Watching Oklahoma Softball, one enters a game expecting to see offensive fireworks. In the Sooners’ 2-0 win over Stanford on Thursday, there were certainly fireworks, but in the form of a classic pitcher’s duel.
[autotag]Jordy Bahl[/autotag] vs. NiJaree Canady brought back memories of Pedro Martinez vs. Roger Clemens or Andy Pettite for John Smoltz in the late 90s and early 2000s.
It was the stuff legends are made of.
Bahl and Canady put together performances that created a drama-filled opener for the two sides in the Women’s College World Series.
Canady, who led the nation in ERA entering the game, held the Sooners scoreless for the first 4.2 innings of work. Even in the fifth inning, when the Sooners broke through, she had Alynah Torres, Rylie Boone, and Jayda Coleman all at two strikes, and each hitter came up with a hit.
It was the Sooners’ clutchness that helped them overcome a fantastic pitching performance from Canady. And it was Bahl’s toughness, resiliency, and strikeout prowess that kept the Cardinal off the board.
Jordy Bahl allowed multiple base runners in three innings but forced Stanford to leave seven runners on base. When things tightened up for the Sooners’ sophomore pitcher, she locked in and struck her way out of several jams.
Or, as Patty Gasso said after the game, “She was just a boss today.”
“She said it herself – she lives for those moments,” Gasso said. “It’s not a lie. It’s real. She loves the pressure, and that’s where she thrives the most.”
In the pressure cooker, Bahl put together an incredible performance. Her 11 strikeouts were the third-highest total in 2023 and the sixth time she’s reached double-digit strikeouts in her collegiate career.
The Oklahoma offense has carried the Sooners for much of the last three seasons. However, in the Sooners Women’s College World Series opener, Jordy Bahl carried the Sooners in an incredible performance to help Oklahoma advance.
“Bahl has done such things throughout her two seasons in Norman, but that doesn’t mean they should be taken for granted,” Jenni Carlson of The Oklahoman wrote. “She still has a long way to go and is continuing to add to her legend, but what she did against Stanford is a reminder of just how talented she is. How tough she is, too.”
And the Sooners needed every bit of her toughness and grit to guide them through to a winner’s bracket showdown vs. the Tennessee Volunteers on Saturday.