AUSTIN, Texas — The No. 1 seed in this year’s NCAA Division I softball tournament has taken its first blow.
One more, and there will be no place in Oklahoma City next week for the Texas Longhorns.
Trinity Cannon hit two home runs, including a three-run shot in the top of the first inning, and 16th-seeded Texas A&M never trailed in its 6-5 win over host Texas on Friday in the opening game of the best-of-three Austin Super Regional.
Texas A&M (44-13) can clinch its first berth in the Women’s College World Series since 2017 with a win on Saturday. If the Longhorns (50-7), who went 3-0 while outscoring their competition 26-2 in last week’s super regional round, can bounce back with a victory in the second game, a third game would be necessary on Sunday.
Texas ended the Aggies’ 2023 season with 2-1 and 11-5 victories over their in-state nonconference rivals in the Austin Regional.
Aggies pitcher Emiley Kennedy (24-10) allowed five runs on six hits and five walks with five strikeouts in a complete game Friday.
Kennedy Powell led off the game with a single, and Koko Wooley followed with a double before Cannon capped a nine-pitch at-bat with a home run to left-center field that made it 3-0.
Powell singled and Wooley fouled out before Cannon hit a two-run shot in the fifth inning. In the sixth, Mya Perez drew a two-out walk and then scored on a double by Kramer Eschete to make it 6-0.
The Longhorns’ Viviana Martinez led off the bottom half of that inning with a single, and then Reese Atwood walked. Martinez was out at third when Katie Stewart reached on a fielder’s choice, but then Joley Mitchell drew a walk to load the bases. Victoria Hunter pinch hit for Kayden Henry and drove the first pitch she saw over the wall in right-center, with her grand slam cutting the Texas deficit to 6-4.
Atwood hit a two-out solo shot in the bottom of the seventh, but Kennedy struck out Stewart to end the game.
Texas associate head coach Steve Singleton and Aggies assistant Russ Heffley were both ejected after a confrontation that began when Powell stepped on the foot of Stewart at first base on the final out in the top of the sixth.
Florida 4, Baylor 1
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida senior Katie Kistler hit a two-run double in the first inning, Korbe Otis smashed her ninth home run of the season in the fifth, and the fourth-seeded Gators beat Baylor to open the Gainesville Super Regional.
Florida (50-12), which extended its winning streak to 12 games, has a chance to sweep Baylor (35-22) on Saturday and advance to the Women’s College World Series. The Gators are playing their first super regional at home since 2021, when they were swept by Southeastern Conference rival Georgia with a pair of shutouts. Florida’s most recent super regional title at home came in 2019 against Tennessee, another SEC program.
Jocelyn Erickson, the SEC player of the year, tied it a 1-all in the first inning with a two-out RBI double down the left-field line. Kistler sent a shot into the gap in left-center field that rolled to the wall, and Skylar Wallace scored from first for a 3-1 lead.
Wallace set a Division I record for most career runs with 303.
Florida freshman Keagan Rothrock (29-6) retired nine of 10 batters faced over the final three innings and closed with her fifth strikeout.
Baylor pitcher Aliyah Binford (13-12) helped herself out with an RBI single in the first and a homer in the third, but that was it for the Bears.
Duke 6, Missouri 3
COLUMBIA, Mo. — Cassidy Curd retired 11 straight batters in relief of starter Jala Wright, and No. 10 seed Duke beat seventh-seeded Missouri 6-3 for the first regional win program history.
Now the Blue Devils (51-6) are just one win away from securing their first WCWS berth. Game 2 of the best-of-three Columbia Super Regional is set for Saturday.
Francesca Frelick, who is third in the country in sacrifice flies, hit a two-run shot in the second inning, her sixth homer of the season, to put Duke ahead 2-1. Kelly Torres scored on the play to reach 100 career runs.
Two batters later, D’Auna Jennings drove the ball to the wall for an RBI triple, scoring Amiah Burgess from first for a two-run lead.
Missouri tied it in the bottom of the second at 3 to force a pitching change. Curd entered with two outs before stranding runners on first and second with a popup.
Duke took the lead for good with a two-run fifth, aided by an overturned call at the plate that allowed Aleyah Terrell to score. Jennings added a run in the seventh with some cleaver baserunning during a rundown.
Curd (12-3) struck out eight batters in 5 1/3 innings, including her 300th career strikeout.
Laurin Krings (16-9) allowed five runs in 4 2/3 innings for Missouri (47-17), which is making its 10th super regional appearance.
Oklahoma State 8, Arizona 0 (5 innings)
STILLWATER, Okla. — Lexi Kilfoyl pitched a complete game, Karli Godwin, Claire Timm and Micaela Wark each hit a home run, and the fifth-seeded Cowgirls beat Arizona in a game shortened by the run rule to open the Stillwater Super Regional.
Oklahoma State (48-10) can clinch a WCWS berth with a win in Game 2 on Saturday.
Jilyen Poullard walked to lead off the bottom of the first inning, advanced to second on a double down the line in right by Tallen Edwards, then scored on a sacrifice fly by Caroline Wang. Godwin hit an 0-2 pitch back up the middle for a single that drove in Edwards and made it 2-0.
Timm and Wark hit back-to-back homers to lead off the second, and Godwin, who hit a two-out solo homer in the third, was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded as part of a five-run fourth that made it 8-0.
Kilfoyl gave up three hits and a walk with three strikeouts. Godwin finished 2-for-2 with 3 RBIs.
The Cowgirls earned the program’s first run-rule win in a super regional and their 15th straight NCAA tournament win at home.
After Blaise Biringer grounded out to lead off the fifth for Arizona (37-17-1), Emily Schepp walked, moved to second on a groundout by Tayler Biehl, and then went to third on an infield single by Kaiah Altmeyer before Dakota Kennedy hit into a fielder’s choice to end the game.
Schepp was the only player to advance beyond first base for the Wildcats.
LSU 11, Stanford 1 (5 innings)
STANFORD, Calif. — Sydney Berzon struck out five batters and walked three while allowing a trio of hits in a complete game, and Kelley Lynch went 2-for-4 with a grand slam and five RBIs as the Tigers routed their hosts with a run-rule victory in the opener of the Stanford Super Regional.
LSU (44-15) can clinch a WCWS berth with a win on Saturday.
McKenzie Redoutey singled to lead off the game and advanced to second when Ciara Briggs reached base on an error. Lynch followed with an RBI double, and Raeleen Gutierrez hit the next pitch back up the middle for a single that drove in Briggs and Lynch to make it 3-0.
Taryn Kern and Kyra Chan drew back-to-back walks to lead off the bottom half of the inning, and Aly Kaneshiro hit an RBI single that pulled Stanford (46-15) within 3-1.
Berzon (20-8), a sophomore and a former Baylor School standout, didn’t have much trouble after the opening inning.
The Tigers took control for good in the fifth.
Gutierrez and Taylor Pleasants each singled before Ali Newland hit a three-run homer, and Maci Bergeron followed three pitches later with a solo shot to make it 7-1. Petty, Redoutey and Briggs loaded the bases with three consecutive singles before Lynch pulled an 0-1 pitch high in the air over the wall in the left for a grand slam — her first home run of the season — that ended the scoring.
Stanford’s NiJaree Canady (21-5) gave up six runs (five earned) on 10 hits with six strikeouts over four innings. Regan Krause faced six batters and recorded just one out, allowing five runs on five hits, including two homers.
Oklahoma 4, Florida State 2
NORMAN, Okla. — Kasidi Pickering went 2-for-4 with a home run, Maya Bland threw two perfect innings in relief, and second-seeded Oklahoma completed a sweep of its Norman Super Regional, stretching its winning streak to a record 17 straight games in NCAA tournament play.
The Sooners (54-6), the three-time reigning national champions, clinched their eighth trip to the Women’s College World Series. They were the first time to clinch a spot this year, having won their super regional opener 11-3 in six innings Thursday, and they will try to be the first team with four straight WCWS crowns.
Florida State (46-16), the runner-up to Oklahoma in 2021 and again last year in Oklahoma City, was the NCAA tourney’s No. 15 seed this season and went 3-0 in its Tallahassee Regional last weekend, but the Seminoles’ journey ended in Norman this time.
After Jayda Coleman flied out to lead off the top of the third, Tiare Jennings singled to right, advanced to second on a wild pitch and moved to third on a passed ball. Ella Parker walked on four straight pitches, and Jennings scored a couple of pitches later when Parker was caught in a pickle and tagged out.
Florida State’s Jaysoni Beachum led off the bottom half of the inning with a homer to make it 1-1.
Coleman singled to lead off the fifth, and after Jennings lined out, she moved to third on Parker’s single down the right-field line. Coleman scored and Parker took second on a wild pitch, and after Alyssa Brito lined out, Pickering hit a two-out, two-run homer that made it 4-1.
Kalei Harding hit a solo shot in the bottom of the fifth that cut Florida State’s deficit to two.
Karlie Keeney (6-1) came on in relief of Kierston Deal with one out in the third and pitched 2 2/3 innings, allowing a run on three hits to earn the win. Bland pitched the sixth and seventh innings without allowing a baserunner to notch the save.
Florida State’s Mimi Gooden, who came on in the sixth and allowed two runs on three hits, took the loss.
UCLA 6, Georgia 1
LOS ANGELES — Sharlize Palacios had two home runs among her three hits while driving in four runs, and No. 6 seed UCLA stretched its streak of wins to 13 while completing a sweep of 11th-seeded Georgia in the Los Angeles Super Regional.
The Bruins are in the Women’s College World Series for a record 30th time.
Palacios gave UCLA (42-10) a 1-0 lead in the top of the first with an RBI single, scoring Maya Brady.
Georgia (43-19) scored its lone run in the bottom of the inning on a two-out single by Lyndi Rae Davis.
Brady added an RBI single with one out in the second, scoring Thessa Malau’ulu for a 2-1 lead. Palacios homered after Brady led off the fourth with a single for a 4-1 advantage. Malau’ulu added a sacrifice fly in the fifth, and Palacios hit a solo shot in the sixth to complete the scoring.
Taylor Tinsley (17-8) went the distance for UCLA, allowing four hits and a walk while striking out six batters.
Madison Kerpics (13-4) took the loss for the Bulldogs, yielding two runs on four hits and two walks in a five-out start. Lilli Backes followed and gave up four runs (three earned) in 4 2/3 innings.
UCLA, an 8-0 winner in six innings against Georgia on Thursday, has advanced to the WCWS championship round 20 times, winning 13 titles.