_Stuff @FloSoftball @BrenttEads pic.twitter.com/0GFlisGsvR
— Corri_Hicks2024 (@Corri_Hicks2024) October 31, 2022
Confidence was the missing piece to Hicks’ puzzle and now that she’s found it, she’s headed to the best softball program in the country. Hicks committed to Oklahoma – the back-to-back Women’s College World Series champions – in September and while the Sooners’ recent success certainly helped make the decision, it wasn’t the main factor.
Danielle Peterson – who played in 46 games for the Bruins during her four-year UCLA career (2005-08) – is Hicks’ hitting coach and has played a vital role in the future Sooners’ recruiting process. But there was one specific piece of advice from Peterson that helped Hicks choose Oklahoma over a myriad of other potential suitors.
“She (Peterson) gave me one really big piece of information that really made me set OU apart from everyone else,” Hicks said. “You know how everyone says when you step onto a campus and you just know it, where you get chills or something? No, that’s not it. It’s where you feel calm and where you feel at home.
“That’s exactly what I feel when I visit OU every time. A huge thing for me is a family aspect and with all the girls and coaches, it’s just one big family. Being so far away from home, that’s what I’d need and that’s what I’m going to get there.”
There’s only One. #Committed@OU_Softball @GassoPatty @jtgasso @coachjro @Sorcerer18UGold pic.twitter.com/qJszFG1L3D
— Corri_Hicks2024 (@Corri_Hicks2024) September 13, 2022
Hicks is also going to get the opportunity to fulfill a childhood dream of hers when she arrives in Norman. With a pair of national championships in as many years under its belt, Oklahoma brought in another strong 2022 recruiting class – led by Arizona’s Jocelyn Erickson – as the Sooners’ 2023 group and Hicks’ Class of 2024 – which also includes Tia Milloy, daughter of 15-year NFL veteran, Lawyer Milloy – continues to take shape.
There are still two seasons of high school softball left to play for Hicks and the plan is to improve her strength in the weight room and help Archbishop Mitty win another CIF-Central Coast Section championship. But the future Sooner is elated to join a winning tradition unlike any other in collegiate softball.
“Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve always wanted to win a national championship and having the opportunity to go play for people who have won six national championships is absolutely insane to me,” Hicks said. “I’m just super excited to be able to go there and try to contribute as much as I can when I first get there.”
