Looking Back at the NCAA Champions: 2001 Arizona Wildcats

Photo courtesy Arizona Athletics

Fall practice has wrapped up around the country in Division I, which allows us to set our sights on the 2024 season that lies ahead.

Early focus will be centered on the University of Oklahoma as they begin the quest to become the first team in Division I history to win four consecutive national championships.

The Sooners tied UCLA (1988, 1989, 1990) as the only teams to ever win three consecutive titles when they defeated Florida State to claim the 2023 title.

Extra Inning Softball will be reviewing the 41 national champions that have previously hoisted the trophy.

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2001 Arizona Wildcats

The Venue: ASA Hall of Fame Stadium, Oklahoma City, Okla.

The Head Coach: Mike Candrea

The Players (Women’s College World Series Roster): Becky Lemke, Teresa Demeter, Lovieanne Jung, Nicole Giordano, Erika Hanson, Lisha Ribellia, Leneah Manuma, Jenny Gladding, Candace Abrams, Lauren Bauer, Allison Andrade, Jennie Finch, Kim Balkan, Toni Mascarenas, Lindsey Collins, Mackenzie Vandergeest

The Regular Season: The 2001 Arizona Wildcats are one of the greatest teams in the history of collegiate softball. The Wildcats featured dominant pitching, power hitting, speed and solid defense. The Wildcats posted a 57-4 record during the regular season and finished first in the Pac-10 standings with a 19-2 record. Arizona began the season with a 31-game winning streak and concluded the year with a 26-game winning streak. Offensively, Arizona was led by Lauren Bauer who hit .426 with 12 homers, 46 RBIs and 38 stolen bases and Toni Mascarenas who it .405 and belted 25 home runs and drove in 84 runs. The Wildcats, who hit 126 home runs on the year, also received 20 home runs from Mackenzie Vandergeest and 19 from Leneah Manuma. The pitching staff was led by Jennie Finch who finished the season with a 32-0 record and a 0.54 earned run average. Finch allowed just 102 hits in 207 innings pitched and struck out 279 batters. The staff also included Jenny Gladding who went 14-2 with a 0.92 ERA and Becky Lemke who posted a 19-2 record and a 1.02 earned run average. Finch (1st Team), Mascarenas (1st Team), Bauer (1st Team), Manuma (1st Team) and Nicole Giordano (3rd Team) each were named All-American following the season and Finch received the Honda Award as the NCAA Player of the Year.

The Regional/Super Regional: Arizona hosted the NCAA Regional for the fifth consecutive year and welcomed Saint Peter’s, Cal State Fullerton, Texas Tech, Texas State and Hawaii to Tucson, Ariz. The Wildcats opened the regional with a 4-2 victory over Saint Peter’s and then posted an 8-0 victory over Texas Tech. Arizona beat Texas State 6-2 and advanced to the Women’s College World Series with a 5-4 win against Cal State Fullerton. It marked the Wildcats 14th consecutive appearance in the WCWS.

The Field at the Women’s College World Series: Arizona, California, Iowa, LSU, Michigan, Oklahoma, Stanford, UCLA

The Wildcats at the Women’s College World Series: Arizona opened WCWS play against California and used a clutch home run and the pitching of Jennie Finch to post a 3-2 victory. Finch and Jocelyn Forest locked in a pitcher’s duel until the bottom of the sixth inning when the Wildcats broke the scoreless tie. Erika Hanson and Nicole Giordano reached on singles and Toni Mascarenas delivered a three-run home run giving the Wildcats the lead. Cal responded with two runs in the top of the seventh inning, but Finch closed the door with a strikeout to end the game. In a matchup featuring All-American pitchers Finch and Jennifer Stewart it was the offense that took center stage in the Wildcats next game against the defending national champion Oklahoma. The Sooners used home runs from Jennifer Stump and LaKisha Washington to take a 4-0 lead, but the Wildcats would rally. In a repeat of the California game, Hanson singled, Giordano singled and Mascarenas homered to cut the Sooners lead to 4-3 in the top of the sixth inning. Arizona tied the game at 4-4 in the top of the seventh inning when Mackenzie Vandergeest homered to right centerfield. Finch worked out of a jam in the bottom of the seventh and the Wildcats took their first lead of the game in the top of the eighth inning. Giordano singled to lead off the inning and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt. Following an intentional walk, Finch reached on a fielder’s choice and Giordano came in to score on a Sooner throwing error. OU put a pair of runners on base in the bottom of the eighth inning, but Finch got a groundout to end the game and keep the Wildcats undefeated in the WCWS. Game three for the Wildcats came against Stanford and Becky Lemke turned in a brilliant performance as she allowed just one hit and struck out five in a 1-0 victory for Arizona. Mascarenas homered in the first inning providing all the offense that Lemke would need. With the win, Arizona advanced to the championship game.

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