Women’s College World Series is shaping up to be an SEC showcase with 9 of 16 remaining teams

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Softball’s super regionals are looking a lot like a Southeastern Conference tournament.

Liberty knocked out top overall seed Texas A&M, an SEC member, in the regional round. Even without the Aggies, nine of the 16 remaining teams are from the powerhouse conference and could qualify for the Women’s College World Series by winning two of three in super regionals this weekend.

First-year SEC member Oklahoma, the No. 2 seed and four-time defending national champion, will host SEC member Alabama with a World Series spot at stake.

Alabama, seeded 15th, hosted the Sooners in April and took two of three. But Oklahoma coach Patty Gasso believes her team is on the rise heading into the Norman Super Regional opener on Friday.

“I’ve said to you that this team hasn’t peaked,” Gasso said after the clinching regional win against California. “I’m starting to feel something right now, and it’s pretty exciting. I could not be more pleased right now that this team is starting to hit on all their cylinders.”

Third-seeded Florida faces Georgia and No. 4 Arkansas hosts Ole Miss in other matchups between SEC teams.

The conference is guaranteed three World Series entries and could take six of the eight slots in Oklahoma City next week.

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More SEC

In other matchups involving SEC teams, No. 6 Texas, the national runner-up last season, faces ACC member Clemson; No. 8 South Carolina plays new Big Ten member UCLA and No. 7 Tennessee faces Big Ten member Nebraska.

The best-of-three super regionals begin Thursday and Friday.

Elite coaches

Gasso and Alabama’s Patrick Murphy will face off in a matchup of coaching royalty.

Gasso has won eight national championships and will lead the U.S. Olympic team in 2028.

Murphy’s Crimson Tide won the national title in 2012. He is a five-time SEC coach of the year.

NiJaree Canady

Texas Tech pitcher NiJaree Canady lifted Stanford to the World Series the past two years, and now the reigning USA Softball collegiate player of the year is two wins from bringing her new team to the event.

Canady transferred in the offseason after helping Stanford reach the national semifinals twice. She signed a $1 million NIL deal with Texas Tech, and then dominated. She has a 28-5 record and is second nationally with a 0.92 ERA.

The Red Raiders will visit No. 5 Florida State, the highest remaining seed outside the SEC, starting Thursday night. The Atlantic Coast Conference member won the national title in 2018 and was runner-up in 2021 and 2023.

Ace matchup

Runs could be hard to come by when Tennessee hosts Nebraska.

Tennessee’s Karlyn Pickens and Nebraska’s Jordy Bahl, two of the nation’s best pitchers, will face off in a series that begins Friday in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Pickens, who was clocked at a NCAA-record 78.2 miles per hour in March, leads the nation with a 0.90 ERA and is sixth nationally with 252 strikeouts.

Bahl, who won two national titles with Oklahoma, is sixth nationally with a 1.50 ERA and fifth with 270 strikeouts.

Liberty’s shocker

Liberty had never even won a regional game, much less advanced.

There was no luck involved — the Lady Flames played the Aggies three times. Liberty defeated Texas A&M 8-5 last Saturday, then lost 14-11 in eight innings in Sunday’s first game. Liberty won the winner-take-all game 6-5 on Sunday night.

Liberty will visit No. 16 seed Oregon in super regionals, starting Friday.

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AP college sports: https://apnews.com/hub/college-sports