WCWS 2023: Oklahoma softball dominance is inevitable?

Greatness does not take days off.

Even when it’s hot and humid, things don’t go as planned and the ball keeps bouncing in the wrong direction, greatness emerges. It found a way. It believes, even when it comes to the final assault, with the chance to make history fade, “We’re never out of the game. No matter what.”

Oklahoma softball coach Patty Gasso uttered those words Saturday afternoon after her team once again showed what greatness looks like. She left tears on the field and explained to reporters how her team came back from three runs to beat Clemson in extra time, win the super zone championship, advance to the FIFA Women’s World Cup and set a record NCAA record with 48 consecutive wins.

“We can reduce it by five, four, whatever,” Gasso said. “We are not out of the game. And we believe it.

“Can we do it? I guess we can. They don’t doubt it.”

Who will be at this time? Oklahoma has been the embodiment of greatness in college softball over the past decade. It won 41 games in a row in 2019 and 40 in a row in 2020-21 and 2021-22.

It is likely that OU becomes the first team to lead Division I in runs per game, ERA and save percentage in the same season.

When Kinzie Hansen made a three-link homer over the left wall against Clemson – facing 0-2 to U.S. Softball College Player of the Year Valerie Cagle, on his 61st birthday. by Gasso – it has an atmosphere that is obviously inevitable.

Running around bases faster than her whole life, Hansen said, “I knew right then and there, this team wouldn’t finish in 2023 until we decided that we were done.”

On Thursday, Oklahoma will begin the WCWS as the favorite to win a third consecutive national championship. They have the best pitching staff, the best daily lineup and the best defense in the country. The numbers don’t lie.

It’s been 102 days since the Sooners last lost a softball game. But their 48-game winning streak is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to their dominance this season. Over the course of this run, they have three times more wins by double-digit runs (12) than they’ve won by one run (4).

Clemson coach John Rittman told reporters after the superzone: “There are very few flaws when you play Oklahoma. “You can’t make too many mistakes. We’re just one shot away from winning the game. We didn’t show that 21st goal when it should.”

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Oklahoma advances to WCWS on Jennings’ 9th inning HR

Tiare Jennings hit Oklahoma’s fifth home game to take the Sooners to WCWS.

Only one team was relieved to reach that final. Back in February, Baylor caused Oklahoma to lose its only game of the season, a 4-3 defeat to Waco.

“Well,” said Baylor coach Glenn Moore, “first of all, I don’t think a win will get you anywhere close to where they are. So I don’t feel like I know all of the facts. is that we have had some success against them.

“We’ve actually played well against them many times. When you look at the record, it’s terrible… but so are the others.”

Baylor won that first game. But then Oklahoma wiped out the Bears at home in a three-game series in April. Final score: 13-0. No team has beaten Oklahoma twice in the same season since 2019.

So no, Moore is under no illusions that he has all the answers to overthrow the reigning dynasty in softball. But he’s as good a place to start as anywhere.

The key is preparation, he said. And maybe it’s not as important as X and O with the right mental approach, which involves telling the truth.

“I told the team I just wanted to compete. I wanted to help them succeed,” says Moore. “And doing that with OUs, I think winning is unlikely. So if that’s your measure of success, then you’re setting your team up for failure most of the time.

“To be able to succeed, you have to break it down into smaller wins.”

Moore stressed to his players that they should play to their standards, respect their opponents and take every advantage they can.

“And in the event that a team like OU is not fully prepared – and I wouldn’t say that was the case on the night we beat them – but in case they don’t deliver their best game, if they are the play better, then be prepared to take advantage of that,” he said. “On that night, we were ready.”

In terms of limiting Oklahoma’s offense, Moore said it’s important to try to eliminate the timing of hitters to the plate.

The Sooners ranked first in batting average (0.372), goalscoring (8.39 runs per game), home runs per game (1.96) and miss rate (0.683). They have five different players with at least 10 homes and 45 RBIs.

But in the loss to Baylor, Oklahoma had no home run and left nine runners on the field.

“We probably lost this game by an inning or two, but it happened at the right time and we caught a balloon in the middle of the field,” Moore said.

Moore said the key to beating the Sooners is getting their hitters to guess. He let Dariana Orme get past the squad twice in four innings before paving the way for Aliyah Binford, “who has one of the top substitutions in the country and really throws them off balance for the rest of the game. match.”

The WCWS field is filled with superior pitchers Oklahoma has yet to face this year, like Stanford Freshman NiJaree Canady and her league-leading 0.48 ERA, Alabama’s Montana Fouts ace or the set. three Ashley Rogers, Payton Gottshall and Karlyn Pickens of Tennessee, who together kept the hitters at an average of 0.151.

“I think changing their pace and guessing their timing wrong is key to beating that squad if you get the chance,” said Moore.

On the other hand, you have to make the OU pitchers work. Their team ERA is the best Team I 1.00. The next best is Tennessee at 1.48.

And the Sooners have three legitimate aces.

Nicole May is 18-0 with 0.82 ERA and 127 strikes in 102⅓ innings.

Jordy Bahl is 18-1 with 1.08 ERA and 159 strikes in 122⅔ innings.

Alex Storako is 17-0 with a 1.13 ERA and 106 strikes in 99 innings.

Head into the barn and find Kierston Deal, the former #1 player with an ERA of 0.78, 30 strikes in 27 innings and an opponent batting average of 0.160.

Again, it’s about the small wins.

When Baylor beat Oklahoma, it only beat Bahl five times. But the Bears worked well together – six strikes isn’t bad considering the Bahl average of 9.1 per seven innings – and forced a couple of walks, plus a free pass. in a hit on target.

“We saw Jordy Bahl and were trying to get her to throw hitable throws,” Moore said. “A lot of times she puts people out because she cheats and keeps fouling on unplayable throws. And she can throw it down midway and tough enough. But if you catch her If he throws in the area, you have a much better chance of getting some balls into play.”

“The way these guys respond, they’re great.”@OU_Softball Head coach Patty Gasso is giving us all the emotions after their comeback win pic.twitter.com/RoEeMFsijD

– especially (@espnW) May 27, 2023

As Bahl made a 1-1 over-the-center pitch, Shaylon Govan leapt forward, making a three-way home run into the left half of the court.

“I think our discipline is key,” Moore said.

The problem that emerged in the next three-game series was that Oklahoma didn’t make as many errors, especially on the field. The Sooners’ save rate of 0.988 (16 errors in 1,374 chances) leads the country and is currently on track to set a single-season record.

That’s why Moore feels comfortable celebrating one win out of four opportunities this season. Beating Oklahoma is a big deal.

“It’s pretty rare,” he said, laughing. “Quite Rare.”

That fact is not lost at Stanford, the team faces Oklahoma on Thursday. Cardinal lost to the Sooners 10-1 in February.

Stanford coach Jessica Allister said Cardinal will watch the game again and learn what they can from the film. But she pointed out how they are now two different teams.

“A lot has been played since then,” she said.

And a lot of Oklahoma wins.

Add five more and the Sooners will complete three rare peatlands.

As Gasso said right after the match against Clemson, everyone expected OU to come out on top.

“The amount of pressure is insurmountable. And we continue to stand against it.”