Kistler home run, Rothrock shutout puts Florida softball in WCWS winner’s bracket

A clutch home run from Katie Kistler put Florida softball over the top in a pitchers’ duel against Oklahoma State in the Women’s College World Series.

Senior [autotag]Katie Kistler[/autotag] delivered the only run of the night in Oklahoma City as Florida (51-13) defeated Oklahoma State (49-10), 1-0, in the opening round of bracket play at the Women’s College World  Series.

Kistler’s 277-foot shot nearly went foul, but it stayed inside the right field foul pole to break up a no-hit bid from Oklahoma State’s Lexi Kilfoyl, who had shut down Florida’s bats all day with her drop ball. The only other Gator hit on the evening was a one-out single from Korbe Ortis in the sixth.

One run isn’t always enough to win a playoff game, but it was on Thursday with freshman pitcher [autotag]Keagan Rothrock[/autotag] on the mound. She threw a two-hit shutout in her 38th decision of the year. The Cowgirls are known to leave the ballpark, but everything in the air against Rothrock was hit softly and to a glove. She also struck out three and walked two.

Highlights from Florida softball’s WCWS win over Oklahoma State

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Winning the first game in bracket play is always big, but the job is far from over. Florida doesn’t have to play on Friday, giving Rothrock an extra day of rest, but the prize is the No. 1 overall seed Texas.

If the Gators can beat the Longhorns on Saturday, they’ll be one win away from the Women’s College World Series Finals. A loss pits Florida against the winner of Oklahoma State and Stanford.

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