Tag: 2023 Women’s College World Series

Day 2 of the Women’s College World Series: Matchups and How to Watch

There are three games on Day 2 of the Women’s College World Series. Here’s a look at Friday’s schedule.

Day one of the Women’s College World Series featured a pair of impressive offensive performances from Tennessee and Florida State and a pitcher’s duel for the ages between Jordy Bahl and NiJaree Canady.

It was a fantastic opening day for the WCWS in Oklahoma City. The only negative takeaway was they weren’t able to finish each of the opening round matchups due to inclement weather.

On the bright side, moving Washington and Utah to Friday gave us another day with a three-game WCWS slate.

The Huskies and the Utes are each looking to punch their ticket to the winners’ bracket semifinals. The evening matchups give us our first elimination games in Oklahoma City.

Will Utah’s incredible postseason run continue? Can Oklahoma State and Stanford bounce back from being shutout on Thursday? Will Alabama be able to keep their game closer against Stanford than they were able to against Tennessee in the opener?

Here’s a look at Friday’s matchups and how to watch.

No. 7 Washington vs. No. 15 Utah – 12 pm CT on ESPN2

No. 5 Alabama vs. No. 9 Stanford – 6 pm CT on ESPN*

No. 6 Oklahoma State vs. Loser of Washington vs. Utah – 8:30 pm CT on ESPN*

*Denotes Elimination Game

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Oklahoma Sooners win pitcher duel, beating Stanford 2-0

Jordy Bahl’s complete game shutout lifts the Oklahoma Sooners to a 2-0 win over Stanford in the opener of the Women’s College World Series.

The Oklahoma Sooners opened  the Women’s College World Series with a 2-0 win. The win kept their record-breaking streak intact with a 49th consecutive victory.

Right off the bat, this game had the makings of a pitcher’s duel between Jordy Bahl and Stanford’s NiJaree Canady. In the first inning, both teams put runners on base, but neither team could get anything going. And that would be the theme for much of the afternoon.

The Cardinal were outhitting the Sooners for much of the contest as NiJaree Canady kept the No. 1 offense in the country quiet through four innings. Stanford put multiple runners on base in the first, fourth, and fifth innings but came away empty handed as Jordy Bahl pitched around several difficult situations.

Oklahoma finally found some life in the bottom of the fifth inning. Alynah Torres earned a one-out single. Patty Gasso inserted Avery Hodge to run for Torres. With two outs in the inning, Rylie Boone singled to put runners on first and second. Then Jayda Coleman did what Sooners do and came through in a clutch moment with an RBI single that turned into two runs after an error by the left fielder.

All three base hits in the inning came with two strikes in the count against Canady, who boasts the lowest ERA in the nation.

Several times throughout the game, the Cardinal threatened to score and each time, Jordy Bahl came up with a big strikeout to end the threat. Bahl earned a complete game shutout to move to 19-1 on the season and lower her ERA to 1.03 in 2023.

Bahl collected 11 strikeouts for the win, navigating around seven base runners in the win. Canady was great for Stanford, allowing just two runs on four hits, while collecting seven strikeouts in the contest.

The win sets up a great matchup, as the Sooners will take on the 4th-seeded Tennessee Volunteers on Saturday at 2 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ABC.

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Social media reacts to Oklahoma’s 2-0 win over Stanford

Jordy Bahl was clutch and Jayda Coleman came through with the big hit to set social media ablaze after the Sooners 2-0 win over Stanford.

The Oklahoma Sooners are going to get every team’s best, every time out. On Thursday in their Women’s College World Series opener, the Sooners were challenged by one of the best pitchers in softball and passed the test.

NiJaree Canady came into the game leading the nation in ERA, and it took the Sooners until the fifth inning to finally break through with their first and only runs of the game.

But it was the timely, late-inning heroics that have become commonplace for the Sooners that won the day. Jayda Coleman came through with a two-out RBI single that squirted through the left fielder to score another run to give the Sooners all the offense they needed on a day when Jordy Bahl was dealing.

Bahl earned the complete-game shutout, pitching around several situations with multiple runners on with her determination and strikeout prowess. She allowed five hits, one walk, and no runs. She struck out 11 Cardinal to pick up the win and move to 19-1 on the season.

With a record-setting crowd in attendance, the Sooners extended their all-tim win streak record to 49 games and will now play the Tennessee Volunteers on Saturday at 2 pm CT on ABC.

It was a great game between two fantastic pitchers, but the outcome had Sooner Nation buzzing.

Grace Lyons wins Gold Glove Award and 5 Sooners named NFCA All-Americans

Grace Lyons wins Gold Glove Award and five Sooners named NFCA first-team All-Americans.

The Oklahoma Sooners dominated the national awards in softball with five Sooners named NFCA first-team All-Americans. Additionally, Grace Lyons won the Rawlings Gold Glove Award as the best defensive player in Division I.

Grace Lyons is a five-year starter at shortstop for the Sooners and has been great in the infield throughout her career. She has started 256 games for the Sooners, all at shortstop, and holds a single-season career-best .975 fielding percentage in 2023. Lyons has helped turn 11 double plays and has committed just three errors during her fifth and final season with Oklahoma.

Lyons collects OU’s first Rawling Gold Glove Award in program history. The award was introduced to collegiate softball in 2022.

[autotag]Jordy Bahl[/autotag], [autotag]Alyssa Brito[/autotag], [autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag], [autotag]Kinzie Hansen[/autotag], and [autotag]Tiare Jennings[/autotag] were named NFCA first-team All-Americans. Brito was one of six unanimous selections to the first-team.

It’s the second year in a row that Oklahoma’s had five first-team All-Americans and the 10th season out of the last 11 where they’ve had three first-team All-Americans.

The Sooners (56-1) open their seventh straight Women’s College World Series Thursday at 1:30 p.m. CT versus No. 9-seed Stanford (45-13). They look to keep their record-breaking 48-game winning streak intact. 

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Day 1 of the Women’s College World Series: Matchups and How to Watch

Game times and how to watch day one of the Women’s College World Series.

The Oklahoma Sooners take their next step toward winning their third straight national championship on Thursday when the Women’s College World Series begins day one.

There are several intriguing matchups to watch on Thursday and while the Sooners are the favorites, they’ll face challenges on their side of the bracket from every team.

Led by Ashley Jones, Tennessee is No. 2 in the nation in team ERA, and Stanford’s [autotag]NiJaree Canady[/autotag] leads the nation in ERA. The Volunteers are also No. 2 in the nation in scoring offense. Alabama isn’t a team to sleep on either, with [autotag]Montana Fouts[/autotag] leading the way for the Crimson Tide.

The other side of the bracket doesn’t have to face UCLA, but Florida State and Oklahoma State are playing good ball. Washington and Utah have been battle-tested through the Pac-12.

Thursday’s matchups are just the beginning of the double-elimination bracket. The first-round elimination games will take place on Friday.

Here’s a look at Thursday’s matchups and how to watch.

No 4. Tennessee vs. No. 5 Alabama: 11:00 am CDT on ESPN

No. 1 Oklahoma vs. No. 9 Stanford: 1:30 pm CDT on ESPN

No. 3 Florida State vs. No. 6 Oklahoma State: 6:00 pm CDT on ESPN

No. 7 Washington vs. No. 15 Utah: 8:30 pm CDT on ESPN

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Key players to watch for each team in the Women’s College World Series

As the eight teams descend on Oklahoma City, here are some of the key players to watch in the Women’s College World Series.

This week, the eight teams who qualified for the Women’s College World Series will descend upon Oklahoma City to crown the 2023 national champion. While the Oklahoma Sooners are the favorite to win the title, they’ll be challenged along the way.

Each of the eight teams in the Women’s College World Series is bringing some serious talent with them to USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium.

While there are certainly a lot of talented players worth mentioning from each team, here’s a look at some of the key players in this year’s WCWS field.

Women’s College World Series field set for Oklahoma City

With the super regionals complete, here’s a look at the Women’s College World Series field and how each team punched their ticket to Oklahoma City.

In what has become one of the best weekends in sports, the super regionals didn’t disappoint. There were incredible matchups across the board, and while just two of the super regionals went to a game three, there was plenty of drama across the country.

Of the eight teams that advanced, only one lower-seeded team in the super regional was able to advance. The Stanford Cardinal. Of the eight teams represented, three are from the Pac-12, two are from the Big 12, two are from the SEC, and one is from the ACC. No Big Ten teams were able to make it to the Women’s College World Series, and no mid-major programs advanced to OKC in 2023.

With the super regionals complete, here’s a look at the Women’s College World Series field and how each team punched their ticket to Oklahoma City.

Oklahoma Sooners rally for 8-7 win over Clemson, advance to Women’s College World Series

Kinzie Hansen tied the game in the bottom of the seventh with a three-run home run and Tiare Jennings won it in the ninth with a solo shot to send the Oklahoma Sooners to the WCWS.

The Oklahoma Sooners started hot but needed late-inning heroics to beat the Clemson Tigers, 8-7, and advance to the Women’s College World Series.

Jayda Coleman and Tiare Jennings opened the game with back-to-back home runs to give the Sooners a 2-0 lead.

Clemson settled and held Oklahoma in check in the second and third inning. In the top of the fourth, Alyssa Brito put the Sooners up 3-0 with a solo home run. Later in the inning, after Oklahoma loaded the bases, Sophia Nugent came in and drove in a run with a fielder’s choice to make it 4-0.

The Tigers responded in the bottom of the fourth with a three-run home run from Maddie Moore to make it 4-3. In the fifth inning, Clemson erupted for five runs, first taking the lead on a two-run home run from McKenzie Clark. The Tigers weren’t done, loading the bases and picking up a pair of runs to put Clemson ahead 7-4 and seemingly in control.

After a scoreless sixth, the Sooners came up in the seventh and had to face USA Softball National Player of the Year finalist Valerie Cagle. Rylie Boone led off with a single but Coleman and Jennings couldn’t follow suit. With two outs in the seventh and Oklahoma still down three, Haley Lee singled to put two on for Kinze Hansen.

Facing two strikes, Hansen came up clutch with a three-run home run to tie the game.

Jordy Bahl came in for the bottom of the seventh and shut the door on the Tigers, pitching three scoreless innings, allowing one hit and striking out three.

In the top of the ninth, Tiare Jennings wasted little time putting the Sooners up with a solo shot to lead off the inning. It was Jennings second home run of the game and the one that sent the Sooners to Oklahoma City.

Clemson was able to get a hit in the bottom of the ninth despite Jayda Coleman’s diving attempt, but Bahl closed the door on the Tigers’ rally to give the Sooners the win. She was absolutely nails in the win, shutting down a Clemson offense that had been productive in the series.

With the win, the Sooners set a Division I record for consecutive victories with their 48th in a row. They haven’t lost since February and continue to prove you can never count Oklahoma out, no matter the deficit.

The Sooners advance to the Women’s College World Series in hopes of defending their back-to-back national championships.