Eight for OKC selections
Check out The Oklahoman’s selections as the favorites to make the Women’s College World Series in four weeks.
With the start of the Women’s College World Series at USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium just over four weeks away, it’s time to start looking at the teams that could be bound for college softball’s biggest stage.
Teams will be wrapping up their regular seasons — and for those that have them, conference tournaments — over the next two weeks, with the NCAA regionals set to begin May 18.
Here is The Oklahoman’s first edition of Eight for OKC:
UCLA Conference: Pac-12 Record: 44-3, 15-3 Since losing two straight to Oregon in mid-March, the Bruins have been on fire, winning 19 of their last 20 games, including series sweeps of Arizona and Washington in the last three weeks. UCLA is batting .352 as a team, second-best in the country, behind Boise State. A promising trend for the Bruins as the postseason nears, they’re 16-0 in neutral-site games this season.
Oregon Conference: Pac-12
Record: 41-7, 15-3
The 5-0 win over Oklahoma on April 19 sparked a seven-game winning streak from the Ducks that included series sweeps of Stanford and Washington. Oregon could stretch that streak to 10 with a home series against Utah this weekend. Megan Kleist and Miranda Elish continue to anchor the Oregon pitching staff, both with earned-run averages of 1.04 or better. Oklahoma Conference: Big 12 Record: 44-3, 15-0
The Sooners’ deep and talented pitching staff continues to sparkle, with a team ERA of 1.11, secondbest in the country behind Michigan. Both Paige Lowary (0.90) and Paige Parker (0.91) are posting dominant numbers again. Freshman Jocelyn Alo’s 23 home runs lead the NCAA, and the two-time defending champions are batting .325 as a team.
Florida Conference: SEC Record: 44-8, 17-4
The Gators took two of three games from LSU last weekend, seeing a nine-game winning streak snapped on Saturday. Junior pitcher Kelly Barnhill has a 0.88 ERA in 167.0 innings pitched. Her 263 strikeouts are the most by a pitcher from a Power Five conference. Washington Conference: Pac-12 Record: 41-8, 12-8 Reeling of late, the Huskies have lost six in a row, getting swept in a series at UCLA, then at home against Oregon. Still, Washington has two strong pitchers in Taran Alvelo and Gabbie Plain, and a solid lineup from top to bottom, with a .322 team batting average. Georgia Conference: SEC Record: 42-8, 15-6 Georgia lost one of the nation’s most dominant pitchers when Brittany Gray went out for the year because of a biceps injury suffered last month. She had allowed only seven earned runs in 102 innings this season (0.48 ERA). Mary Wilson Avant has a 1.19 ERA stepping into the role of ace for the Bulldogs.
Arizona State Conference: Pac-12 Record: 38-9, 12-6
The Sun Devils have a chance to build some momentum coming off a three-game sweep of Utah before this weekend’s series at home against Stanford. They close the regular season at UCLA. Arizona State’s Giselle Juarez has been a workhorse in the circle, with a 21-3 record and 0.94 ERA over 171.0 innings pitched.
Florida State Conference: ACC
Record: 41-10, 18-3 Having mostly dominated the ACC thus far, Florida State rounds out the regular season with a three-game series at North Carolina State before heading to Atlanta for the conference tournament. Sydney Sherrill, a freshman who starred at Southmoore, leads the nation with 24 doubles.