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Photo courtesy Texas Softball
Texas and Oklahoma, the top two teams in the country all season long, took a significant step towards reaching the championship finals of the Women’s College World Series with victories on Saturday at OGE Energy Field at Devon Park.
And just like these two long-time rivals claiming the programs and universities are vastly different from one another, they posted diametrically opposing wins on a sun-drenched Saturday.
The Longhorns, the top-ranked team in the tournament, battered Florida into submission as Texas defeated the Gators 10-0 in five innings.
Meanwhile, Oklahoma began with the day with an old fashioned, nail-biting 1-0 victory over UCLA.
With the wins, Texas and Oklahoma each moved into the driver’s seat in terms of reaching the WCWS championship finals. Texas will meet the winner of the Stanford/UCLA game needing just one win to reach the finals, while Oklahoma will square off against the winner of Florida/Alabama also needing just one win to secure a berth in the finals.
*****
Texas 10, Florida 0 (5 innings)
The Longhorns put on a full display of why they entered the WCWS as the top-rated team with a showcase of offense and pitching.
After Mac Morgan recorded two strikeouts in a 1-2-3 first inning, the Texas offense exploded for five runs on four hits highlighted by a three-run home run from Alyssa Washington and a two-run double from Katie Stewart.
It was a record-setting evening for the Longhorns offense and Morgan as UT set school records for runs scored and margin of victory while also recording its first run-rule win in WCWS play.
Texas head coach Mike White praised Morgan for her outing.
“Obviously, it was a good game for us. Florida is a very tough team, and we knew they were going to be a tough opponent based on how they were hitting the ball the last several weeks. I thought Mac Morgan did a great job going out there in the first inning and really setting the tone for the game. And to be able to score straight away is something we haven’t really be able to do lately.
“It feels like we’ve always been coming from behind. As I told the young ladies, this is my first time in seven trips being able to win that second game and it feels a lot better to be in this position than the other. But there’s still a lot of work ahead of us, so we can’t get too far ahead of ourselves and continue to be ready to play.”
Returning to the circle with a five-run lead, Morgan did not relent. She allowed just three baserunners over the course of the final four innings of the game which included a one-out fielding error in the second, a two-out walk in the fourth and a leadoff single in the fifth. The single in the fifth inning was the only hit the Gators offense could muster.
The Longhorns offense also did not let up as as Mia Scott and Stewart drove in four of the five runs during the bottom of the sixth with home runs. Scott belted a two-run homer and Stewart later added a three-run shot.
Texas will next face the winner of the Stanford versus UCLA game on Monday (June 3) at 7 p.m. CST.
Oklahoma 1, UCLA 0
In the Sooners Super Regional final against Florida State and in game one of the WCWS versus Duke, Kelly Maxwell was what one may describe as effectively wild as she struggled to find the strike zone consistently.
That all changed on Saturday as Maxwell was brilliant in the circle leading the Sooners to a 1-0 win over UCLA to remain unbeaten in the Women’s College World Series.
Maxwell permitted just two hits and struck out 11 in tossing her first shutout of the 2024 WCWS.
“This was an important game for both of us and Kelly decided to throw one of the best games of her life today,” Oklahoma head coach Patty Gasso said. “There was no way we would be pulling her after the job she was doing.”
“This is Kelly throwing a full game,” Gasso said. “It’s almost gone are those days. But because she was in a place, we wanted to keep going.”
Keep going she did as Maxwell thwarted a powerful UCLA offense by mixing speeds and hitting spots.
Kaitlyn Terry and Taylor Tinsley very nearly matched Maxwell pitch for pitch, but one mistake cost the Bruins.
Leading off the third inning, Tiare Jennings took Terry to straightaway centerfield giving the Sooners a 1-0 lead. A lead that was more than enough for Maxwell on Saturday.
It was Jennings’ ninth career WCWS home run and the 96th homer of her career, moving her past Oklahoma legend Lauren Chamberlain into sole possession of third on the NCAA all-time list.
Oklahoma continues to establish records in its quest to win its fourth consecutive national championship. The Sooners victory over the Bruins pushed their current NCAA Tournament winning streak to 20 straight games.
Oklahoma will meet the winner of the Florida and Alabama game on Monday (June 3) at 11 a.m. CST.
Photo courtesy Oklahoma Softball
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