Oklahoma beat UCLA 10-3 on Saturday night to keep the team’s Women’s College World Series hopes alive.
The two teams were favorites to make it to the championship series. Instead, they found themselves in a sudden-death matchup after James Madison upset Oklahoma and Alabama bested UCLA.
The Bruins took an early 3-0 lead, but as the Oklahoma offense started to heat up, that advantage quickly slipped away. Once the No.1 Sooners got going, there was no looking back in their commanding 10-3 victory.
GONE-IHOO!! 💥 @kkenzienncole📺 @espn#WCWS x @OU_Softball pic.twitter.com/lzOXmGK16A— NCAA Softball (@NCAAsoftball) June 6, 2021
GONE-IHOO!! 💥 @kkenzienncole📺 @espn#WCWS x @OU_Softball pic.twitter.com/lzOXmGK16A
Saturday night’s game marked the end of UCLA pitcher Rachel Garcia’s storied collegiate career. Garcia — an Olympian, two-time National Player of the Year and national champion — is considered one of the best ever to wear a Bruins jersey.
“𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘐 𝘢𝘴𝘬 𝘧𝘰𝘳?”@raaaccchhheeell thanks the sport of softball for making a lasting impact on her life and for bringing her an unforgettable collegiate career with @UCLASoftball.#NCAASoftball pic.twitter.com/0ZpFTcbCaX— NCAA Softball (@NCAAsoftball) June 6, 2021
“𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘐 𝘢𝘴𝘬 𝘧𝘰𝘳?”@raaaccchhheeell thanks the sport of softball for making a lasting impact on her life and for bringing her an unforgettable collegiate career with @UCLASoftball.#NCAASoftball pic.twitter.com/0ZpFTcbCaX
With the win, Oklahoma advances to the WCWS semifinals, where the Sooners will get a chance at redemption against James Madison. Florida State will face off against Alabama on the other side of the bracket after defeating Oklahoma State 4-2 on Saturday to survive elimination.
Both semifinal matchups are scheduled for Sunday, with Oklahoma versus James Madison at 1 p.m. ET on ESPN and Alabama versus Florida State at 3:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.