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Clearwater Invitational Highlights This Weekend's Play


UPDATE (2:15 Central): Two final scores since the last posting: Oklahoma State 6, Georgia 5; and Texas Tech 3, Florida State 2...

The Clearwater Invitational (link) is underway, with No. 8 (tied) Nebraska (now 4-2) shutting out No. 10 LSU (6-1) in the opener (all noted rankings are from the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll). Jordy (Bahl) Frahm pitched the final three innings, allowing five hits but, of course, no runs. Frahm. According to the posted schedule, No. 23 Oklahoma State should be playing No. 17 Georgia at the moment, with a match-up of No. 1 Texas Tech and No. 6 Florida State starting soon. By my count, it looks like there are 16 teams in tournament, including No. 3 Tennessee and No. 7 UCLA.

With its 6-0 start (all blowouts over unranked teams except for a 3-2 win over No. 8/tie Texas A&M), Texas Tech leads the nation. 

The University of Texas is No. 2, having gone 4-1 in its first weekend (including a split of two games with Nebraska and two wins over No. 24 Washington). Despite the Longhorns having Teagan Kavan and the Huskers having Frahm, neither of the two games between the teams last weekend was a pitcher's duel. Texas beat Nebraska 15-10 in the first game, with Kavan allowing five earned runs in three and a third innings and Frahm likewise yielding five earned runs, in three innings. In the rematch, an 8-5 Husker win, Frahm pitched four scoreless innings, while Kavan didn't throw. 

The Longhorns host a tournament this weekend with Abilene Christian, Ohio State, Syracuse and Northern Illinois. The Huskers, as noted above, are in Clearwater.

Oklahoma (3-1) dropped to No. 4, having lost the opener of a three-game series at No. 15 Arizona by an 11-6 score, before rebounding to take the remaining two games, 21-3 and 5-4. OU plays in a tourney at New Mexico State this weekend, joined by Montana, Minnesota, and Idaho State.



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