Two major tournaments highlight the opening weekend of the 2023 college softball season. One is the Mark Campbell Invitational in Irvine, California, whose seven-team field includes Oklahoma (winner of the last two Women's College World Series and this year's unanimous preseason No. 1), along with 2022 super-regional participant Duke and perennial contender Washington. The other is the NFCA Leadoff Classic in Clearwater, Florida, a 16-team affair. This tourney features last year's WCWS runner-up Texas and four SEC schools (Tennessee, Kentucky, Missouri, and Auburn). This NCAA.com article previews the first several weeks' tournaments.
The college softball world has thrown us a "Curve Bahl," if you will. Such is the unexpected news that Oklahoma ace Jordy Bahl has announced that she will transfer to the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. Bahl is from the Omaha suburb of Papillion, Nebraska. Three thoughts jump out at me: Bahl was absolutely indispensable to the Sooners' 61-1 national championship season, coming up with numerous clutch strikeouts in tight tournament games against Clemson (super-regionals, Game 2 ) and Stanford ( WCWS semifinals ). OU benefited greatly this season via the transfer portal, bringing in Haley Lee from Texas A&M, Alex Storako from Michigan, and Cydney Sanders and Alynah Torres from Arizona State. Bahl's transfer is the first major one in the modern portal era (to my knowledge) in the other direction. Nebraska becomes an instant national championship contender, in my mind. Other players around the country may find it attractive to join Bahl in Lincoln but even if