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UCLA shut out Arizona State, 5-0, earlier today to create a tie atop the Pac 10 standings at 15 wins and 2 losses for each team. The Bruins and Sun Devils play again tomorrow, with the winner taking a one-game lead into next weekend's final games of conference play.

Michigan defeated Penn State (in 10 innings) while Northwestern knocked off Michigan State. As a result, the Wolverines and Wildcats remain tied for first in the Big 10, with each completing its respective two-game series against today's opponent, tomorrow. The Big 10 rewards its regular-season champion with the hosting honors for the conference tournament. If two teams end up tied for first, as I understand it, then a coin flip will determine who gets to host.

A nice turnaround is taking place here in Lubbock, Texas. After starting off the year 0-12, the Texas Tech softballers finally got their act together with the start of Big 12 play. Now, with today's win over Oklahoma State, the Red Raiders (8-9) stand only one win from finishing with a .500 record in league play (a Sunday rematch against OSU awaits). Because of the horrible start, however, Texas Tech's only hope of making the NCAA tournament rests with winning the Big 12 tourney.

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NiJaree Canady Transferring to -- of All Places -- Texas Tech

NiJaree Canady, whose sub-1.00 ERA helped lead Stanford to the Women's College World Series in both her years with the Cardinal, announced on July 24 that she is transferring to Texas Tech. I've lived in Lubbock for 27 years and can say that the town has been improving with a greater selection of restaurants and shops, and a new downtown performing arts center. Likewise, nice new facilities have been dotting the Texas Tech campus . Still, it seems unlikely that Canady would have become a Red Raider without the $1 million annual Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) deal for her, made possible by the donation of a Texas Tech alumni couple. So stunning an event is this, even in the ever-changing world of collegiate athletics, that the New York Times  even ran a behind-the-scenes story on Canady's path to Texas Tech. I look forward to being in the stands to watch Canady pitch next spring, an opportunity I never expected to have.

Pitching Star NiJaree Canady Reportedly in the Transfer Portal

Stanford pitching ace NiJaree Canady has reportedly entered the transfer portal ( link ), having completed two seasons in the circle for the Cardinal. Stanford has made the WCWS in both of Canady's seasons on the team. Another school hit hard by the transfer portal is the University of Washington, with an exodus of eight Huskies . This list of the top ten players in the portal includes four from UW. Today is the final day of the 30-day window for players to enter the portal.
Washington used a first-inning grand-slam homer from pitcher Danielle Lawrie and some late insurance runs to defeat Georgia by a score of 9-3 in tonight's late game. The win gives U-Dub a spot in the best-of-three championship series against Florida starting Monday (Georgia had defeated Washington earlier today, 9-8 in nine innings, to force tonight's rematch). The Huskies thus claimed "top dog" status over Georgia on their side of the bracket. Florida got a two-out grand-slam homer from Ali Gardiner in the bottom of the seventh to edge Alabama 6-5. The Crimson Tide made a strong recovery in the tournament after looking "not ready for prime time" in an opening-round loss to Michigan. But, as a result of tonight's heartbreaking loss to the Gators, Bama is now eliminated. Lowrie's and Gardiner's grand-slams are among four that have been hit so far in this World Series.