Oklahoma Softball: UCLA Outpaces Sooners, Forces If-Necessary Game in WCWS Semifinals
OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma suffered its first setback at the Women’s College World Series on Monday.
The 5-seeded UCLA Bruins jumped on the Sooners early, beating OU 7-3 to stave off elimination at Hall of Fame Stadium.
With the win, the Bruins (51-9) forced the if-necessary game against the top-seeded Sooners (56-3), and rematch immediately following Monday’s first contest.
Needing to pull the upset to keep their season alive, the Bruins wasted no time striking first.
OU starting pitcher Nicole May issued a leadoff walk, and two batters later, UCLA third baseman Delanie Wisz made her pay.
The redshirt senior smacked a laser over the left field fence, putting Oklahoma in a 2-0 hole before the OU lineup got a chance at the plate.
When the Sooner bats did get into the action, they immediately responded.
Jayda Coleman cut the lead in half in the bottom of the first, lining a ball over the fence in center field.
After a rocky first inning, May appeared to settle into the contest in the second inning.
The sophomore right-hander retired UCLA in order, but that represented the end of her success on Monday afternoon.
In the third inning, May immediately gave up a single and a walk, setting the table for Maya Brady’s three-run bomb that extended UCLA’s lead to 5-1.
It marked the second-most runs allowed in a game by the OU pitching staff this season.
Having seen enough, Patty Gasso turned to NFCA Freshman of the Year Jordy Bahl in the circle.
Taking the field in her first major action since sustaining an arm injury at the end of the regular season, Bahl bought her offense time.
OU’s true freshman star retired nine of the first 10 batter she faced, again dominating the Bruins after she registered 14 strikeouts in the meeting between the two sides back in February.
OU’s offense needed that time to dial in on UCLA pitcher Megan Faraimo.
Though the Sooners were making solid contact, Faraimo retired nine straight OU batters after giving up the homer to Coleman.
But all of that chanced in the fourth inning.
Jocelyn Alo led off the frame with a hard-hit single up the middle, and was replaced on the base paths by pinch-runner Hannah Coor.
Two batters later, shortstop Grace Lyons ignited the crowd with a no-doubt home run to left field.
Though Oklahoma only cut the deficit to 5-3, the two-run shot by Lyons brought life back to OU as the team repeatedly exited the mouth of the dugout to fire up the home fans and recapture the momentum inside the stadium.
Riding that wave, the Sooners had a chance to tie the game in the fifth inning.
Coleman drew a two-out walk, bringing Alo back to the plate.
As Oklahoma’s parent section chanted “Sooner Magic” in an effort to summon a big play, UCLA’s new pitcher had other ideas in mind.
Replacing Faraimo, Holly Azevedo stared down Alo and pulled the string on a nasty change up. College softball’s Home Run Queen took the bait and swung way in front of the ball to end the inning.
OU was again unable to cash in on a walk in the sixth, as Azevedo struck out Alyssa Brito and forced a Kinzie Hansen groundout to erase the walk she issued to Lyons.
UCLA finally found a breakthrough off Bahl in the top of the seventh.
Brady uncorked her second two-run homer of the day off the first-year player, adding insurance as the Bruin lead was extended to 7-3.
Oklahoma won’t have to stew on the defeat for long.
The Sooners and the Bruins will regroup and battle again on Monday in a winner-take-all contest, with neither team having any room for error.
OU and UCLA’s second matchup will fire one team onto Wednesday’s championship series at the WCWS, and the loser's season ends.
First pitch in the second game of the double-header is slated for approximately 2:19 p.m. in Oklahoma City.
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