Oklahoma Softball defeats Texas for the WCWS Title, 10-5

The beginning of Game 2 of the WCWS title series was not ideal for Patty Gasso and the Oklahoma Sooners. The Sooners were the away team for this matchup, and Texas was seemingly getting on base with relative ease on routine singles off of starter Jordy Bahl. Bahl surrendered two runs at the bottom of the first inning, but that doesn’t mean the theatrics for the Sooners didn’t start already. Jayda Coleman, an integral piece to this team and the best center fielder in softball had some pretty spectacular plays.

Actually, the Sooners’ bats may not have been on full display as they typically are, but the skills of OU defenders were apparent and impressive. Grace Lyons, another All-American and Short Stop helped turn this double play in order to ensure the end of the third inning while still down 2-0.

Finally, in the fourth inning, the Sooners’ bats came alive with a leadoff double off Alyssa Brito and Hansen reaching on a throwing error. Gasso’s squad started to come to life on offense once again under the play of Taylon Snow when she batted in Hansen for a run after Brito already put up a point on a defensive error to make the score tied at 2-2, but not before Jayda Coleman made sure the Longhorns didn’t get the opportunity to score again.

The fifth inning has been very kind to the Sooners in recent days as well. With two runners on the bases and one out away from the bottom of the inning, Alyssa Brito came to the plate and then batted in a run to make it 3-2 very briefly just before Kinzie Hansen could launch a 3-run shot in left field for a score of 6-2 in favor of Gasso’s squad. Meanwhile, Oklahoma had also retired Jordy Bahl in favor of Nicole May to give Texas different looks as well. Bahl finished with four innings, four hits, two runs, and two strikeouts.

The sixth inning was also quite good to the Oklahoma Sooners and Patty Gasso as Rylie Boone got on base, Jayda Coleman was walked, and Alo singled up the middle. After Boone scored on a sac-fly from Jennings, Grace Lyons then smacked the ball out of the park to go up 10-2.

In the seventh inning, the body language was all off for the Longhorns, whose time in the spotlight might’ve just been too bright for a team that hasn’t been to this level in general, let alone consistently.

Jocelyn Alo got a curtain call for the bottom of the seventh inning on defense, where she caught the first AND second out from left field of the last inning she’ll play at Oklahoma. Nicole May was also retired by Hope Trautwein to finish things off in OKC. May finished with two innings pitched while surrendering one hit, zero runs, and dishing out two strikeouts. Trautwein ended up surrendering a few runs via a home run, but she was not fazed.

This team is a testament to the kind of coach Patty Gasso is, arriving in the 90s and now having her golden age of her career in the twenty-teens and beyond. Jocelyn Alo has rewritten the history books on what softball is like, not just at the prestigious University of Oklahoma, but the softball world. They were a wrecking ball and a team that nobody wanted to face, but also gawked at and studied because of their sheer ability to play long ball, small ball, and defense that was tough as nails. They are once again the last ones standing at the top of the mountain, and it is more than well deserved.