Today will feature play in seven series, with one team in each series a game away from reaching the Women's College World Series and the other team trying to force a decisive Game 3 tomorrow. Tennessee, whose series with Georgia started Thursday, has already qualified for the WCWS. I'll be live-blogging as many of the games as I can and updating the chart below, so please check back in during the day...
UCLA-UCF
Central Florida (the home team) leads UCLA 1-0 on Aubrey Evans homer leading off B1, as the Knights fight to stay alive... T3, Bruins load the bases with none out for Megan Grant, who currently has an NCAA single-season record 40 home runs (with Oklahoma's Kendall Wells just behind at 39)... Count goes to 3-1 on Grant... Called strike for 3-2 count... Grant with deep sac-fly to left, tying game 1-1... Other two runners stay put at first and second, Jordan Woolery (with 34 homers this season) coming up... Easy pop to 2B-person for second out... Aleena Garcia up next... 1-2 count on Garcia... Line-single to left brings in runner from second, 2-1 Bruins... Runners on first and second for Bri Alejandre... Fly-out to left ends UCLA rally... T4, Alexis Ramirez with solo-shot to raise Bruins' lead to 3-1... B4, UCF with runners on first and second for Sierra Humphreys with one out... Humphreys with infield hit (2B-person prevented ball from going into outfield but had no play)... Bases loaded for Kendall Yarnell... Yarnell swinging for the fences on first pitch but misses; ends up striking out on another big swing, now two out... Coco Jaimes grounds out to short, ending UCF threat... T5. Bruins with bases loaded and no outs for Alejandre... HBP on wrist, now 4-1 UCLA... UCF pitching change, Lena Elkins in for Tori Payne... Kaniya Bragg up for Bruins... Grounds into fielder's choice to get runner at home (one out)... Ramirez up... Liner to deep left drives in two, giving UCLA 6-1 lead... Runners at second and third with one out for Soo-Jin Berry... Pop to 2B-person for second out... Jolyna Lamar up... Grounds out to end Bruin rally... Taylor Tinsley rolling along pretty smoothly in the circle for UCLA... No sooner do I say that than UCF gets leadoff single in B5... Another single for Knights, runners at the corners with nobody out... Evans at bat... UCF tries to steal second, throw gets away, runner from third scores (score now 6-2 UCLA) and runner who started out at first advances to third... Evans fouls out to left for first out, runner from third scores, cutting UCF deficit to 6-3... K for second out... Line single to right keeps Knight rally alive... Full count to next batter... Chopper up the middle for single... Tying run coming up in the person of Humphreys... 2-0 count... 3-0... Walk to load bases... Pinch-hitter Shyanne Irvin up... 2-2 count... 3-2... Close call, but pitch called a ball, walking in run, now 6-4 UCLA... Deep fly-out to left ends UCF rally... T6, new UCF pitcher Reagan Vokoun... Rylee Slimp leads off for Bruins... Grounds out to first... Grant up... Walks... Woolery up... Singles to left, Grant advances to second... Pitching change for Knights, with Ava Stuewe entering the circle... Garcia up... Oppo homer to right, Garcia quickly knew it was gone, 9-4 Bruins... Alejandre up... Walks... Isabella Vega third UCF pitcher of the inning... Bragg up... Bragg appears to strain leg or foot on swing, leaves game, Jazmine Leyva pinch-hits, flies to right for second out... Ramirez with infield single (grounder deep in the hole at short), now runners at first and second... Berry comes up... Grounds out to first... B6, UCF goes down quietly (just a walk)... T7, UCLA adds five runs, highlighted by three-run shot by Garcia (her second of the evening), making it 14-4... B7, UCF doesn't score... UCLA headed to 34th WCWS (per ESPN graphic)...
Texas-Arizona State
The defending WCWS champion Texas, in danger of being swept in this series by Arizona State, has trailed a couple of times tonight. The Sun Devils have led 2-0 and 3-2, but a Victoria Hunter two-run homer in T6 has put the Longhorns on top 4-3... B7, ASU needs one run to tie and two to win and advance to the WCWS... Ground-out to Texas SS Viviana Martinez on nice play for first Sun Devil out... Fly-out to right for second out... 2-0 count to ASU's Kaylee Pond... 2-1 count... Grounds out to second, we'll have a Game 3...
Arkansas-Duke
The Razorbacks and Blue Devils (the home team) are underway, T1... Tianna Bell with two-out, two-run shot to left, 2-0 Hogs... A single and HBP keep the Arkansas threat alive... Another single to load the bases... Kailey Wyckoff at the plate... K to end threat, Duke coming up for its first at-bats... Blue Devils batting in B3, still trailing 2-0... Hogs add two in T4, now lead 4-0... Duke gets Tyrina Jones two-run homer in B4, cutting its deficit to 4-2... Arkansas responds with rally in T5, loading the bases with none out... Ella McDowell single up the middle brings in two, now 6-2 Hogs with runners on first and second... Walk reloads bases... Another run scores on ground-out, 7-2 Arkansas... Karlie Davison three-run homer makes it 10-2, putting game in potential run-rule territory if Duke can't score in B5... And that's what happens, Duke retired in B5, Arkansas qualifies for its first-ever WCWS with 10-2 win...
Nebraska-Oklahoma State
The Huskers (the road team) lead 2-1 in T3... Nebraska pitcher Alexis Jensen rolling along through four innings (no earned runs, two hits, one walk, and seven K)... Husker defense, such as this catch by Hannah Coor in B4, also helping... Coor follows up in T5 with solo-shot, making it 3-1 Nebraska... Jordy Frahm warming up in bullpen for possible opportunity to close... Single, walk, single, and HBP (all after two out) make it 4-1 Huskers... Alina Felix singles to drive in two more, now 6-1... Three-run HR by Lauren Camenzind makes it 9-1 Nebraska... Oklahoma State vulnerable to run-rule finish (down eight runs) if it doesn't score in B5... Frahm takes the circle... Huskers one out away from WCWS... One strike away... K sends Nebraska to the World Series...
Alabama-LSU
Scoreless entering T2, with LSU the home team... Per ESPN graphic, Alabama has allowed no runs in 2026 NCAA tournament (27 consecutive scoreless innings). Vic Moten (pitching now for Bama) has a .91 Walks and Hits per Innings Pitched (WHIP), where values even slightly above 1.00 are really good. Teammate Jocelyn Briski is even further below 1.00 at .76... LSU threatening in B2 with runners on first and second, two outs... Bloop single to left, but not deep enough to score runner from second. Bases now loaded... Jalia Lassiter up for the Tigers... Deep drive to center is... caught, keeping intact Crimson Tide scoreless pitching streak... T3, after first two Bama batters retired, Kristen White walks and advances one base at a time on three wild pitches. In my 50+ years of watching baseball and softball (I'm 63), I don't think I've ever seen this happen before. 1-0 Tide... B3, LSU's Tori Edwards with two-out line single up the middle to drive in Alix Franklin, who had doubled, 1-1, Bama scoreless streak over... T4, Alexis Pupillo with leadoff homer to put Bama back up, 2-1... Two outs later, single and double give Bama two in scoring position... Salen Hawkins bloop single to left drives in two, makes it 4-1 Tide... Lightning delay... Bama up in T5, still leading 4-1... Another delay... Game finally resumes, with Crimson Tide prevailing 4-1 and advancing to WCWS...
Oklahoma-Mississippi State
OU-MSU underway, with Bulldogs as the home team... Audrey Lowry pitching for OU, Peja Goold for MSU... Scoreless after two... T3, Kai Minor with one-out triple double (official call changed from triple to double plus error, as MSU left-fielder played ball poorly)... Ella Parker walks, bringing up Kendall Wells... Wells singles to left-center, putting Sooners on top 1-0... Runners on second (Wells taking extra base on throw in) and third with one out... Walk loads bases... Another walk brings in a run, 2-0 Sooners... Grounder to left side of infield gets batter at first, another run comes in, 3-0 Sooners... Runners on second and third with two out... MSU pitching change, with Alyssa Faircloth coming in... Abby Dayton up... Passed ball makes it 4-0, as both runners advance a base... Dayton fouling off some pitches... Walk, putting runners at the corners bringing up Sydney Barker... Lexi McDaniel pinch-hitting for Barker... McDaniel fouls off pitches... Dayton takes second on defensive indifference... Maestro call by OU coach Patty Gasso, as McDaniel delivers three-run homer deep into LF bleachers, now 7-0... Fly-out ends rally... We'll see if OU can maintain the lead, unlike yesterday... T4, Minor leads off with triple, needs single and homer for cycle... Wells up, sitting on 39 homers (trailing UCLA's Megan Grant, who is sitting on an NCAA single-season record 40)... Wells with pop-up for second out... Sooners strand Minor on ground-out to first (close play as 1B-person barely beats batter to the bag)... Five complete, still 7-0 Oklahoma... T6, one-out HBP, bringing up Minor, who already has double and triple... Minor hits one by 2B-person, ruled an error, putting runners on the corners... Grounder to first, fielder throws home and initial call is that runner from third is out. OU challenging... Hard to tell on replay, call may be upheld due to inconclusive evidence... Amazing new camera view suggests tag applied with runner's hand about an inch from the plate, but still awaiting ruling... Call stands, good job by ump... OU still batting, two outs, runners on first and second, and Wells at the plate... Fielder's choice at second ends the half-inning, still 7-0 OU... B6, Mississippi State with runners on first and second with two outs, looking to get on the Oklahoma-shaped scoreboard... Another single, loading the bases... OU meeting in the circle, but Lowry stays in... Run walked in on 3-2 count, now 7-1 Sooners... Deep fly-out ends inning... T7, Gabbie Garcia with one-out double... Rally fizzles... MSU coming up in B7 to try to stay alive. Otherwise, there will be a Game 3 tomorrow... Indeed, Game 3 will be needed, as OU finishes off MSU 7-1...
Florida-Texas Tech
Game on ABC rather than one of the ESPN channels... Jocelyn Erickson with two-runner homer off of NiJaree Canady in T1 for early 2-0 Gator lead... Keagan Rothrock starting again today for UF... Two innings complete, still 2-0... T3, Erickson singles (but thrown out at second), driving in Taylor Shumaker, who had doubled, now 3-0 Florida... Red Raiders start B3 getting runners on with two straight HBP... Back-to-back fly-outs bring in a run, now 3-1 Gators... Tech with runner on first with two outs... Infield single gives the Raiders runners on first and second... Foul-out ends threat... T4, two-out single and outfield misplay give Gators a runner on second... Madison Walker homers for 5-1 UF lead. Ball hits roof of clubhouse structure behind left-field wall... Samantha Lincoln in to pitch for Canady... Next batter walks... Florida adds a single, but fly-out ends rally... B4, leadoff single for TTU... Double puts runners on second and third... Next batter hits ball on which UF tries to throw runner out at home, but she scores, now 5-2 Gators... Tech with runners on first and second with none out... First out on fielder's choice at second, runners now on corners... HBP loads bases with one out for Texas Tech (Florida appeal denied on batter leaning into pitch)... Potential go-ahead run at the plate for Red Raiders... K and fly-out end the threat, still 5-2 UF... T5, Erickson singles, third hit of day... After a strikeout, bunt-single gives Gators runners at first and second... After ground-out advances both runners, Kenleigh Cahalan singles in two, now 7-2 Florida... Cahalan steals second... Walker singles in Cahalan, now 8-2... Ella Wesolowski doubles, 9-2 Gators... Four-pitch walk... Shumaker single loads bases... Last four hits (plus walk) all with two outs... Erickson, who started the inning, pops up to end it... Still 9-2 heading into B6... Same score heading to T7... Gators with another run, upping lead to 10-2... Tech will need another Ole Miss-style rally to avoid a Game 3... Not today, as 10-2 is the final...
| Teams | Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama (1)-LSU (16) | Alabama | Alabama | --- |
| Texas (2)-Arizona St | Arizona St | Texas | --- |
| Oklahoma (3)-Mississippi St | Mississ. St | Oklahoma | --- |
| Nebraska (4)-Oklahoma St (13) | Nebraska | Nebraska | --- |
| Arkansas (5)-Duke (12) | Arkansas | Arkansas | --- |
| Florida (6)-Texas Tech (11) | Texas Tech | Florida | --- |
| Tennessee (7)-Georgia (10) | Tennessee. | Tennessee | --- |
| UCLA (8)-Central Florida | UCLA | UCLA | --- |