Tag: Stanford Cardinal Softball

Stanford’s NiJaree Canady intends to enter the transfer portal per reports

USA Softball National Player of the Year NiJaree Canady intends to enter the transfer portal, according to multiple reports.

One of the biggest names in the sport of softball is on the move. According to multiple reports, Stanford’s [autotag]NiJaree Canady[/autotag] is expected to be in the transfer portal.

According to Landon Reinhardt of NBC News outlet KSNT in Topeka, Kan., Canady will enter the transfer portal.

A source in the Canady family tells 27 News that the Stanford Cardinal and Topeka High grad will enter the transfer portal. – Reinhardt, KSNT

 

WIBW’s Vince Lovergine is also reporting that Canady is in the transfer portal.

This is arguably the most notable player to hit the portal in the modern transfer era. She’s been the best pitcher in the sport the last two years, carrying Stanford to the [autotag]Women’s College World Series[/autotag] in both seasons.

Both in 2023 and 2024, the Cardinal’s two losses came to the No. 1 team in the tournament. In 2023, it was the Oklahoma Sooners who knocked off Canady and the Cardinal in the WCWS. In 2024 it was Texas who handed Stanford both losses in Oklahoma City. This year, the lack of run support from the Cardinal lineup was glaring. Texas held Stanford scoreless in both games.

Canady was special in elimination games for Stanford this postseason. After dropping the opener to LSU in the super regionals, she shutout the Tigers shut out Oklahoma State and beat UCLA in elimination games.

In 2024, Canady was named USA Softball’s National Player of the Year. She led the nation with 337 strikeouts and a 0.73 ERA and was 24-7 for Stanford. She allowed just 44 walks. She held opponents to a .147 opponent’s batting average and a WHIP (walks and hits per innings pitched) of 0.69.

This is a landscape-changing transfer portal entry. Canady is arguably the best player in softball and with two years left of eligibility, the program that earns her commitment will become a shoe-in for the Women’s College World Series and potentially the team to beat in 2025.

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Sooners unanimous No. 1 in ESPN.com/USA Softball preseason top 25

The Oklahoma Sooners enter the season as the unanimous No. 1 team in the nation by ESPN/USA Softball. How does the rest of the top 25 look?

The Oklahoma Sooners enter the season as the No. 1 team in the nation following a 61-1 season and third straight national championship.

Though they lost a number of impact players off of last year’s squad, they still feature some of the best that college softball has to offer. With Jayda Coleman, Tiare Jennings, Kinzie Hansen and Alyssa Brito at the plate and Nicole May and Kelly Maxwell in the circle, the Sooners have a ton of star power that gives the Sooners a chance to do something that’s never been done before; win four consecutive national titles.

They’ll face challenges from across the country, but the Oklahoma Sooners have had a target on their back for years and continue to fend off all comers.

Who are the teams that are expected to be the biggest threats to the Queens of Softball’s crown? Here’s a look at the preseason ESPN.com/USA Softball top 25.

Oklahoma advances to WCWS Championship with 4-2 win over Stanford

After trailing 2-0 in the first, Nicole May and Jordy Bahl combined for eight scoreless innings and Tiare Jennings hit the go ahead double in the ninth to send Oklahoma to the WCWS Championship Series.

Oklahoma was tested once again and passed it with flying colors against the Stanford Cardinal, picking up their 51st win in a row, 4-2 in extra innings.

Nicole May and Alana Vawter got the start for their respective sides. Both pitched well before giving way to [autotag]Jordy Bahl[/autotag] and NiJaree Canady, who recreated their pitcher’s duel from Thursday, with the Sooners coming out on top once again.

Stanford started fast in the first inning. They had three hits in the inning, highlighted by Kylie Chung’s two-run home run to give Stanford a 2-0 lead right out of the gate. Each of the three hits came with two strikes in the at-bat.

Oklahoma then scored in the second inning thanks to a sac-fly by [autotag]Alynah Torres[/autotag] that brought home [autotag]Alyssa Brito[/autotag] to make it 2-1 after two innings. [autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag] then opened the third inning with a home run that tied it after three innings 2-2. It was Coleman’s 17th home run of the season and is tied for the team lead.

The game was a stalemate the rest of the way as Bahl and Canady put on a pitching clinic. The two underclassmen were fantastic. Even when they gave up a hit, found ways to work around trouble.

In the top of the ninth inning, Oklahoma finally found some separation when, after a leadoff double by [autotag]Grace Lyons[/autotag] and an intentional walk to Coleman, [autotag]Tiare Jennings[/autotag] doubled to right field to make it 4-2.

In the bottom of the ninth, Bahl made quick work of the Cardinal, retiring them in order, including two strikeouts.

After allowing two runs on three hits in the first inning, [autotag]Nicole May[/autotag] rallied to retire the side in the next four frames against Stanford. It wasn’t until the bottom of the sixth that she allowed the fourth hit of the game. She collected three strikeouts and didn’t allow a walk in what turned out to be a clutch performance.

Bahl threw four innings, allowing four hits and collecting six strikeouts to pick up her 21st win of the tournament.

For Stanford, Vawter allowed four hits and two runs while also having two strikeouts. Canady was the star for the Cardinal. She allowed four hits and two runs on four hits and picked up six strikeouts.

Game 1 of the WCWS Championship will start on Wednesday at 7 p.m. CT, and will be broadcast on ESPN. It’s Oklahoma’s fourth straight trip to the Women’s College World Series Championship and

The Sooners will face the winner of No. 3 Florida State vs. No. 4 Tennessee.

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Day 5 of the Women’s College World Series: semifinal matchups set, how to watch

The semifinals are set for the Women’s College World Series. Here are the matchups and how you can tune in.

And then there were four. The Oklahoma Sooners and Florida State Seminoles have managed to get through their respective brackets unscathed and are just one win away from setting up a rematch of the 2021 Women’s College World Series.

Oklahoma will take on Stanford, who they beat 2-0 on Thursday to open the WCWS. Florida State will face Tennessee, who bounced back from their 9-0 loss to Oklahoma to eliminate Oklahoma State on Sunday.

Monday’s action promises to be a fun one, and by the end of it, we’ll know who will be facing off in the Women’s College World Series championship.

The Sooners and the Cardinals will kick off the day in the early time slot while the Seminoles and Volunteers get the primetime matchup. Both games can be seen on ESPN.

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

No. 1 Oklahoma vs. No. 9 Stanford, 11 a.m. CT on ESPN.*

No. 3 Florida State vs. No. 4 Tennessee, 6 p.m. CT on ESPN.*

*If necessary games to follow each of the semifinal matchups.

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No. 1 Oklahoma vs No. 9 Stanford: how to watch, game preview, key players

The Oklahoma Sooners are just one win away from reaching the Women’s College World Series finals. Oklahoma got to this point after a pair of shutouts over Stanford and Tennessee to open the WCWS. Now, they get to face the Cardinal at least one more …

The Oklahoma Sooners are just one win away from reaching the Women’s College World Series finals.

Oklahoma got to this point after a pair of shutouts over Stanford and Tennessee to open the WCWS. Now, they get to face the Cardinal at least one more time on Monday. If the Sooners win, they’ll move on to face the winner of Florida State vs. Tennessee. An Oklahoma loss in game one sets up a winner-take-all scenario tomorrow afternoon.

The Seminoles are in the same “win, and you’re in” boat as the Sooners. If they can take care of business against a game Lady Vols squad, then Oklahoma and Florida State will play a rematch of the 2021 Women’s College World Series finals, which the Sooners won as the first of their back-to-back national championships.

There’s a strong chance that we could see a pitching rematch of Jordy Bahl vs. NiJaree Canady. The two young aces have been fantastic in the postseason, in particular in the Women’s College World Series.

Canady has allowed just one earned run in two starts and Bahl hasn’t allowed a run in the WCWS. If we are graced with another Bahl vs. Canady matchup, they’ll have to be locked in to recreate the magic we saw last Thursday.

To get you ready for the game, here’s a look at how to watch and key players to keep an eye on in this WCWS semifinal matchup.

Day 4 of the Women’s College World Series: Matchups and how to watch

A pair of elimination games take place on Sunday to determine who heads to the Women’s College World Series semifinals and who goes home.

On Saturday in the Women’s College World Series, the higher seeds held serve to advance to the semifinals. Oklahoma toppled Tennessee, 9-0, and Florida State won a close game against Washington, 3-1.

With Florida State and Oklahoma’s wins on Saturday, Tennessee and Washington change brackets in elimination play.

The Volunteers will take on the Oklahoma State Cowgirls. The winner of that matchup will face Florida State for a chance to go to the Women’s College World Series finals. The Seminoles beat Oklahoma State in their WCWS opener on Thursday.

Washington will take on Pac-12 conference mate Stanford. The winner of this conference showdown will face the back-to-back defending national champion Oklahoma Sooners. Oklahoma beat Stanford on Thursday to open the Women’s College World Series.

Stanford and Oklahoma State have already survived one elimination game. The Cardinal beat Alabama, and the Cowgirls beat Utah to stay alive in the Women’s College World Series.

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

No. 9 Stanford vs. No. 7 Washington, 2 p.m. CT on ABC.

No. 6 Oklahoma State vs. No. 4 Tennessee, 6 p.m. CT on ESPN2.

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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.

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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