Defensive battle: Sooners overcome Stanford in WCWS opener

OKLAHOMA CITY — It had been a battle all game.

Oklahoma and Stanford were scoreless heading into the bottom of the fifth. The Sooners’ offense struggled to find a rhythm against Stanford pitcher NiJaree Canady, who held the Sooners to just one hit in the first four innings.

But the Sooners found some momentum beginning with a single from Alynah Torres and it continued with a Rylie Boone hit. Jayda Coleman stepped to the plate with two outs and two base runners.

Coleman made contact, sending the ball to left field. Stanford left fielder Ellee Eck couldn’t corral the ball off the bounce, allowing Boone and pinch runner Avery Hodge to score. That gave the Sooners a two-run lead heading into the sixth inning.

They never relinquished it, finishing with a 2-0 win over Stanford to open the Women’s College World Series on Thursday at USA Hall of Fame Stadium.

“That was probably one of the most stressful, struggling first games we've had that I can remember in a long time,” OU coach Patty Gasso said.

The Sooners had a feeling the game could be a defensive battle.

Canady, a freshman, has been one of the best pitchers in the country this season, and she attacked the Sooners’ lineup early. Coleman and Tiare Jennings saw a combined 21 pitches in their at-bats in the bottom of the first, and by early in the third inning Cassady had thrown over 60 pitches.

It was effective at keeping the Sooners’ offense from scoring. early But through those pitches, the lineup was dissecting how to attack it.

“We knew what we were running into in the way of (Canady) and she has become one of the hardest throwing, ball moving freshmen I've ever seen,” Gasso said. “So I feel like we got a really tough, tough matchup. Their pitching staff is really good.

“You may have seen us look like we were really struggling, and at times we were just trying to figure this out. A lot of foul balls, a lot of foul balls, but we made her throw over 60 pitches up to like the third inning, and the goal was to just keep fighting and get her to keep throwing, maybe tire her out.”

By the time Canady was relieved by Alana Vawter to open the sixth inning, she had thrown 99 pitches to go with seven strikeouts.

But eventually, the Sooners found their opening and took advantage. The Sooners finished with six hits, led by Coleman’s two.

Thursday marked just the 11th time the Sooners have scored fewer than five runs this season and just the first time this postseason, but they managed to find a way to win.

“I think it shows that we don't always have to hit home runs,” Coleman said. “We can be the team that's just scrappy. Just put the ball in play, hit low-line drives. I think sometimes people want us to jack home runs when that doesn't win it all the time.

“So (it’s about) just really getting down to the fundamentals and the foundation and just hitting low line drives and just taking the walks and just being scrappy.”

With the win, the Sooners (57-1) improved their winning streak to 49 games.

* Jordy Bahl dominates in the circle: The sophomore picked up right where she left off last week against Clemson. Bahl made her first career start in the Women’s College World Series and pitched all seven innings, finishing with 11 strikeouts while surrendering five hits.

Her performance was crucial in giving the Sooners’ offense time to find momentum.

“She said it herself, she lives for those moments,” Gasso said. “It's not a lie. It's real. She loves the pressure, and that's where she thrives the most. So she's the right person at the right time.”

Bahl’s biggest moment came in the fourth inning, when Stanford landed base runners on first and second base with only one out. But Bahl responded, striking out consecutive batters to escape the frame.

“​​Those are honestly the situations you kind of like to be in as a pitcher at times because, when teams press you like that, it makes you be your best, and you can't take a pitch off, and it's a good test,” Bahl said. “So those moments are kind of fun even though they're really high stress at times.”

* Boone delivers again: The senior outfielder has a knack for coming up with timely hits. In last week’s super regional, she hit a single prior to Kinzie Hansen’s three-run home run to tie the game in the seventh inning.

Despite facing two outs, she did it again on Thursday, hitting a single to left field before eventually scoring on Coleman’s RBI.

“Every time Boone gets on, I know we're going to start rolling,” Coleman said. “Every time she jumps up and she's like this, I'm like, ‘Here we go.’ She is a party starter. I don't think people talk about her enough. I don't think she gets enough recognition. She is one of the hardest working people that I know. She's a great teammate. She's literally always in the dugout yelling in our ears, always got our back.

“When she starts hitting, I know we're going to start rolling. She knows how to flip that lineup around.”

* Up next: The Sooners advance and will meet Tennessee at 2 p.m. Saturday.

Tennessee (49-8) defeated Alabama 10-5 on Thursday to advance.