The Terrific Ten has you covered on all the best highlights from all the action across college softball on Saturday!
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1. It took all the way into the 9th inning, but Alabama’s offense finally broke through with a 4-run showing in the ninth to take home their second win of the weekend and clinch the series win over Missouri. Ashley Prange’s leadoff home run in the 9th was the first run of the ball game for either team and led the Tide to a four-run inning. Montana Fouts started her second-consecutive game in the circle for the Tide, earning the win; the series win was the first for the Tide in conference play this season.
2. Aaliyah Jordan marked her return to the UCLA lineup in a big week, clubbing a two-run home run that proved to be the difference in the Bruins’ 2-1 win over Stanford on Saturday. Jordan’s second-inning blast answered a Stanford home run from the top of the inning, and was the first longball by the 7th-year senior since February 19, 2022.
3. Texas A&M evened their series against Tennessee, taking the win in another pitcher’s duel that handed the Lady Vols just their second conference loss of the season. The Aggies scored three runs in three separate innings, including an RBI triple from Keely Williams in the third inning and an RBI single off the bat of Koko Wooley in the sixth. The teams have combined to score seven runs in total through two games, with the series’ rubber match set for Sunday at 1 pm.
4. Cal State Northridge won their first series over Long Beach State since 2015, with CSUN knocking off the 49ers who had led the Big West in undefeated fashion entering the weekend. CSUN had already won game one of the series, then took the win in the final game of the weekend, the nightcap of a doubleheader on Saturday. The Matadors picked up the 7-1 win to clinch the series, which also happened to be the 1,500th victory in the history of the CSUN program.
5. A crucial Conference USA series in Bowling Green saw two dominant performances, one by each team. Western Kentucky took the win in game one of a doubleheader, while Charlotte responded with a high-scoring victory in game two. WKU picked up the 3-0 victory in game one behind the arm of Katie Gardner, who limited Charlotte’s offense to just one hit and collected ten strikeouts. In the second game of the day, Charlotte’s offense showed out, picking up the 11-0 run-rule-shortened victory.
6. Cal evened their own series against Utah, picking up a 5-1 win on Saturday. The Bears rode a 4-run fifth inning to the victory, a showing that included home runs by both Tianna Bell and Makena Smith. Utah took an early lead, but Cal scored five unanswered runs – including the high-scoring fifth frame – en route to the win. A trio of three pitchers combined to limit Utah’s offense to five hits and one run.
7. Nebraska returned the lopsided-victory favor against Michigan, run-ruling the Wolverines one day after Michigan did the exact opposite in game one of the series. Two runs in the second were followed by a 6-run fifth that clinched the run-rule victory for the Huskers. A pair of two-run home runs in the fifth inning, including longballs by Brooke Andrews and Ava Bredwell, vaulted the Huskers into run-rule territory. Courtney Wallace was solid in the circle, limiting Michigan’s offense to one hit and collecting three strikeouts.
8. Sydney McKinney has done a little bit of everything during her time at Wichita State, but on Saturday, she did something for the first time. In a game against South Florida, McKinney hit her first career grand slam, knocking a longball with the bases loaded to give her Shockers what was then a 13-0 lead over the visiting Bulls.
9. Oklahoma came from behind in the 7th inning, scoring three runs to record a walk-off victory over Texas. Holding a 3-1 lead entering the final frame, Texas surrendered a two-run, game-tying home run to Jayda Coleman, then allowed a walk-off RBI single a few batters later that gave OU the victory. The win also clinched the series in Oklahoma’s favor, as the Sooners continued their nation’s-best winning streak.
10. Tulsa pitcher Maura Moore threw a gem against Memphis en route to her second no-hitter of the 2023 season. The Golden Hurricane hurler struck out eleven Memphis hitters along the way; her performance was also the first no-hitter to go a full seven innings for Tulsa since the 2019 season. Moore allowed just two baserunners via free passes en route to her 10th win of the season. The 7-0 victory also clinched the series win for Tulsa.
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