Softball pitcher Jordy Bahl is out for the season after tearing her ACL during opening weekend.

Bahl, who won two national championships at Oklahoma before transferring to Nebraska, posted on social media that she injured her knee while delivering a pitch against Washington. The Cornhuskers were at a tournament in Puerto Vallarta, with Bahl pitching in a game on Feb. 8.

“With a heart thankful for God’s plan and timing, I will be redshirting this year, and looking forward to a season of growth and learning from a different point of view,” Bahl posted Tuesday. “I’m thankful for the support of my family, friends, coaches, and staff. I’m truly blessed to have so many wonderful and loving people in my life. I’m not going anywhere. See you in 2025.”

If granted a medical hardship waiver for the season, Bahl will have two seasons of eligibility left.

“Obviously, we are all disappointed to hear the news of Jordy’s season-ending knee injury,” Nebraska coach Rhonda Revelle said in a statement. “We are grateful that Jordy is in excellent care with our medical team and are confident in a full recovery.”

Bahl, a native of Nebraska, announced her transfer last June – one week removed from leading Oklahoma to a third straight national championship. She was named Most Outstanding Player in the WCWS, and it was expected she would bolster Nebraska this season.

The Cornhuskers entered the season ranked 18th in the country, and are currently 2-2.

Naomi Osaka is remaining positive despite losing in her second game back at the Brisbane International. The four-time Grand Slam champion fell to Karolina Pliskova in three sets.

“The week is definitely shorter than I wanted it to be,” Osaka said.”I feel like I’m pretty good where I am right now. Even the last time I played her, I think I played better today.”

Osaka fired 14 aces and just two double faults. She won 83 percent of points when getting her first serve into play.

Pliskova also won her last match with Osaka.

“I think I’m enjoying myself a lot more, and I also realize there’s a lot of things that aren’t in my control. I feel more aware that I’m playing the best players in the world. Both of us have an opportunity to win,” Osaka said, noting how her approach to winning and losing has changed.

“I’ve trained so hard since giving birth, I need to enjoy these moments … I do feel different. I mean, of course I feel sad, but the sadness is me being like, ‘Aww, I wish I could have done better, because I know I’m spending so much time away from [Shai], so I want it to be worth it somehow.

“For me even stepping on the court is a personal win because a couple of weeks ago I was even doubting if I could play with everyone. So I guess these two matches that I’ve had kind of prove to me that I am doing OK, and the year is just going to get better for me.”

In the hours after Jordy Bahl announced her commitment to Nebraska, it became evident the star softball pitcher was already having an impact.

According to reporter Mitch Sherman of The Athletic, Nebraska’s athletic department took 2,124 requests for softball season tickets in the days following Bahl’s announcement. To put that in perspective: The program had 365 season-ticket holders for the 2023 softball season and just 26 requests for 2024 prior to Bahl’s announcement.

In her two years at the University of Oklahoma, Bahl won two national titles and finished with a 44-2 record. She was named Most Outstanding Player of the 2023 Women’s College World Series. The native of Papillon, Neb., cited her desire to grow softball in her home state when she announced her decision to transfer.

“I am excited thinking about growing the game that has provided me so many opportunities for growth, in the home state, a current overlooked state for girls in softball at all ages, and I am excited to finish the softball journey right where it began,” she wrote in an Instagram post.

After leading Oklahoma to a third straight title at the 2023 Women’s College World Series, sophomore pitcher Jordy Bahl will return to her home state of Nebraska to continue her career, she announced Monday.

A native of Papillion, Nebraska, Bahl enters the transfer portal fresh off a star performance at the WCWS, in which she tossed 24 ⅔ scoreless innings across five games and won the Most Outstanding Player award. She recorded a three-inning save in the series-clinching win against Florida State.

While Bahl initially did not specify a destination, she revealed Thursday that she will join the Nebraska Cornhuskers. She had committed to the Cornhuskers as a high school freshman before reopening her recruitment and joining the Sooners.

“I have decided to return home and play the game I love, closer to the things that have made me who I am and that have always been more important to me than this game,” Bahl wrote.

Her career ERA for Oklahoma is 1.00. The two-time All-American finished the 2023 season with a 0.90 ERA, second in the country behind Stanford’s NiJaree Canady, and helped the Sooners finish the season on an NCAA record 53-game winning streak. Yet she will not be on hand as the team looks to extend that streak next spring.

Bahl described the move as “bittersweet,” and she thanked the Oklahoma program, her teammates and her coaches for the opportunities she received. But she also described the difficulty of being away from her home, and her excitement to grow the game in the “overlooked state” of Nebraska.

“I am excited to finish the softball journey right where it began,” she wrote.

Oklahoma coach Patty Gasso supported Bahl’s decision, describing her as “the ultimate competitor” and praising her “approach and dedication to the game.”

“We’re understanding of her situation and certainly want her to be the happiest she can be,” Gasso said.

Oklahoma softball closed out its historically dominant season with even more dominance, sweeping Florida State in the 2023 Women’s College World Series finals en route to a third straight NCAA championship.

The Sooners (61-1) beat Florida State 3-1 on Thursday behind back-to-back home runs in the fifth inning, handing star FSU pitcher Kathryn Sandercock her first loss since March 12. They extended their own NCAA record winning streak to 53 games, with their last loss coming on Feb. 19.

With the win, Oklahoma also becomes just the second team to win three consecutive NCAA Division I softball titles, joining the UCLA Bruins, who did so in 1988-90. Yet despite their dominance throughout the season, the twin pressures of the winning streak and the championship streak weighed on the Sooners.

“What you feel right now from us is freedom, because it was absolutely suffocating as we’re going along,” Oklahoma coach Patty Gasso told ESPN on the field after the game. “The expectations were overwhelming, but they handled it like champions and that’s why we are here right now.”

Oklahoma’s bats contributed to the win, particularly the home runs from Cydney Sanders and Grace Lyons, but the pitching and defense did their part as well.

Oklahoma outfielder Jayda Coleman robbed a would-be three-run home run from FSU’s Kalei Harding in the third inning.

And Oklahoma took a 2-1 lead in the top of the fifth inning, Gasso put pitcher Jordy Bahl in the circle to hold onto it. Bahl had been lights out throughout the WCWS, and she retired all nine hitters she faced Thursday to secure the win.

“I don’t have a lot of words right now,” Bahl said in an interview with ESPN on the field after the game. “…We stick together. It’s not just one person who feels it, we all feel it. Sticking together is one of the toughest challenges this year.”

Oklahoma softball completed its Women’s College World Series three-peat Thursday night, sweeping Florida State to take its third consecutive title.

With the 3-1 victory against FSU, the Sooners finished the season on a 53-game winning streak. Check out more of the numbers behind their record-breaking season.

0.96

Oklahoma’s ERA ranked first in NCAA Division I by a wide margin. The next closest team, Central Arkansas, had a team ERA of 1.50. The Sooners’ pitching staff allowed just three runs across five games in the WCWS.

3

The Sooners became just the second team in NCAA softball history to win three WCWS titles in a row, joining the UCLA Bruins, who won the 1988, 1989 and 1990 titles. No team has won four in a row.

8.08

No other team in NCAA Division I averaged more than 6.87 runs per game. Oklahoma also led all D-I teams in batting average, home runs per game and slugging.

11

For the 11th time in 12 seasons, Oklahoma reached the WCWS. In that span, the Sooners have won six titles. The program has won seven overall.

24 ⅔

Sophomore ace Jordy Bahl tossed 24 ⅔ scoreless innings in the WCWS, including a complete-game shutout in the first game of the championship series against Florida State. She finished the WCWS with 33 strikeouts compared to just 12 hits allowed, earning her the Most Outstanding Player award.

53

With its sweep of Clemson in the super regionals, Oklahoma broke the NCAA softball record for consecutive wins, set by Arizona across the 1996-97 seasons. The Sooners kept the streak alive through the end of the season, finishing with 53 in a row and a 61-1 record.

109

Oklahoma has not lost in 109 days, since falling 4-3 against Baylor on Feb. 19. By the time the Sooners take the field again in 2024, they’ll have gone more than 300 days without a defeat.

The best college softball teams in the country competed at the 2023 NCAA Women’s College World Series at the USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City, and for the third straight year, the Oklahoma Sooners came out on top.

No. 1 Oklahoma won its third consecutive NCAA title — and ended the season on a historic winning streak. Competition began on June 1 and continued through June 8.

Just Women’s Sports kept tabs on the action as it unfolds. See below for the full game schedule, and an explainer on how the Women’s College World Series bracket works.

Which teams are competing at the 2023 Women’s College World Series?

Sixty-four teams competed in the NCAA softball championship this spring, with eight ultimately qualifying for this week’s Women’s College World Series (WCWS).

In order to qualify for the WCWS, each team had to first make it through a four-team regional competition (featuring a double-elimination bracket), followed by a two-team super regional championship (featuring a best-of-three format).

These are the eight teams that qualified for the 2023 WCWS:

  • No. 1 Oklahoma
  • No. 3 Florida State
  • No. 4 Tennessee
  • No. 5 Alabama
  • No. 6 Oklahoma State
  • No. 7 Washington
  • No. 9 Stanford
  • No. 15 Utah

How does the bracket work at the Women’s College World Series?

The Women’s College World Series uses a double elimination bracket for the first stage, followed by a best-of-3 championship series.

Competition begins with the eight teams competing in a bracket. When a team loses its first game, it will be sent to the elimination bracket with a chance to play its way back into the main bracket. But when a team loses its second game, it is eliminated from contention.

The winner from each side of the bracket meets in the best-of-three championship series.

2023 Women’s College World Series — Schedule and Results

The Women’s College World Series began June 1 and continued through June 8. See below for a full schedule. All games were available on ESPN, ESPN2 or ABC — in addition to streaming on ESPN+.

In the semifinals, Stanford faced off against Oklahoma and nearly pulled off a Game 1 upset. Stanford freshman sensation NiJaree Canady was lights out against the Sooner batters in their WCWS opener and pushed them to the brink again Monday, but Oklahoma won 4-2 in nine innings to advance to their fourth straight championship series.

Florida State also had entered the championship series undefeated, defeating Tennessee 5-1 in Monday’s other semifinal game. But FSU lost its only regular season meeting with Oklahoma, falling 5-4 on March 14.

In the opening game of the WCWS finals, Oklahoma claimed a dominant 5-0 win against FSU, led by pitcher Jordy Bahl’s complete game shutout. The Sooners closed out their third straight title with a 3-1 win, in which Bahl recorded a three-inning save.

June 1:

  • Game 1: Tennessee 10, Alabama 5
  • Game 2: Oklahoma 2, Stanford 0
  • Game 3: Florida State 8, Oklahoma State 0

June 2:

  • Game 4: Washington 4, Utah 1
    • Note: Originally scheduled for June 1, but postponed due to weather
  • Game 5: Stanford 2, Alabama 0
  • Game 6: Oklahoma State 8, Utah 0

June 3:

  • Game 7: Oklahoma 9, Tennessee 0
  • Game 8: Florida State 3, Washington 1

June 4:

  • Game 9: Stanford 1, Washington 0
  • Game 10: Tennessee 3, Oklahoma State 1

June 5:

  • Game 11: Oklahoma 4, Stanford 2 (9 innings)
    • Game 12 not needed after Stanford elimination
  • Game 13: Florida State 5, Tennessee 1
    • Game 14 not needed after Tennessee elimination

Championship Finals (Best of 3)
No. 1 Oklahoma vs. No. 3 Florida State

Sophomore pitcher Jordy Bahl has propelled Oklahoma softball to the brink of a third consecutive Women’s College World Series title.

The Sooners’ winning streak reached 52 games with Wednesday’s 5-0 victory against Florida State, which puts them one game away from a third consecutive national title.

Bahl tossed a complete-game shutout, adding to her already impressive WCWS run. She has thrown 21 ⅔ scoreless innings, including 30 strikeouts compared to just 12 hits and three walks.

“She is made to be able to do that,” Oklahoma head coach Patty Gasso said. “She wants the ball like nobody’s business. Not that we don’t have faith in our others. It’s just she is like a very, very hot pitcher right now. She’s throwing the best she has all season right now.

“You want to take advantage of that without running her too hard where she’s going to run out of gas.”

And Bahl can contribute on offense too. She served as a pinch runner in Wednesday’s win, and she provided a key boost.

“Jordy has wheels,” teammate Kinzie Hansen said. “She runs circles around us at practice sometimes. She strikes us out, too. It’s all over the place.”

Those wheels came in handy, as Bahl scored the first run for Oklahoma in what had been a scoreless game through three innings.

“I think base running is really fun,” Bahl said with a smile on Wednesday. “So when I went out there, I was thinking just be fast but be smart.

“Get a good jump. If the ball is in the dirt, you’re going, but get a good jump.”

The Sooners added two more runs in the fourth inning after Bahl got the team on the scoreboard, then one each in the fifth and the sixth.

“From that point on, everything just started,” Gasso said. “We started finding some gaps, get a little more confidence in what we’re doing.”

The Sooners will look to clinch the series – and a third straight WCWS title – on Thursday night.

The Oklahoma softball team isn’t going to apologize for the energy they bring to the field.

On Tuesday, head coach Patty Gasso said that she tells her players to be “unapologetic” in the way they play the game, which includes celebrating walks.

“Because women have worked so hard to get here yet still get judged for those things,” Gasso said. “That’s the way we play, and that’s what people enjoy. Or you don’t. You either like it or you don’t, but we’re not going to apologize for these players knowing the game and celebrating the right way.”

The No. 1-ranked team in the country is riding an NCAA-record 51-game winning streak into the Women’s College World Series championship series beginning Wednesday against No. 3 Florida State, giving them plenty of reasons to celebrate.

The Sooners ran up against a tough test in the semifinals against star pitcher NiJaree Canady and Stanford, pulling out a win in extra innings on Monday while animatedly celebrating their victories, both big and small.

“We can’t satisfy anyone, and that’s not why we play this game,” said Oklahoma’s Alyssa Brito. “That’s not why we’re here doing what we’re doing is to satisfy anyone. So I think for me, I’m going to stay being who I am and stay true to who I am. And if that passion that I have offends anyone, it’s just kind of like, ‘OK, I’m not going to allow anyone to kind of change my game.'”

The players have noticed fans publicly criticizing their behavior, but center fielder Jayda Coleman said Tuesday that she’s stayed off social media during the tournament “because that would fire me up and maybe just want to do it even more.”

Coleman, tied for the team lead in home runs with 17, was named a First Team All-American this season. She noted that a double standard exists between celebrations in men’s and women’s sports — a debate that also came to the forefront after the women’s NCAA basketball championship game in April.

“I really don’t get it,” Coleman said. “I feel like we are continuously — and softball itself — are just breaking barriers. I’ve seen it with my own eyes, and I feel like it’s just very disappointing to just see people just trying to tear us down in that type of way.

“Maybe not tearing us down, but just kind of making it into a negative light when you’re seeing the MLB players do the exact same thing or the NBA or NFL, throwing their helmets and having emotion. Like, why can’t we have emotion? We are in the same stakes as them. We are athletes just like them. Why can we not wear our emotions on their sleeves?”

Sooners shortstop Grace Lyons added on Tuesday that the team’s celebrations have little to do with their opponents.

“What we do is to bring passion to our own circle, and it’s never against anyone else,” she said. “So, I just want to say that that’s not how we play. People may take it that way, but it’s all for our own joy and passion, never to tear down.”

Oklahoma is looking to win its third straight NCAA softball championship this week, with Game 1 against Florida State kicking off at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Oklahoma softball isn’t taking its Women’s College World Series run for granted.

The Sooners (59-1) won their 51st consecutive game Monday, beating Stanford 4-2 in the WCWS semifinals. The extra-innings win came against a Cardinal team that features pitcher NiJaree Canady, who proved tough for the Oklahoma batters to crack.

Yet like much about Oklahoma softball, the win seemed inevitable. So did the result: The Sooners reached their fourth consecutive WCWS championship series, where they’ll vie for their third consecutive title. They’ll face Florida State, the team they beat in 2021 to start their run of championships. They also beat the Seminoles earlier this season.

For Oklahoma, though, what matters is not what has come before but what comes next. Take star player Tiare Jennings, who hit the game-winning two-run double against Stanford — but only after the Cardinal intentionally walked Jayda Coleman to get to her.

“It didn’t really matter to me,” Jennings said. “Either way, I was going to have to find a way to either get on or help my team the best way I can. We talked about not being results-oriented, and that’s what happened today. I didn’t get results I wanted earlier in the game, but I was going to keep swinging.”

Jennings brought in two runs and tied former Oklahoma star slugger Jocelyn Alo for the WCWS career RBI record.

Oklahoma pitcher Jordy Bahl has been lights out in the WCWS, not allowing a run in 14 ⅔ innings. For Bahl, the game plan boils down to this: “Be present, stay simple.”

“The second I try to do too much with any one of my pitches, I start overthrowing and things tend to go downhill,” she said.

And as Oklahoma looks to win another title and firmly cement their status as a dynasty, they’re enjoying the moment.

“We win a lot. And that’s fabulous,” Oklahoma coach Patty Gasso said. “But sometimes we’re so used to taking it for granted. This means a lot. This means a lot to get to the championship game.”