A long Saturday of softball is now complete, as is the field for the Women's College World Series. The following chart and the commentary below provides greater detail.
ESPN's announcers for the LSU-Florida State game have just pointed out that the top eight national seeds will all be going to Oklahoma City. To me, the major story line is how the SEC, which theoretically could have placed seven teams in the WCWS, will instead be sending the minimum two (i.e., SEC representation in the World Series was guaranteed via the Florida-Texas A&M and Georgia-Tennessee super-regional match-ups). The Pac-12 will have four teams in OKC (Oregon, UCLA, Washington, and Arizona State). The remaining two teams are Oklahoma (Big 12) and Florida State (ACC).
Series in italics began Thursday. All of the other series begin Friday.
Saturday Night
Oregon with an early 1-0 lead over Kentucky in decisive third game... Ducks' lead up to 7-0, Wildcats batting in the top of the third... Now 10-1 Oregon, bottom of the fourth... UO wins 11-1 (run-rule) to advance...
Arizona State, looking to close out South Carolina, also up 1-0... Score tied 1-1 in top of the fifth, with Sun Devils batting. Bases are loaded with none out... Single to left makes it 2-1 ASU... Double to the wall in left clears bases, making it 5-1... Still a 5-1 ASU lead, with Sun Devils batting in the top of the sixth... ASU one out away from WCWS, leading 5-2 in bottom of seventh, with one on for Gamecocks... Walk brings tying run to the plate... Fly-out to center ends it. ASU back to WCWS for first time since 2013...
Saturday Late Afternoon/Early Evening
Texas A&M down to final three outs, batting in top of seventh trailing Florida 2-1... Leadoff K... Another K... Aggies not yet done, with flare single to right... Tori Vidales, A&M slugger who hit a crucial HR yesterday, steps in... Vidales belts 3-1 pitch well beyond CF wall; A&M leads 3-2. It looks like Florida was pitching around Vidales, but grooved 3-1 pitch... Leadoff walk for UF in bottom half. A&M has seen this movie before! Next batter gets to 3-0 count, but flies out to left on full-count... Another walk, putting Gators on first and second with one out... Full-count on next UF batter... Strike-out looking on outside corner... Florida down to final out... 0-2 count... Jordan Matthews drives 2-2 pitch off the scoreboard in left-center, for 5-3 Gator win...
LSU takes 1-0 lead over Florida State in weather-delayed contest, but FSU comes up with four runs (including two-run dinger)... Tigers batting in bottom of seventh of 5-5 tie... Going to extras... Seminoles batting in top of 10th, have runners at first and second with two outs... Seemingly easy force at third on grounder to short flubbed, loading the bases for FSU... Weak pop to third ends FSU threat... Tigers with runners on first and second, two out, bottom of the tenth, thanks to high throw to first on grounder to pitcher. Florida State should have been out of the inning... K to end inning... On to the 11th...Two homers, a solo shot and a two-run drive, have Seminoles up 8-5 in top of 11th... Bottom of 11th uneventful, FSU wins to force decisive third game...
As this article confirms, in advance of the 2017 season, the NCAA announced that if a softball super-regional were to go three games, they would be played on three different days rather than the past practice of Games 2 and 3 being played as a doubleheader. However, the announcers on the LSU-FSU broadcast have said Game 3 will be played tonight, 30 minutes after the completion of Game 2. The three-separate-days policy does not appear to have been rescinded, as Florida and Texas A&M played on three separate days in this year's tourney. Perhaps weather considerations are driving the decision for LSU and FSU to play a doubleheader tonight...
Slugging Jessie Warren blasts two-run homer to left, FSU up 2-0, bottom of third, in decisive Game 3... Now 3-0 Seminoles, with LSU batting in top of fourth... LSU cuts deficit to 3-1, with Tigers coming up in top of sixth... LSU now down to its final out, trailing 3-1 in the top of the seventh. The Tigers got an infield hit to start off, but it was followed by a double-play grounder... Final out on grounder to pitcher... Florida State fills out the WCWS slate.
Washington comes out with two-run rally in top of first vs. Alabama... Huskies seem headed for OKC with a 6-0 lead, Tide batting in the bottom of the fifth... 6-0 is your final, U-Dub to WCWS...
Saturday Early Afternoon
Nicole Mendes's two-out, bases-loaded hit in the top of the first gives Oklahoma a 2-0 lead over Arkansas... The Sooners' lead is up to 7-0, top six...Barring a cataclysmic collapse, OU will be headed to the Women's College World Series to try for a third straight national title... 9-0 is the final.
Despite the loss, Arkansas appears to be a program on the rise, exhibiting major improvement in its three years under coach Courtney Deifel and making its first-ever super-regional this year.
Georgia and Tennessee are just underway... Still scoreless as the Vols bat in the bottom of the third... Tennessee loads bases with one out in third inning, but 1-2-3 (pitcher-to-catcher-to-1B) double-play on grounder to circle ends the threat... Leadoff single for Bulldogs in top of fourth... Followed by HBP... Runners bunted to second and third, now one out... Live by the double-play, die by it: Georgia batter lines out to 2B, runner doubled off bag... Georgia puts across run in top of seventh... Two-out single ties game for Tennessee. We're going to extras!... Cortni Emanuel's solo home-run gives UGA lead in top of eighth and Bulldogs hold on to advance to WCWS.
ESPN's announcers for the LSU-Florida State game have just pointed out that the top eight national seeds will all be going to Oklahoma City. To me, the major story line is how the SEC, which theoretically could have placed seven teams in the WCWS, will instead be sending the minimum two (i.e., SEC representation in the World Series was guaranteed via the Florida-Texas A&M and Georgia-Tennessee super-regional match-ups). The Pac-12 will have four teams in OKC (Oregon, UCLA, Washington, and Arizona State). The remaining two teams are Oklahoma (Big 12) and Florida State (ACC).
Game 1
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Game 2
|
Game 3
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| Oregon (1) vs. Kentucky (16) | UO | ||
| Florida (2) vs. Texas A&M (15) | UFL | ||
| UCLA (3) vs. Arizona (14) | --- | ||
| Oklahoma (4) vs. Arkansas (13) | OU | --- | |
| (5) Washington vs. (12) Alabama | UW |
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| Florida St. (6) vs. (11) LSU | FSU | FSU | |
| Georgia (7) vs. Tennessee (10) | UGA | --- | |
| Arizona St. (8) vs. South Carolina (9) |
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|
Saturday Night
Oregon with an early 1-0 lead over Kentucky in decisive third game... Ducks' lead up to 7-0, Wildcats batting in the top of the third... Now 10-1 Oregon, bottom of the fourth... UO wins 11-1 (run-rule) to advance...
Arizona State, looking to close out South Carolina, also up 1-0... Score tied 1-1 in top of the fifth, with Sun Devils batting. Bases are loaded with none out... Single to left makes it 2-1 ASU... Double to the wall in left clears bases, making it 5-1... Still a 5-1 ASU lead, with Sun Devils batting in the top of the sixth... ASU one out away from WCWS, leading 5-2 in bottom of seventh, with one on for Gamecocks... Walk brings tying run to the plate... Fly-out to center ends it. ASU back to WCWS for first time since 2013...
Saturday Late Afternoon/Early Evening
Texas A&M down to final three outs, batting in top of seventh trailing Florida 2-1... Leadoff K... Another K... Aggies not yet done, with flare single to right... Tori Vidales, A&M slugger who hit a crucial HR yesterday, steps in... Vidales belts 3-1 pitch well beyond CF wall; A&M leads 3-2. It looks like Florida was pitching around Vidales, but grooved 3-1 pitch... Leadoff walk for UF in bottom half. A&M has seen this movie before! Next batter gets to 3-0 count, but flies out to left on full-count... Another walk, putting Gators on first and second with one out... Full-count on next UF batter... Strike-out looking on outside corner... Florida down to final out... 0-2 count... Jordan Matthews drives 2-2 pitch off the scoreboard in left-center, for 5-3 Gator win...
LSU takes 1-0 lead over Florida State in weather-delayed contest, but FSU comes up with four runs (including two-run dinger)... Tigers batting in bottom of seventh of 5-5 tie... Going to extras... Seminoles batting in top of 10th, have runners at first and second with two outs... Seemingly easy force at third on grounder to short flubbed, loading the bases for FSU... Weak pop to third ends FSU threat... Tigers with runners on first and second, two out, bottom of the tenth, thanks to high throw to first on grounder to pitcher. Florida State should have been out of the inning... K to end inning... On to the 11th...Two homers, a solo shot and a two-run drive, have Seminoles up 8-5 in top of 11th... Bottom of 11th uneventful, FSU wins to force decisive third game...
As this article confirms, in advance of the 2017 season, the NCAA announced that if a softball super-regional were to go three games, they would be played on three different days rather than the past practice of Games 2 and 3 being played as a doubleheader. However, the announcers on the LSU-FSU broadcast have said Game 3 will be played tonight, 30 minutes after the completion of Game 2. The three-separate-days policy does not appear to have been rescinded, as Florida and Texas A&M played on three separate days in this year's tourney. Perhaps weather considerations are driving the decision for LSU and FSU to play a doubleheader tonight...
Slugging Jessie Warren blasts two-run homer to left, FSU up 2-0, bottom of third, in decisive Game 3... Now 3-0 Seminoles, with LSU batting in top of fourth... LSU cuts deficit to 3-1, with Tigers coming up in top of sixth... LSU now down to its final out, trailing 3-1 in the top of the seventh. The Tigers got an infield hit to start off, but it was followed by a double-play grounder... Final out on grounder to pitcher... Florida State fills out the WCWS slate.
Washington comes out with two-run rally in top of first vs. Alabama... Huskies seem headed for OKC with a 6-0 lead, Tide batting in the bottom of the fifth... 6-0 is your final, U-Dub to WCWS...
Saturday Early Afternoon
Nicole Mendes's two-out, bases-loaded hit in the top of the first gives Oklahoma a 2-0 lead over Arkansas... The Sooners' lead is up to 7-0, top six...Barring a cataclysmic collapse, OU will be headed to the Women's College World Series to try for a third straight national title... 9-0 is the final.
Despite the loss, Arkansas appears to be a program on the rise, exhibiting major improvement in its three years under coach Courtney Deifel and making its first-ever super-regional this year.
Georgia and Tennessee are just underway... Still scoreless as the Vols bat in the bottom of the third... Tennessee loads bases with one out in third inning, but 1-2-3 (pitcher-to-catcher-to-1B) double-play on grounder to circle ends the threat... Leadoff single for Bulldogs in top of fourth... Followed by HBP... Runners bunted to second and third, now one out... Live by the double-play, die by it: Georgia batter lines out to 2B, runner doubled off bag... Georgia puts across run in top of seventh... Two-out single ties game for Tennessee. We're going to extras!... Cortni Emanuel's solo home-run gives UGA lead in top of eighth and Bulldogs hold on to advance to WCWS.