UCLA Softball Faces Three-Time Defending Champion Oklahoma Sooners
After Jordan Woolery powered the Bruins to a 4-1 win on Thursday, UCLA will have their toughest game of the postseason so far.
After breezing through the NCAA Regionals, Super Regionals and even the opening game of the Women’s College World Series, UCLA softball now faces the biggest challenge of the postseason this afternoon. That’s because UCLA must now play the the three-time defending champion Oklahoma Sooners, who are the two seeds. It’s the first time this postseason that the Bruins have had to play a team which is a higher seed.
Not only are the Sooners the three-time defending NCAA champs, they have also won five of the last seven titles, dating back to 2016. Oklahoma has had UCLA’s number since that 2016 season. During that span, UCLA has gone 4-6 against the Sooners.
What seems even worse is Oklahoma’s margin of victory in the six games they have won. In those games, the Sooners have scored 64 runs to UCLA’s 12. In fact, UCLA has held Oklahoma to less than double digits in just one of those losses. That was a 4-1 loss to the Sooners on February 12, 2022.
Meanwhile, in games that the Bruins have won, they have outscored the Sooners 35-11.
The lone bright spot for UCLA is that the Bruins are 3-0 when they hold Oklahoma to less than four runs. The teams are 1-1 when Oklahoma scores four.
Last Time Out
UCLA got on the board first against Alabama on Thursday. In the bottom of the third, Janelle Meoño was hit by a pitch with one out. Maya Brady singled to move Meoño to second and grad transfer Jadelyn Allchin singled through the right side to score Meoño.
The score stayed 1-0, Bruins, until the top of the fifth. Freshman pitcher Kaitlyn Terry allowed a lead-off hit to Alabama’s Bailey Dowling. In another of Kelly Inouye-Perez’s long list of bizarre pitching decisions, she immediately pulled Terry in favor of sophomore Taylor Tinsley. Kinley Pate pinch-ran for Dowling and a sacrifice by Lauren Esman advanced Pate to second. Tinsley allowed a single to left to Kali Heivilin and a walk to Kristen White to load the bases. After Bama’s Lauren Johnson popped out to second for the second out of the inning, Kenleigh Cahalan singled to right scoring Pate. Luckily for the Bruins, Heivilin tried to score as well, but was out at home by a mile, ending the Crimson Tide’s rally
But the game was now tied, 1-1.
In the bottom of the sixth, Maya Brady led off the inning with a single and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Allchin. Following an intentional walk to Sharlize Palacios, Lauren Hatch pinch-ran for the Bruins catcher. After Megan Grant took a called third strike for UCLA’s first out of the inning, Jordan Woolery sent a 1-1 pitch over the left field fence for a three-run homer, giving UCLA 1 4-1 lead with just an inning left.
In the seventh, Tinsley retired the Tide in order and the Bruins advanced to this afternoon’s game against the Sooners.
Here is the full remaining WCWS schedule:
Saturday, June 1
Game 7: #6 UCLA vs. #2 Oklahoma at 12 Noon PT on ABC
Game 8: #1 Texas vs. #4 Florida at 4:00 pm PT on ESPN
Sunday, June 2
Game 9: #14 Alabama vs. Game 8 Loser at Noon PT on ABC
Game 10: #8 Stanford vs. Game 7 Loser at 4:00 pm PT on ESPNU
Monday, June 3
Game 11: Game 7 Winner vs. Game 9 Winner at 9:00 am PT on ESPN
Game 12: Game 11 teams (if necessary), 11:30 am PT on ESPN
Game 13: Game 8 Winner vs. Game 10 Winner at 4:00 pm PT on ESPN2
Game 14: Game 12 teams (if necessary), 6:30 pm PT on ESPN2
Championship Finals
Game 1: 5:00 pm PT, Wednesday, June 5 on ESPN
Game 2: 5:00 pm PT, Thursday, June 6 on ESPN
Game 3 (if necessary): 5:00 pm PT, Friday, June 7 on ESPN
This is your UCLA vs. Oklahoma game thread.
Women’s College World Series
Game #7
Teams: #6 seed UCLA Bruins (43-10) vs. #2 seed Oklahoma Sooners (55-6)
When: Noon PT, Saturday, June 1, 2024
Where: Devon Park, Oklahoma City, OK
TV: ABC
Live Stream: ABC.com and the ABC app
Live Stats: UCLA StatBroadcast
NCAA.com
NCAA WCWS Bracket
Go Bruins!!!
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Bruins lose a tough one to the Sooners, 1-0, and now, will crossover to Bracket 1 to face Stanford at 4pm PT on Sunday in an elimination game.
Bruins leave a pair of runners in scoring position in the top of the third.