OKLAHOMA CITY — Good morning from the Women's College World Series. Or as perception clearly has it, the "Oklahoma Sooner and Everybody Else Invitational," which is scheduled to begin Thursday at OGE Energy Field.
The 2022 WCWS bracket shows eight teams here, including the Florida Gators, but from the moment the first pitch of this collegiate softball season was spun the top-ranked and now top-seeded Sooners were the overwhelming favorites to defend their 2021 NCAA title and have done nothing over the last nearly four months to make anyone think differently.
Fifty-four and two.
That's OU's record. It looks even more daunting (54-2) in numbers. Coach Patty Gasso already has five national championships on her resume, including three of the previous five, but the numbers (and roster) say this is the best of her 28 teams, and like the previous 14 Sooner squads that made it to the USA Softball Hall of Fame Complex (including the '21 champs who went 56-4) this one will be playing just 25 miles or so from the school's campus in Norman, Okla. As if it needs that extra advantage.
As a team, Oklahoma leads the nation in batting average (.369), scoring (9.04 runs per game), on-base percentage (.476) and home runs per game (2.41), along with earned-run average (0.80) and shutouts (32). Designated hitter Jocelyn Alo not only has 29 homers (plus 72 RBI) this season, but ranks No. 1 all time in women's college softball history with 117 career blasts. At a staggering .497, Alo is one of three OU players hitting at least .400 (to go with 20-plus homers) and one of seven batting at least .357. In the circle, the Sooners' trio of Jordy Bahl, Hope Trautwein and Nicole May have accounted for all 54 decisions — and all three have ERAs at 0.99 or below. Their strikeout-to-walk differential is 433 to 91.
Translation: No one hits or pitches better, which on paper seems like a tough combination.
Oklahoma slugger Jocelyn Alo
About the only thing the Sooners get dinged on is defense, where they check in 13th nationally (.977). OK, so they don't get dinged there, either.
This time last June, Oklahoma '21 left OKC with folks wondering if it wasn't the greatest team in college softball history — and this one is better.
But that's why you play the games, right?
2022 WCWS First-Round Schedule (All Thursday games on ESPN)
Game 1
UCLA vs Texas
Noon
Game 2
Oklahoma vs Northwestern
2:30 p.m.
Game 3
Florida vs Oregon State
7 p.m.
Game 4
Oklahoma State vs Arizona
9:30 p.m.
Regarding those measly two aforementioned OU losses, well, they came at the hands of two teams, seventh-seeded Oklahoma State and unseeded Texas, that also reached OKC. Think about that scene in "Rocky IV." The one where Rocky stuns Ivan Drago and bloodies the giant Russian. "He's not a machine!" shouts the trainer. He's a man!"
Weirder things have happened. It was only a few weeks ago that the most ardent Florida fan, for example, probably had serious doubts the Gators could make it back to the WCWS. They were just 11-11 and looking up at five other teams in Southeastern Conference play. Heck, five days ago UF was socked 6-0 by Virginia Tech in Game 1 of their Blacksburg Super Regional, the Gators' first foray into Super road play since 2007. Didn't look good.
Then came two elimination games, both of which UF not only stared down, but combined to win with an eruption of offense in 7-3 and 12-0 victories, which paired nicely with the usual defense and this squad's tremendous all-around speed that has led to a club record of 131 steals (in 147 tries) on the season. The Gators got to OKC as the field's leader in both hitting and scoring in this NCAA tournament (47 runs, 62 hits). What more can you ask than to be playing the best softball of the season when arriving at the game's Mecca?
Strangely, Florida has not faced any of the seven teams in the bracket, and for the first time since 2007 only one SEC team made it to OKC, compared to three from the Big 12 and Pac-12 (two of them unseeded), plus one from the Big Ten.
And the theme of the week will be which team gets to play sacrificial lamb to the Sooners in what (now annually, it seems) amounts to a home tournament?
Any one of sevens teams, including the Gators, would love to get that chance.
Here's a look at those seven ... and that one.
OKLAHOMA
Sooners freshman pitcher Jordy Bahl
Seed: 1 Record: 54-2 Coach: Patty Gasso (28th season; 1,390–343–2) Road to OKC: Won its home regional and swept No. 16 seed UCF in Norman Super Regional. Record vs WCWS field: 7-2 (Beat UCLA in the Mark Campbell Invitational; beat Arizona in the Mark Nutter Collegiate Classic; Won two of three in regular-season series at Texas; swept Oklahoma State at home; lost to Oklahoma State in Big 12 Conference Tournament semifinals) WCWS appearances (15): 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022 NCAA championships (5): 2000, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2021 The buzz: As expected, the reigning NCAA champion Sooners bounced back from their surprising loss in the Big 12 Tournament (to rival Oklahoma State, no less) and took their first instance since 2012 of not winning the league's regular-season and tourney personally, by rolling through NCAA play without a loss. Along the way, OU got a no-hitter from Trautwein (18-1, 0.40 ERA, 141 K, 35 BB) in Super play against UCF — and she isn't even the team's ace. That moniker falls to Bahl (21-1, 0.95 ERA, 199 K, 29 BB), who has not pitched since May 6 due to arm soreness but is expected to be ready to go in OKC. The big box-office draw for the Sooners (as if they need one, given their proximity to Hall of Fame Stadium), obviously, is Alo. The fifth-year senior is all but certain to garner a second straight NCAA Player of the Year award. Alo isn't the only bat in the lineup, as mentioned above. The stellar pitching staff is mentored by associate head coach Jennifer Rocha, who went to OU after 13 seasons (and two national titles) as pitching coach at Florida.
UCLA
Bruins third baseman/catcher Delanie Wisz
Seed: 5 Record: 48-8 Coach: Kelly Inouye-Perez (16th season; 544-166-1) Road to OKC: Won its home regional and swept No. 12-seed Duke in Los Angeles Super Regional. Record vs WCWS field: 7-2 (Lost to Oklahoma in Mark Campbell Invitational; lost to Northwestern and beat Texas in St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Invitational; swept three games from Arizona in Pac-12 play at home; swept Oregon State in Pac-12 play at Corvallis) WCWS appearances (32): 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022. NCAA championships (13): 1982, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1995, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2010, 2019. The buzz: The Bruins come in with the nation's No. 11 offense (.324 average), led by the trio of utility standout Delanie Wish (.407, 14 HR, 58 RBI), shortstop and Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year Briana Perez (.393, 10 HR, 42 RBI) and center fielder Maya Brady (.329, 13 HR, 46 RBI). They hit, but they're even better in the circle, where only Oklahoma boasts a better staff. UCLA ranked second in team ERA (1.40) and allowed opponents to hit just .178. The Bruins' best pitchers are a pair of veterans in redshirt junior Megan Faramio (22-4, 1.70 ERA), the Pac-12 Pitcher of the Year, and redshirt senior Holly Azevedo (20-2, 1.19 ERA).
Seed: 7 Record: 48-12 Coach: Kenny Gajewski (7th season, 267-119) Road to OKC: Won its home regional and swept No. 10-seed Clemson in Stillwater Super Regional. Record vs WCWS field: 6-3 (Beat Northwestern at St. Pete/Clearwater Invitational; swept three games from Texas at home; swept in three games by Oklahoma on the road; beat Texas and Oklahoma in the Big 12 Conference Tournament at Oklahoma City). WCWS appearances (10): 1982, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1994, 1998, 2011, 2019, 2021, 2022 NCAA championships: None The buzz: Like it was in 2019, make way for another reunion of coaches with orange and blue blood. Rocha was there with the Sooners three years ago, as was Gajewski, who along with Rocha made up UF coach Tim Walton's assistant staff during the Gators' back-to-back national championships in 2014-15. Gajewski, Walton's teammate on OU's national-title winning baseball squad in 1995, left for Stillwater in 2016 and in his fourth season guided the Cowgirls to the WCWS for the first time in eight years — and now he has them back for a third straight time. OSU's .295 team batting average rates seventh among the eight teams in the field — junior catcher Julia Cottrill, the transfer from Florida, leads the team with 11 homers — but the Cowgirls trail only OU and UCLA in team ERA, with their 1.84 ranking 10th in the country. Redshirt junior Kelly Maxwell (19-4, 1.16 ERA) has 304 strikeouts, second most at the WCWS, and has walked just 58 batters. OSU also has arguably the best defense still standing, with a .981 field percentage (just 27 errors in 60 games).
NORTHWESTERN
Wildcats pitching ace Danielle Williams
Seed: 9 Record: 45-11 Coach: Kate Drohan (21st season, 656-385-1) Road to OKC: Won its home regional and upset No. 8-seed Arizona State in Tempe Super Regional. Record vs WCWS field: 1-1 (Beat UCLA and lost to Oklahoma State in SPC Invite) WCWS appearances (6): 1984, 1985, 1986, 2006, 2007, 2022 NCAA championships: None The buzz: The Wildcats made a stunning comeback on the road late Sunday night, rallying from a 5-0 deficit in the fourth inning to knock off the host Sun Devils 8-6 and reach their first WCWS in 15 years. They've made a habit of staging comebacks this season, hence the nickname "Cardiac Cats." The pitching staff is basically Danielle Williams (31-4, 1.86 ERA, 323 K, 76 BB), who started all three games against Arizona State, recording two wins and 19 strikeouts across 23.1 innings, including a career-high 11 innings in Game 1, allowing just three runs and tallying nine strikeouts in the win. She went the distance in the Game 3 clincher, allowing just one hit over the final four innings. Offensively, the Wildcats bat .304 as a team and boast three players with at least 50 RBI, led by graduate infielder/outfielder Rachel Lewis, who is batting .356, with 22 homers and 61 RBI.
Seed: 14 Record: 48-17 Coach:Tim Walton (17th season, 887-198) Road to OKC: Won its home regional and upset No. 3-seed Virginia Tech in best-of-three series at Blacksburg Super Regional Record vs WCWS field: 0-0 WCWS appearances (11): Years 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2022 NCAA championships (2): 2014, 2015 The buzz: Of the eight teams remaining, the Gators have the most WCWS appearances since making their first in 2008. UF had to take a different road this time, however, doing so on the Super Region road for the first time. The Gators are playing their best softball of the season, with 12 wins in their last 16 games, but they've done it by hitting the ball and scoring runs, something they did not do with consistency over the course of the season. With the return of All-America second baseman Hannah Adams (.379) from a hand injury that cost her 13 games, UF averaged 9.4 runs in six NCAA Tournament games, while batting a collective .400. Utility standout Skylar Wallace (.406, 53 RBI, 51 stolen bases) was 6-for-10 against Virginia Tech, with a homer and four RBI. The Gators also will have one of the fastest and hottest players in OKC, with freshman leadoff Kendra Falby (.401, 63 runs, 36 SB) at 12-for-22, accounting for 10 runs for the tournament. The bulk of the circle work will fall to seniors Elizabeth Hightower (17-8, 2.44 ERA) and Natalie Lugo (11-5, 1.98). The Gators defense fielded at .981, tied for third nationally with OSU.
ARIZONA
Arizona coach Caitlin Lowe-Nagy replaced Hall-of-Famer and seven-time NCAA champion coach Mike Candrea this season.
Seed: Unseeded Record: 38-20 Coach: Caitlin Lowe-Nagy (1st season, 38-20) Road to OKC: Upset No. 15-seed Missouri in Columbia Regional and swept unseeded Mississippi State in Starkville Super Regional. Record vs WCWS field: 1-6 (Lost to Oklahoma in Mary Nutter Classic; swept at UCLA in Pac-12 play; lost two of three at Oregon State in Pac-12 play) WCWS appearances (25): 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2019, 2021, 2022 NCAA championships (8): 1991, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2001, 2006, 2007 The buzz: The Wildcats returned to WCWS in their first season without legend/icon coach Mike Candrea in the dugout. Candrea led Arizona for 36 seasons (1986-2021) — and also won a gold medal at the 2004 Olympics as Team USA's head coach — on the way to amassing 1,674 victories, the most in college softball history (and the fourth by any coach in any NCAA sport), and claiming eight NCAA titles. Lowe-Nagy, who was a four-time first-team All American at UA, was promoted from associate head coach and despite going 8-16 in Pac-12 play (tied for last place), here the Wildcats are. They're because they hit. That .324 team average is second-best among WCWS teams (tied with UCLA), and helped UA average 6.12 runs per game. They have three players with at least 19 homers, led by sophomore utility slugger Allie Skaggs (.371), who has smashed 24. The Wildcats need to score in bunches because their opponents do also (4.05 runs per), thanks to a pitching staff that ranked 145th in ERA (3.70).
TEXAS
Texas run-scoring leader and table-setter Janae Jefferson
Seed: Unseeded Record: 43-19-1 Coach: Mike White (4th season, 156–53–1) Road to OKC: Upset No. 13-seed Washington in Seattle Regional and No. 4 Arkansas in Fayetteville Super Regional. Record vs WCWS field: 1-6 (Lost two of three against Oklahoma at home in Big 12 play; swept by Oklahoma State on the road; lost to Oklahoma State in Big 12 Tournament at Oklahoma City) WCWS appearances (6): 1998, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2013, 2022 NCAA championships: None The buzz: The Longhorns finished third in the Big 12 and are one of the two teams (along with Okie State) to knock off the big, bad Sooners during the regular season. UT beat OU 4-2 back on April 16 and the Sooners did not lose again until the conference tournament. Texas hits .309 as a team (24th in the country), but is way down the statistical lists in both team ERA (93rd at 3.07) and defense (167th at .959, with a WCWS-worst 71 errors). Infielder Janae Jefferson leads the squad with a .431 average that includes 22 doubles and a whopping 70 runs scored. UT has just one player with double-digit homers in Mary Iakopo (10), but she hits with runners in scoring position (54 RBI). Of the six pitchers who have appeared in the circle this season, only two have an ERA below 3.00, but Hailey Dolcini (22-10, 2.19 ERA) figures to get the bulk of work in OKC. UT's No. 2 pitcher, Estelle Czech, went 11-1, but with a 3.41 ERA and a .290 average against.
OREGON STATE
Beavers duel-threat star Mariah Mazon
Seed: Unseeded Record: 39-20 Coach: Laura Berg (10th season, 166-154-1) Road to OKC: Upset No. 11-seed Tennessee in Knoxville Regional and swept unseeded Stanford in Corvallis Super Regional. Record vs WCWS field: 2-4 (Won two of three vs. Arizona at home in Pac-12 play; swept by UCLA at home. WCWS appearances (2): 2006, 2022 NCAA championships: None The buzz: The Beavers are here despite hitting just .274 as a team (119th nationally) and finishing tied for sixth in the Pac-12 with a 9-15 record. Not exactly a rarity, either. The Beavers have never had a winning record in Berg's 10 seasons, so there's that. But they punched Tennessee out on the Volunteers home field in regional play, then dispatched of Pac-12 sister Stanford in Super, so they've got something going on here. OSU's best pitcher is Sarah Haendiges (13-6, 1.97 ERA, 131 K, 30), who the Gators can figure on seeing in Game 1. Offensively, infielder Frankie Hammoude (.386, 15 HR, 39 RBI) and outfielder Mariah Mazon (.366, 12 HR, 40 RBI), who also doubles as the team's' No. 2 starting pitcher (17-11, 2.05) ERA, are the most dangerous. In the Super round, Mazon became the program's all-time strikeouts leader.
