The top-seeded Texas Longhorns fought hard to secure their spot in the Women’s College World Series. They faced tough competition from No. 16 seed Texas A&M and had to win a closely contested match that ended the Austin Super Regional with a score of 2-1. After losing the first game on Friday, Texas came back to beat the Aggies in extra innings on Saturday and held a 6-2 lead in the decisive Game 3 on Sunday. Every game in the super regional was decided by just one run, showcasing the high level of competition.
On Sunday, several other Game 3s took place, resulting in more teams advancing to the World Series. No. 4 Florida defeated unseeded Baylor 5-3, while No. 10 Duke secured a win against No. 7 Missouri with a score of 4-3. No. 14 Alabama caused an upset by defeating No. 3 Tennessee 4-1, and No. 8 Stanford emerged victorious over No. 9 LSU with a score of 8-0 to advance to the next round of the World Series. Duke, making its first appearance in the World Series in the history of its seven-year program, will face an Oklahoma team aiming for a fourth consecutive national title.
The opening-day matchups at Devon Park in Oklahoma City will see Texas going up against Stanford, Alabama facing UCLA, and Florida competing against Oklahoma State.
Alabama scored four runs in the first inning and managed to hold off a late rally from Tennessee to secure a victory in the Knoxville Super Regional.
Jocelyn Briski contributed to the win by giving up just one run and four hits in six innings and two batters before being replaced by Kayla Beaver who earned her first save as a Crimson Tide pitcher.
Duke also held off late rallies from its opponents to secure its spots in the next round of competition.
Florida’s Taylor Cabeza de Vega pitched brilliantly throughout all three games of their series against Baylor, striking out nine batters on Wednesday night alone and earning herself some impressive accolades along with her teammates’ support.
NiJaree Canady faced challenges during her time at Stanford but proved herself worthy of recognition for her exceptional play during their series against LSU where she struck out eight batters and gave up only two hits over seven innings.
