Category: Softball

What Patty Gasso, players said after Oklahoma softball’s fifth national title win

A recap of what Oklahoma coach Patty Gasso, SP Giselle Juarez and DP Jocelyn Alo said after the Sooners’ national title win on Thursday.

No. 1 Oklahoma softball claimed their fifth national title in program history on Thursday with a dominant 5-1 win over Florida State in the decisive Game 3 of the Women’s College World Series finals.

Starting pitcher Giselle Juarez was once again tremendous throwing seven sensational innings that locked up her bringing home the award for the Most Outstanding Player of the week. Jocelyn Alo’s 34th home run of the year set the tone early and the Sooners simply never looked back cruising to the title-clinching win.

The argument can easily be made that this is the greatest team in the history of softball after the absurd offensive numbers they put up all season long. At the very least, this is a historic team that won’t be soon forgotten.

After the game, head coach Patty Gasso, Juarez and Alo spoke to the media about their incredible run. Here are some of the highlights of what they had to say:

Larry Scott goes out of his way to insult Oregon, Pac-12 as a whole

The soon-to-be former commissioner Larry Scott didn’t hide his true feelings on his way out the door.

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Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott will be FORMER Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott in three weeks. But he can pack up his office right now.

In an interview with Ralph Russo of the Associated Press, Scott was disappointed with the “lack” of success of the conference’s traditional powers in football.

I’m sure looking back we could probably identify some small things we would have done differently, but all the strategies around football and other sports were in alignment with all of our schools and our football coaches. USC, Oregon, Stanford, Washington not getting to the playoffs more often or winning has very little to do with the conference office. Between compliance issues, coaching changes and other things, some of our traditional powerhouses have struggled the last few years, and that’s hurt the league overall.

This is DucksWire, so his comments on USC, Stanford, and Washington can just sit there and marinate for those programs. But to lump the Oregon Ducks athletic program in there is just not factual.

Scott must suffer from some kind of memory loss. He also fails to remember the Ducks’ success across the board since he was hired in 2009. Oregon has been to and won three of its four trips to Pasadena. The Ducks also won a College Football semifinal. That game also featured Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota.

Oregon has been the kings and queens of the hardwood by going to the NCAA tournament on almost an annual basis and both teams represented the Pac-12 in the Final Four. The Stanford women just won the national championship. Scott might have also forgotten the Ducks featured the new face of women’s basketball in Sabrina Ionescu. So Oregon did its part to make sure the Pac-12 had plenty of exposure.

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But Scott himself made exposure an issue with his poor TV deals with ESPN and Fox Sports 1. The Pac-12 After Dark never should have been a thing. After dark means, no one on the East Coast is watching.

Scott did form the Pac-12 Network, which on paper was good. But his lack of reaching a deal with DirecTV to carry the network was disastrous. The conference spent millions of dollars to form a network and its regional affiliates and no one watched.

The Pac-12 Network’s main carrier is Comcast, but even then, some of the regionals are not shown in high definition, eve in 2021. That’s hard to fathom. Just to help the bottom line, the network could have offered a subscription-based service like MLB.TV. But Scott’s lack of vision didn’t allow that to occur.

Overall, Scott’s tenure was tumultuous, to say the least. But to go after the member schools and their supposed lack of success without mentioning his failures is particularly galling. Scott’s tone-deafness should fall on deaf ears on the West Coast.

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USA TODAY Sports/NFCA High School Super 25 softball rankings: Week 15

The top high school softball teams in the country as of June 10.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Playoff results led to some slight adjustments this week’s USA TODAY Sports/NFCA High School Super 25.

Unbeaten eight-time Mississippi state Class 5A champion Neshoba Central (32-0) continues to top the list, but a loss by Lakota West and Texas state championships moved Barbers Hill up and got Deer Park into the rankings this week, respectively.

Barbers Hill (42-2) won the Texas state 5A crown, while Deer Park (40-8) claimed the 6A title this past week, and Lakota West fell 4-2 to Perry in the Ohio Division I semifinals.

State rankings submitted by NFCA member coaches are used to compile the USA TODAY Sports/NFCA High School Super 25. Teams are chosen based on performance, roster quality and strength of schedule. In 2021, schools that are not competing will not be eligible for the poll.

USA TODAY Sports/NFCA High School Super 25 Poll – June 10, 2021

Rank | Team | 2021 Record | Previous Ranking

1. Neshoba Central (Miss.): 32-0 – PR: 1

2. Lakewood Ranch (Fla.): 30-2 – PR: 2

3. Hewitt-Trussville (Ala.): 49-3-1 – PR: 3

4. Park Vista (Fla.): 29-1 – PR: 4

5. Lake Creek (Texas): 38-2 – PR: 5

6. Barbe (La.): 31-2 – PR: 6

7. Norco (Calif.): 27-1 – PR: 7

8. New Palestine (Ind.): 28-1 – PR: 8

9. Marist (Ill.): 34-1 – PR: 9

10. Keystone (Ohio): 33-1 – PR: 10

11. Byrnes (S.C.): 32-1 – PR: 11

12. Mahopac (N.Y.): 17-1 – PR: 13

13. Roncalli (Ind.): 30-2 – PR: 14

14. Donovan Catholic (N.J.): 24-1 – PR: 15

15. Barbers Hill (Texas): 42-2 – PR: 20

16. Lakota West (Ohio): 30-2 – PR: 12

17. St. Amant (La.): 25-3 – PR: 17

18. Leander (Texas): 37-3 – PR: 18

19. South Warren (Ky.): 34-1 – PR: 19

20. Masuk (Conn.): 23-0 – PR: 21

21. West Stanly (N.C.): 20-0 – PR: 22

22. Stillwater Area (Minn.): 23-1 – PR: 23

23. Deer Park (Texas): 40-8 – PR: NR

24. Clear Springs (Texas): 31-2 – PR: 6

25. San Antonio Warren (Texas): 25-2 – PR: 24

Dropped out: 

Winnacunnet (N.H.)

Learn more about the NFCA.

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When, where, how to watch Oklahoma softball take on Florida State in decisive Game 3 of WCWS Finals

Everything you need to know for when No. 1 Oklahoma takes on No. 10 Florida State in the decisive Game 3 of the WCWS Finals on Thursday.

After Wednesday night’s late-inning comeback win, No. 1 Oklahoma (55-4) has moved one win away from its ultimate goal: a fifth national title. An entire season comes to down to one game on the sport’s biggest stage at Hall of Fame Stadium in the Women’s College World Series.

Awaiting them is No. 10 Florida State (49-12-1), which has put together an incredible run in their own right, but was denied a championship in its first attempt on Wednesday. How it rebounds will be a fascinating sight to see in what will once again be a heavily Oklahoma crowd.

At this point, with one game remaining in the season, both teams are going to leave absolutely everything on the field in the pursuit of immortality. It can be safely assumed every player is available as these teams try to finish their season with a win.

This has been an historic WCWS with attendance and viewership records to go along with epic games and moments. It seems only fitting these two great teams give fans one more show on Thursday with everything on the line. Buckle up, this one is going to be fun.

For this decisive, national-championship-deciding game, here is everything you need to know:

WHEN: 2 p.m. CT

WHERE: Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (Hall of Fame Stadium)

HOW TO WATCH: ESPN

HOW TO LISTEN: Sooner Sports Radio Network – 107.7 FM The Franchise in Oklahoma City; KTBZ 1430 AM in Tulsa; Tune In Radio App

ADDITIONAL RADIO: SiriusXM channel 84 and Westwood One Sports Radio

No. 1 Oklahoma comes alive late to defeat No. 10 Florida State 6-2, forces decisive Game 3

No. 1 Oklahoma softball came alive in the late innings to best No. 10 Florida State 6-2 and force a decisive Game 3 on Thursday.

No. 1 Oklahoma softball was back in a familiar situation at the Women’s College World Series on Wednesday night needing a win to keep their season alive when they faced No. 10 Florida State in Game 2 of the WCWS finals.

As she has done multiple times throughout play in Oklahoma City, head coach Patty Gasso turned to senior pitcher Giselle Juarez (22-1) to get the start in the circle and she was fantastic yet again after an early stumble tossing a complete game.

After the Sooners came up empty in the top of the first, the Seminoles would be the first team to strike on a two-run home run to left field off the bat of first baseman Elizabeth Mason. Florida State quickly held a 2-0 advantage and would take that into the third inning.

It was at that point that Oklahoma would get their first offense with third baseman Jana Johns crushing a ball way out to left field for a solo home run that sliced the deficit in half at 2-1.

That would remain the score all the way into the sixth inning when second baseman Tiare Jennings reached on error to open up the frame and bring up designated player Jocelyn Alo as the leading run at the plate. And then, well, she did what she does.

Alo blasted her 33rd home run of the season to push the Sooners to their first lead 3-2 in a truly legendary moment. The home run was also the 159th of the season for Oklahoma – an all-time record by homers from a team. It also brought them up to the 630 run mark as a team – which is also a new NCAA record.

Alo’s bomb seemingly took the lid off for Oklahoma’s offense, as they would go on to tack on two more runs in the frame on RBI hits from left fielder Mackenzie Donihoo and center fielder Jayda Coleman. Just like that, the Sooners led 5-2 late.

After Juarez pitched a clean bottom of the sixth, Oklahoma would add a little more insurance in the seventh on a sacrifice fly off the bat of right fielder Nicole Mendes that scored Alo. The Sooners took a 6-2 advantage into the final half inning.

From there, Juarez locked things down to give Oklahoma the victory and even up the series at 1-1 and force a winner-take-all game on Thursday afternoon. This was yet another fantastic display of resolve and refusal to go down by Gasso’s club.

The win moves the Sooners to 55-4 on the year and sets them just a single win away from their fifth national title in program history. This team remains incredibly resilient and truly never feels out of a game that they play. The offense was essentially non-existent until late in this one, but they were able to flip the switch late when they needed to do so. Not to mention Juarez, who was again tremendous.

Game 3 of the WCWS finals with everything on the line is set for Thursday afternoon at 2:00 p.m. CT in Oklahoma City.

Alabama Softball’s KB Sides Enters the Transfer Portal For Final Eligible Season

This season, she batted .314 with 20 RBI. She recorded two hits, one of them being a double in the Women’s College World Series. 

Alabama Softball outfielder KB Sides announced her plans to enter the transfer portal Wednesday afternoon. 247 Sport’s Charlie Potter was the first to report the news.

Sides started 134 games over the last three seasons, including 43 starts this season in right field, and was named to the All-SEC defensive team and third-team selection of the NFCA All-South Region.

This season, she batted .314 with 20 RBI. She recorded two hits, one of them being a double in the Women’s College World Series.

Sides will have one more year of eligibility remaining due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a year that she will use as a graduate student. Sides earned her bachelor’s degree from Alabama in Spring 2021.

WATCH: Patrick Murphy Urges Athletic Directors to ‘Invest in Softball’

Alabama softball coach Patrick Murphy urges athletic directors around the country to invest in softball.

Over 7,000 people packed into Rhoads Stadium in Tuscaloosa over the weekend to watch Alabama softball defeat Kentucky in two games to advance to their 13th Women’s College World Series.

Following the series-clinching 4-1 win over the Wildcats on Saturday afternoon, head coach Murphy made a statement about the popularity of softball during his postgame interview. He then challenged athletic directors around the country to help continue growing the game.

 

 

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Alabama softball has made an appearance in every single super regional since the format began in 2005 and has appeared in the Women’s College World Series 12 times in history.

The success on the field has translated to success in revenue. Crimson Tide Softball brought in more money than any other women’s sport on campus in 2019 by earning $1,314,124 according to the University’s annual athletics report, and the fourth highest-earning athletic program at the University of Alabama.

According to an article by the Saint Peter’s Tribune, Alabama softball was one of 70 teams across the country to earn at least $1 Million in 2018. One sign of that is the growth in coverage.

Every game of the 2021 regionals was broadcasted by the ESPN family of networks, whether it be on cable or digital platforms such as SEC Network+. History was made this weekend, as game two between Oklahoma and Washington was broadcasted by ABC for the first time ever.

The growth of the sport has allowed many universities to add softball, such as Duke and Clemson. The two Atlantic Coast Conference universities have added softball programs over the last three seasons, and went deep into their respective regional rounds against SEC teams who are headed to the Women’s College World Series. Duke played well in the Athens Regional before falling to Georgia, while Clemson made it to the Tuscaloosa regional final against Alabama.

The quote from Murphy was fueled by last weekend’s attendance numbers at Rhonda Stadium. In two games, over 7,000 fans attended the Tuscaloosa Super Regional. As Murphy mentioned, he had hundreds of requests  for tickets before they were available to the general public.

I believe that his quote had multiple meanings. It was a challenge to university athletic directors of schools who already have a program to invest more money into their softball programs, whether it be upgrading facilities, expand seating, or increasing marketing.

It could have also been a message to those universities who do not have a softball program, such as Vanderbilt, the only Southeastern Conference institution to not field a team. The Southeastern Conference had 12 teams compete in the NCAA regionals, with South Carolina being the lone team left out. Having Vanderbilt in the league. with the success of the Commodore baseball program, and appeal of Nashville as a whole, it is hard to think that Vanderbilt Softball would not be successful in a few years.

It’s easy to see why softball is a growing support, both in revenue and popularity. The pageantry in Tuscaloosa that is shown every home game as well as the positive, fighting spirit that each team shows no matter the score, make Softball a hot ticket.

I echo Murph’s comments… “invest in softball.”

Oregon coaches favor Pac-12 tournaments on the diamond

Both Mark Wasikowski and Melyssa Lombardi want to see a Pac-12 post-season tournament in baseball and softball.

One of the best times on the sports calendar is March because of all the post-season tournaments that are happening all at the same time.

The same thing happens in May, but Pac-12 fans don’t have a clue because this conference doesn’t have a conference tournament in either baseball or softball.

Exposure has always been troublesome for the Pac-12, but in particular, these sports. Oregon baseball coach Mark Wasikowski and softball coach Melyssa Lombardi both hope that not having a Pac-12 tournament will be something of the past in the near future.

“The league is tough,” Lombardi told The Oregonian earlier this month. “I think for us as coaches and with our teams figuring out what’s the best way to go, is it having your conference games and then having a tournament right after or not. I think that’s something that’s come up and so far up to this point there hasn’t been a conference tournament.”

Having a conference tourney on national television, such as ESPN or Fox Sports 1, would be the exposure they need to bring in better athletes as well as possible seeding in the NCAA tournament. Softball felt that earlier when it was assumed the Ducks would host a regional, but instead was made to go to Austin, Texas.

The tournament committee wasn’t in a room watching how good Oregon was in a post-season semifinal or final. They were looking at the Ducks on paper instead.

Oregon baseball is hoping they don’t suffer the same fate as softball. The Ducks are one of the best teams in the nation, a top 10 team for most of the season. Instead of making active preparations for PK Park to hold the Eugene Regional, the social media people for the Ducks are tweeting out fancy graphics to explain why they are worthy to host three other teams at PK Park.

Wasikowski expressed this concern in that same article in The Oregonian.

“They’re (the NCAA tournament committee) not watching Oregon play at Cal Berkeley this year because that’s where our last series is. That’s not going to be on their screen. They’re going to have all the conference tournaments on watching all those winners to where they can fill out basically their brackets and put the teams into the postseason slots.”

The Pac-12 was scheduled to have a baseball tournament in Scottsdale, Ariz. this year before the pandemic hit. The conference is seemingly going in a very different direction with its new commissioner George Kliavkoff at the helm and hopefully, in 2022, everyone will get to enjoy the conference tournaments on diamonds.

 

Texas softball will play Oklahoma State in decisive Game 3 on Sunday for WCWS trip

After a 4-2 win on Saturday, Texas softball forced a decisive Game 3 on Sunday against the Oklahoma State Cowboys.

In the Stillwater Super Regional on Saturday, Texas’ Shea O’Leary pitched a full game to lift the Longhorns over the Oklahoma State Cowboys 4-2. It was the first time that Texas was able to defeat Oklahoma State this season.

It extended the series to a deciding third game on Sunday with a berth in the Women’s College World Series on the line. Oklahoma State will start ace pitcher Carrie Eberle, while Texas will again have O’Leary on the mound.

“Momentum’s something in this game and we created some momentum today. We’ll keep that going through tomorrow and we’ll have to make sure it’s a dogfight tomorrow. But I’m sure OSU’s gonna come out and fight us hard. We know that,” Texas head coach Mike White stated at the conclusion of the game on Saturday.

Texas’ junior catcher Mary Iakopo hit a clutch two-run home run in the sixth inning on Saturday to take control of the game. It was her 16th homer, which moved her into a tie with Lindsey Stephens (2014) for the most in a single season in school history.

Here’s how to tune in to the crucial Game 3 matchup between Texas and Oklahoma State on Sunday:

When

Sunday, May 30 at 3:15 p.m. CST

Where

Stillwater, Oklahoma

How to watch

ESPN

How to listen

105.3 FM

Alabama Softball Advances to 13th Women’s College World Series

Alabama will open its run towards a Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City, OK on Thursday, June 3 against Arizona

The No. 3 National Seed Alabama Crimson Tide fought until the last out to earn the 4-3 win over Kentucky in the Super Regional-opening game on Friday afternoon.

It was a win that was definitely earned, as the Tide had to fight back after Kentucky struck first on an RBI single in the 3rd inning, and again in the 4th inning on a solo home run to trail 2-0. Then, once the Tide grabbed the lead, had to hold off a Wildcat comeback on a solo home run in the 7th inning

Starting pitcher Montana Fouts showed signs of frustration, but that small piece of adversity would be enough to light a fire into the junior ace, as well as her teammates.

Fouts went on to strike out five batters after going down 2-0, and the offense scored four runs in the bottom of the 4th inning to give Alabama the win. Renee Abernathy, the Kentucky batter who hit a solo home run in the 4th inning, hit a solo home run in the 7th inning to give Kentucky some hope, but Fouts went on to strike out the final batter of the inning, giving Alabama the win.

Fouts did not let the early woes get to her, as she went on to strike out 11 batters in a complete-game performance.

Friday’s outcome fueled Saturday’s fire for Alabama, as they quickly jumped on Kentucky and did not look back.

Playing as the visiting team in game two of the super regional, Alabama struck first on a 2-RBI double by Kaylee Tow with zero outs in the first inning gave the Crimson Tide the early lead. Kentucky answered by recording a run via the fielder’s choice in the 2nd inning to cut the lead to 2-1.

The nail in the coffin came off the bat of Maddie Morgan when she hit a 2-run home run in the 4th inning to give Alabama the 4-1 lead, and ultimately the win.

Lexi Kilfoyl led the way in the circle by striking out seven and walking one batter in seven innings. Kaylee Tow and Elissa Brown had two hits for Alabama.

Alabama Softball will now head to their first Women’s College World Series of the decade, and their 13th overall. Before the COVID pandemic cut last season short, Alabama’s six of their 13 trips came in the 2010s, which saw a National Championship in 2012. Their 2019 trip was their first since 2016, which was the tail-end of a three-year run to Oklahoma City.

Alabama will open its run towards a Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City, OK on Thursday, June 3 against Arizona. The first pitch time has yet to be determined.