Oklahoma defends softball title with 5-4 win over Florida

By CLIFF BRUNT
Associated Press

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Even as defending champions, it seemed for most of the season that Oklahoma was unlikely to repeat.

The Sooners earned just a No. 10 seed in the NCAA Tournament. They lost their NCAA opener to North Dakota State before rallying, then had to go to Auburn and win a super regional.

Even when they recovered at the Women’s College World Series and reached the championship round, they faced No. 1 seed Florida and its two All-American pitchers.

In the end, Oklahoma found a way, including a 17-inning win in Game 1. On Tuesday night, Shay Knighten hit a three-run double in the second inning, and the Sooners defeated Florida 5-4 to win it all again.

The Sooners (61-9) took both games from Florida in the best-of-three series to earn their third NCAA title in five years.

“I still cannot believe that this happened, with where we started and where we finished,” Oklahoma coach Patty Gasso said.

“There’s so many stories. The journey was unbelievable. I think if you looked at us in February and March, even parts of April, you would never imagine us sitting here right now with trophies in front of us.”

Knighten, who hit a three-run homer in the 17th inning on Monday, was selected the World Series’ Most Outstanding Player.

Oklahoma freshman Mariah Lopez (18-1) got the win in relief of Paige Parker. Though Parker has an 8-0 career World Series record, she struggled on Tuesday and lasted just 1 2-3 innings. She threw 108 pitches in the 5½-hour game on Monday night.

“I think Paige probably could tell you she didn’t have her best stuff, but she is the reason why we’re sitting here right now, and she knows that. I know she knows that,” Gasso said.

“To be able to give Mariah (Lopez) the ball, a freshman who’s been waiting patiently, and for her to step up and do what we asked her to do in that setting was another reason why we’re sitting here with a trophy. It’s another reason why we’re here, period.”

Paige Lowary stepped in and threw two innings of perfect relief for her nation-leading 11th save. With a one-run lead, she retired Florida’s Nos. 2-4 hitters in order in the seventh. On Monday night, ESPN announcers said one of her pitches reached 75 mph on the radar gun.

“Paige Lowary came in, and she was hot,” Gasso said. “She was ready. I don’t know how hard she was throwing, but it looked like 100 miles an hour. The adrenaline was there and she was hitting her spots just so confident.”

Florida (58-10) did not allow an earned run in three games to reach the championship series, but the Sooners were able to break through against what statistically was the nation’s best pitching staff.

Florida pitcher Kelly Barnhill, USA Softball’s National Collegiate Player of the Year, did not play Tuesday. Florida coach Tim Walton went with No. 3 pitcher Alesia Ocasio (8-2), and she got the loss. Delaney Gourley allowed the double to Knighten in relief.

“It just wasn’t our tournament,” Walton said. “You look at the statistics, it’s eerie how close the games were statistically. So I think that you’ve got two evenly matched teams. One just found a way to hit the ball over the fence more than we did, and give them a lot of credit.”

Oklahoma’s Nicole Mendes homered on Ocasio’s third pitch of the game to give the Sooners a 1-0 lead. Sophia Reynoso responded with a solo shot for Florida in the second.

With the bases loaded and two outs in the top of the second, Ocasio singled to knock in Justine McLean, then Kayli Kvistad walked with the bases loaded to score Amanda Lorenz and make it 3-1.

Knighten’s big hit in the bottom of the second put Oklahoma up 5-3.

“Being in those moments, I’ve just got to keep myself calm, just stay relaxed and just kind of not think about what if, just kind of go for it,” she said. “And it paid off.”

Florida’s Chelsea Herndon came back with a solo blast in the third to cut Oklahoma’s lead to 5-4. The pitchers took over from there.

“Just a hard-fought two games,” Walton said. “Wish we could have pushed it to a third, and give us a chance. But I thought overall our players — really proud of our team.”

Oklahoma had just one senior in its lineup and has no senior pitchers. Gasso said her team will be focused again next season.

“We learned a lesson,” she said. “We are good at learning lessons. We’re not going to let this get in our way.”

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Follow Cliff Brunt on Twitter: www.twitter.com/CliffBruntAP.

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Box Score

2017 Oklahoma Softball
#1 Florida vs #10 Oklahoma
Jun 06, 2017 at Oklahoma City, Okla. (USA Softball Stadium)

Florida 4 (58-10)
Player	ab	r	h	rbi	bb	so	po	a	lob
Lorenz lf	2	1	0	0	2	1	2	0	1
DeWitt 2b	3	0	1	0	0	1	1	1	0
Ocasio p/3b	4	0	1	1	0	2	0	0	0
Kvistad 1b	2	0	0	1	1	0	7	0	0
Wheaton c	3	0	0	0	0	0	5	0	5
Reynoso ss	3	1	1	1	0	0	1	4	0
Clemens dp	2	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
J. Roberts ph	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Voss pr/cf	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Herndon rf/dp	3	1	1	1	0	0	2	0	0
McLean cf/rf	3	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Hoover 3b	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Gourley p	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Totals	26	4	6	4	3	5	18	5	6
Oklahoma 5 (61-9)
Player	ab	r	h	rbi	bb	so	po	a	lob
Mendes, Nicole rf/p	4	1	1	1	0	2	0	0	1
Clifton, Caleigh 2b	2	1	2	1	1	0	1	1	0
Knighten, Shay 1b	3	0	1	3	0	1	8	0	1
Aviu, Fale dp/rf	3	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Pendley, Nicole cf	3	0	1	0	0	0	2	0	3
Romero, Sydney 3b	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	2	0
Hatfield, Macey lf	3	1	1	0	0	1	4	0	0
Wodach, Lea c	2	1	0	0	1	1	5	0	0
Arnold, Kelsey ss	3	1	1	0	0	0	0	3	0
Parker, Paige p	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lopez, Mariah p/dp	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lowary, Paige p	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
Totals	26	5	8	5	2	5	21	7	5

Score by Innings R H E ----------------------------------------- Florida............. 031 000 0 - 4 6 1 Oklahoma............ 140 000 X - 5 8 1 -----------------------------------------

E - DeWitt(3); Hatfield, M.(2). DP - UF 1. LOB - UF 6; OU 5. 2B - Knighten, S.(13). HR - Reynoso(3); Herndon(5); Mendes, N.(7). HBP - Kvistad. SH - DeWitt(6). SB - Aviu, Fale(6); Arnold, K.(10).

Florida	ip	h	r	er	bb	so	wp	bk	hbp	ibb	ab	bf	fo	go	np
Ocasio L,8-2	1.1	4	4	4	1	0	0	0	0	0	8	9	0	4	42
Gourley	4.2	4	1	1	1	5	0	0	0	0	18	19	5	3	69
Oklahoma	ip	h	r	er	bb	so	wp	bk	hbp	ibb	ab	bf	fo	go	np
Parker, Paige	1.2	4	3	3	3	0	0	0	0	1	8	12	2	3	44
Lopez, Mariah W,18-1	2.1	1	1	1	0	2	0	0	1	0	8	9	4	1	28
Mendes, Nicole	1.0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	4	4	1	2	20
Lowary, Paige S,11	2.0	0	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	0	6	6	1	2	29

Win - Lopez, M. (18-1). Loss - Ocasio (8-2). Save - Lowary, P. (11). HBP - by Lopez, M. (Kvistad). Inherited runners/scored: Gourley 3/3; Lopez, M. 3/1; Lowary, P. 1/0. Pitches/strikes: Ocasio 42/25; Gourley 69/46; Parker, P. 44/23; Lopez, M. 28/21; Mendes, N. 20/11; Lowary, P. 29/22. Umpires - HP: Terry Holt 1B: Scott Thomas 3B: Erin Peterson Start: 7:07 pm Time: 2:21 Attendance: 8507 Weather: Clear, 89F, N 6mph Mendes, N. faced 1 batter in the 6th.

Play-by-Play

2017 Oklahoma Softball
#1 Florida vs #10 Oklahoma
Jun 06, 2017 at Oklahoma City, Okla. (USA Softball Stadium)

Florida starters: 18/lf Lorenz; 23/2b DeWitt; 8/p Ocasio; 21/1b Kvistad; 25/c Wheaton; 74/ss Reynoso; 28/dp Clemens; 19/rf Herndon; 52/cf McLean; 9/3b Hoover;

Oklahoma starters: 11/rf Mendes, N.; 20/2b Clifton, C.; 17/1b Knighten, S.; 34/dp Aviu, Fale; 1/cf Pendley, N.; 2/3b Romero, S.; 6/lf Hatfield, M.; 15/c Wodach, Lea; 3/ss Arnold, K.; 8/p Parker, P.;

Florida 1st - Lorenz walked (3-0 BBBB). DeWitt out at first 3b to 2b, SAC, bunt (0-0); Lorenz advanced to second. Ocasio popped up to 1b (0-1 K). Kvistad walked (3-0 BBBB). Wheaton grounded out to 1b unassisted (0-1 K). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.

Oklahoma 1st - Mendes, N. homered to left field, RBI (2-1 BKB). Clifton, C. singled to right field (2-1 KBB). Knighten, S. reached on a fielder's choice to shortstop (1-2 KFB); Clifton, C. out at second ss to 2b. Aviu, Fale grounded out to 2b (1-2 BFF); Knighten, S. advanced to second. Pendley, N. reached on a fielder's choice to shortstop (2-2 BBFK); Knighten, S. out at second ss unassisted, interference. 1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

Florida 2nd - Reynoso homered to left field, RBI (1-2 BFFF). Clemens flied out to cf (3-2 BBKBK). Herndon grounded out to ss (0-0). McLean singled, advanced to second on a fielding error by lf (1-2 SKB). Lorenz intentionally walked (3-1 BKBBB). DeWitt singled to left field (1-2 BKF); Lorenz advanced to second; McLean advanced to third. Ocasio singled to right field, RBI (3-2 BBKFB); DeWitt advanced to second; Lorenz advanced to third; McLean scored. Lopez, M. to p for Parker, P.. Kvistad hit by pitch, RBI (1-1 KB); Ocasio advanced to second; DeWitt advanced to third; Lorenz scored. Wheaton fouled out to lf (0-1 K). 3 runs, 4 hits, 1 error, 3 LOB.

Oklahoma 2nd - Romero, S. grounded out to ss (2-2 KKFBB). Hatfield, M. singled through the left side (1-2 FFBF). Wodach, Lea walked (3-1 BBKBB); Hatfield, M. advanced to second. Arnold, K. singled to catcher (2-2 BFBF); Wodach, Lea advanced to second; Hatfield, M. advanced to third. Ocasio to 3b. Gourley to p for Hoover. Mendes, N. struck out swinging (0-2 FKFS). Clifton, C. walked, RBI (3-2 BKSBBB); Arnold, K. advanced to second; Wodach, Lea advanced to third; Hatfield, M. scored. Knighten, S. doubled to right center, 3 RBI (0-0); Clifton, C. scored; Arnold, K. scored; Wodach, Lea scored. Aviu, Fale singled through the left side (0-2 KFF); Knighten, S. advanced to third. Aviu, Fale stole second. Pendley, N. flied out to rf (1-1 KB). 4 runs, 4 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.

Florida 3rd - Reynoso lined out to lf (1-0 B). Clemens struck out swinging (1-2 KSBFS). Herndon homered to center field, RBI (0-0). McLean grounded out to ss (1-2 KKBF). 1 run, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

Oklahoma 3rd - Romero, S. flied out to rf (0-0). Hatfield, M. grounded out to ss (0-0). Wodach, Lea flied out to lf (1-2 BKFF). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

Florida 4th - Lorenz flied out to cf (2-2 KBKBF). DeWitt flied out to lf (0-0). Ocasio struck out swinging (0-2 KKS). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

Oklahoma 4th - Arnold, K. grounded out to ss (2-1 BBK). Mendes, N. flied out to lf (1-0 B). Clifton, C. singled to right field (1-1 BK). Knighten, S. struck out swinging (1-2 BKFS). 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

Florida 5th - Mendes, N. to p. Aviu, Fale to rf. Lopez, M.. Kvistad popped up to 3b (3-1 BKBB). Wheaton grounded out to 3b (1-1 BK). Reynoso grounded out to ss (2-2 BBKSF). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

Oklahoma 5th - Aviu, Fale grounded out to 1b unassisted (3-2 BBKBK). Pendley, N. singled to left field (3-0 BBB). Romero, S. lined into double play 1b unassisted (0-1 K); Pendley, N. out on the play. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

Florida 6th - J. Roberts pinch hit for Clemens. J. Roberts singled through the left side (3-2 BKFBB). Voss pinch ran for J. Roberts. Mendes, N. to rf. Aviu, Fale to dp. Lowary, P. to p for Lopez, M.. Herndon grounded out to 2b (1-2 BFF); Voss advanced to second. McLean lined out to lf (0-2 KFFFF). Lorenz struck out swinging (2-2 KBBFS). 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

Oklahoma 6th - Voss to cf. Herndon to dp. McLean to rf. Hatfield, M. struck out swinging (2-2 BKBKS). Wodach, Lea struck out swinging (1-2 KBKFS). Arnold, K. reached on a fielding error by 2b (2-2 BSFB). Arnold, K. stole second. Mendes, N. struck out swinging (1-2 BSFS). 0 runs, 0 hits, 1 error, 1 LOB.

Florida 7th - DeWitt struck out swinging (2-2 FSFBBS). Ocasio struck out swinging (1-2 FBFFS). Kvistad grounded out to p (1-1 BF). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.