OKLAHOMA CITY — It looked like Sooner Magic had again struck Monday at Devon Park.

The Sooners trailed Texas Tech 2-0 in the top of the seventh. With two outs and two strikes on the board, Abigale Dayton delivered an improbable two-run home run to right field to tie the game and keep the Sooners' season alive.

It was the first signs of life for OU's offense, and it came at the last possible second.

However, the Red Raiders had a response.

With Sam Landry gutting out another full game in the circle, the Red Raiders snagged two base hits to put runners on second and third base. Lauren Allred hit a sacrifice fly to right field, bringing the winning run home.

In a chaotic sequence of events, the Sooners fell to the Red Raiders, 3-2, ending their season in the Women's College World Series semifinals at Devon Park.

Dayton's miracle home run came up just short.

It was an awfully tall task for the OU softball team. Had they won, they would've had to beat the Red Raiders and ace pitcher NiJaree Canady in an if-necessary game in order to advance to the WCWS championship series.

That would've been difficult considering how Canady was pitching in the first game.

Canady was aggressive early, striking out the top of the Sooners' lineup in order in the first inning. Cydney Sanders walked and Sydney Barker reached with a single in the second inning, but Canady forced a fly out to leave them both stranded.

The Red Raiders' offense — which scored just four runs through their first two WCWS games — just needed a couple of timely hits against Oklahoma pitcher Sam Landry. They got them in the second inning.

Landry allowed a walk in the bottom of the second, then the runner was brought home on an RBI triple from Demi Elder. Elder was then brought home on an RBI single from Bailey Lindemuth, giving the Red Raiders a two-run lead going into the third.

That put the Sooners in an uphill climb.

The Sooners got leadoff base hits from Barker and Ella Parker, respectively, in the fifth and sixth innings, which gave the offense life. But in both innings, Canady retired the next three batters to leave them stranded.

It had been a real struggle for the offense until Dayton's home run.

Landry — who pitched 24.1 of 27 possible innings at the WCWS — allowed six hits, three runs and three walks while striking out six batters in 122 pitches.

Canady finished with eight strikeouts and one walk allowed.

The loss ends the Sooners' season with a 52-9 record and just four wins away from the program's ninth championship. The Sooners finished as the SEC regular season champions in their first year in the conference and as the No. 2 overall seed, eventually making their 18th appearance at the WCWS.

The Red Raiders will face Texas in the WCWS Championship series, which begins Wednesday.

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