Women's College World Series

OCST

Sunny von Bulow
SoSH Member
Jan 10, 2004
24,483
The 718
Cross-posting from the Women's Soccer thread, where I posted in response to zoso when he said that having a daughter made him more interested in women's sports:


Dude: as father of a 12 yo, I have one huge tip for you:

Womens College World Series.

I'm getting verrrry close to the point where, generic game no rooting interest, I prefer softball to baseball - certainly in the best apples-to-apples comparison I can find, I'd much rather watch college softball than college baseball. The pace of the action is significantly faster. The ball doesn't travel as far - fence is 220' to center - and the bases are 60'. Every play is bang-bang. The level of skill and athleticism is very high. Most of all it's FUN. The teams have elaborate chants and routines in the dugouts. It's nothing like the stoic, don't show up the opponent culture of baseball.

Highly highly recommend. It's going on right now. Double elimination 8 team bracket. Northwestern, Florida, Oregon St., and Arizona have been bounced so far. Oklahoma is the dreadnought. They are 55-2 this season and have the best player in the game today, possibly the best hitter in college softball history, and likely in the conversation for dominant college athlete and female athlete in the country right now, full stop: Jocelyn Alo. Great backstory too, from a tiny rural town in Hawaii.

https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/33482627/jocelyn-alo-legend-comes-full-circle-record-breaking-home-run-hawaii

So although it's "a bunch of teams do a bunch of stuff and then Oklahoma lifts the trophy," check it out.

Monday, June 6

Game 11: 12 p.m. | Oklahoma vs. UCLA | ESPN ****See update below
Game 12 (if necessary): 2:30 p.m.
Game 13: 7 p.m. | Oklahoma State vs. Texas| ESPN
Game 14 (if necessary): 9:30 p.m.

WCWS Finals

Game 1: 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday, June 8
Game 2: 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 9
Game 3: 8:30 p.m. (if necessary), on Friday, June 10


****Update Mon 6/6 5:47 pm:

OU softball run-rules UCLA in NCAA semifinals, advances to WCWS championship series

Jocelyn Alo was emphatic.

“Five innings,” Alo said, holding up five fingers before repeating again. “Five innings.”

After a disappointing opening game Monday that put OU in a must-win situation [UCLA beat Oklahoma 7-3], the Sooners left no doubt, crushing UCLA 15-0 in five innings at USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium to advance to the championship series of the Women’s College World Series.

The best-of-three series, which begins at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, will be an all-Big 12 affair.

OU (57-3) will take on either Oklahoma State or Texas.

Going into Monday, those two rivals were the only two teams to beat the Sooners this season.
Some of youze must be watching this. If you haven't, tonight's OKSt-Texas game should be a good one. Not sure if OKSt's Kelly Maxwell will be pitching. She's 21-4 on the year with a sub 1.2 ERA.

View: https://youtu.be/ORy-eSWSxoc


Struck out 14 (in a 7 inning game) the other night. Just blows hitters away.

Anyway - watch.
 
Last edited:

canderson

Mr. Brightside
SoSH Member
Jul 16, 2005
39,428
Harrisburg, Pa.
This has been a great WS. My friend has written two great stories for ESPN about how fast womens softball is growing and how the World Series is exploding. Worth a read.

Women's College World Series: Home run balls, vigilant ushers and the souvenir of a lifetime
https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/34028004/women-college-world-series-home-run-balls-vigilant-ushers-souvenir-life

2022 WCWS: College softball's rising popularity (and local teams' dominance) on display in OKC
https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/34045169/2022-wcws-college-softball-rising-popularity-local-teams-dominance-display-okc
 

AMS25

Member
SoSH Member
Feb 29, 2008
3,121
Holland on the Plains
This year, the WCWS are a celebration of Big 12 softball. Before the Sooners lost to UCLA today, they had only been beaten by two other teams all year: Texas and OSU. And, lo and behold, the Sooners will play one of those teams for the championship.

As someone who lives in Oklahoma, softball is huge here. More Sooners fans go to the softball games than to the baseball games, though I personally prefer the baseball stadium to the softball stadium. (The baseball park is designed so that those of us in the cheap seats sit in the shade. In the softball stadium, the cheap seats are metal and in the unforgiving sun. Fortunately, the university will be building a new softball stadium shortly.)
 

OCST

Sunny von Bulow
SoSH Member
Jan 10, 2004
24,483
The 718
This has been a great WS. My friend has written two great stories for ESPN about how fast womens softball is growing and how the World Series is exploding. Worth a read.

Women's College World Series: Home run balls, vigilant ushers and the souvenir of a lifetime
https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/34028004/women-college-world-series-home-run-balls-vigilant-ushers-souvenir-life

2022 WCWS: College softball's rising popularity (and local teams' dominance) on display in OKC
https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/34045169/2022-wcws-college-softball-rising-popularity-local-teams-dominance-display-okc
I read the first, about the ushers’ HR ball tradition, a few days ago and sent it to my wife and daughter. Great stuff.

Daughter is 12 and a softball maniac- she’s a catcher which makes me irrationally proud.
 

OCST

Sunny von Bulow
SoSH Member
Jan 10, 2004
24,483
The 718
Cowgirls up 5-0 on Texas in the 4th. Maxwell just lost her no-no as I was typing that she had one, proving that I jinxed it. Hard single off her glove and an E1 for a bad throw to put the runner at second.

she’s got 6 Ks and 2 BB thru 3.1

Maxwell vs Alo in the best of 3 finals, if this result holds, will be appointment TV.
 

OCST

Sunny von Bulow
SoSH Member
Jan 10, 2004
24,483
The 718
Dinger and Horns cut it to 5-3.

I will continue to drive reversals in this game by talking about it
 

Van Everyman

Member
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Apr 30, 2009
26,991
Newton
I continue to think women's college softball is a better sport than MLB. These games haven’t changed my feeling about that.
 

OCST

Sunny von Bulow
SoSH Member
Jan 10, 2004
24,483
The 718
Cowgirls just had one of the most horrendous fielding sequences on one play I’ve ever seen, all three runners score (including the batter). Total implosion and after having a 5-0 lead with a dominant pitcher carrying a no hitter thru 3+ they now trail.

Amazing.
 

Van Everyman

Member
SoSH Member
Apr 30, 2009
26,991
Newton
Cowgirls just had one of the most horrendous fielding sequences on one play I’ve ever seen, all three runners score (including the batter). Total implosion and after having a 5-0 lead with a dominant pitcher carrying a no hitter thru 3+ they now trail.

Amazing.
That play would’ve been embarrassing for my 12 year-old’s team. Unbelievable.
 

canderson

Mr. Brightside
SoSH Member
Jul 16, 2005
39,428
Harrisburg, Pa.
Cowgirls just had one of the most horrendous fielding sequences on one play I’ve ever seen, all three runners score (including the batter). Total implosion and after having a 5-0 lead with a dominant pitcher carrying a no hitter thru 3+ they now trail.

Amazing.
Scared the cat during this play lol
 

OCST

Sunny von Bulow
SoSH Member
Jan 10, 2004
24,483
The 718
That play would’ve been embarrassing for my 12 year-old’s team. Unbelievable.
I’m going to text it to my daughters U12 team. The single biggest thing we do to piss away games is to throw the ball around when the play is seemingly dead, runners having advanced as far as they’re going to go, then a kid chucks it 20 feet over the 2b’s head
 

JimM

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Jul 8, 2000
996
Texas has to win the first game. I don't see how OU loses two in a row.
 

OCST

Sunny von Bulow
SoSH Member
Jan 10, 2004
24,483
The 718
Giddyap- Game 1 of best of 3 final TX-OK about to start.

stll stunned by OkSt collapse. Was looking forward to Maxwell vs Alo
 

OCST

Sunny von Bulow
SoSH Member
Jan 10, 2004
24,483
The 718
Yep, it's Trautwein.
A little shaky to start.

In the postseason, Trautwein’s gone 5-0 and thrown 28.2 innings pitched, with three wins in the Women’s College World Series. She’s allowed six runs but has thrown four complete games. The only start where she didn’t go the distance, was the 13-2 run-rule win over Northwestern where Bahl came in to register the final out
That’s a lot of work. OkSt went to the well once too often with Maxwell. She fatigued mentally and it cost them a berth in the title series.

Traut just walked them full. These rotations don’t go as deep as baseball, the pitchers can physically handle more work, but that doesn’t mean they can hold up.

real time edit: she walked in a run.

now she leaves them loaded to give up only one but that’s a lot of pitches.
 

OCST

Sunny von Bulow
SoSH Member
Jan 10, 2004
24,483
The 718
Lead off hitter for ok doubles, Alo up. Stop what you’re doing and watch player
 

AMS25

Member
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Feb 29, 2008
3,121
Holland on the Plains
That’s a lot of work. OkSt went to the well once too often with Maxwell. She fatigued mentally and it cost them a berth in the title series.
Actually, the OU pitching staff has had a light load this year (and during the playoffs) because the team won so many run-ruled games.

Edit: Alo says whatever!
 

OCST

Sunny von Bulow
SoSH Member
Jan 10, 2004
24,483
The 718
Texas did a good job tonight of getting runners on and around in the first inning. 2 runs on 2 sac flies and almost had a couple more but the OU CF had a nice over-the-fence grab.

2-0 Horns in bottom 2.
 

Awesome Fossum

Member
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Jul 20, 2005
3,892
Austin, TX
I mean from the players. Watch their mouth the next time literally any of them make a big play. OU runner on second was literally screaming it back to her dugout just now after her double.