Can Texas softball find the upset formula once more against overpowering Oklahoma?

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — There are two methods to take a look at Saturday’s first recreation of the Ladies’s School World Collection slate. One is that the No. 1 seed, a historic dynasty, is enjoying a scrappy unseeded underdog that has gotten scorching on the proper time.

Or extra merely: It is Oklahoma vs. Texas (3 p.m. ET, ABC and ESPN App).

The 55-2 Sooners definitely might’ve anticipated to be right here, placing collectively one of the dominant seasons within the historical past of the game. In the meantime, in February, the Longhorns went 0-5 within the St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Invitational and followers weren’t precisely reserving lodge rooms in Oklahoma Metropolis.

However fast-forward to June, and the Longhorns are dealing with the Sooners within the winners bracket in OKC after a 7-2 win over No. 5 UCLA.

In between, the unthinkable occurred: On April 16, behind the arm of Hailey Dolcini, Texas beat Oklahoma, snapping the Sooners’ 40-game profitable streak general and a 23-game profitable streak in opposition to the Longhorns. It wasn’t a cure-all for Texas’ season; the Longhorns nonetheless dropped all three video games in a collection in opposition to Oklahoma State a couple of week later, they usually misplaced once more to the Cowgirls within the Huge 12 event. However within the Seattle Regional and the Fayetteville Tremendous Regional, the Longhorns went on a tear, going 5-2 with collection wins over No. 11 Washington and No. 5 Arkansas, the latter a confidence-building victory earlier than a decidedly dwelling crowd.

Sound acquainted?

The Longhorns will get a heavy dose of crimson and cream on Saturday, enjoying the defending champ Sooners simply 20 miles from their Norman campus.

Earlier than the Horns’ first-round recreation in opposition to UCLA, Texas star Janae Jefferson, a four-time All-American, knew what was in retailer for her group.

“I am not anticipating us to get a lot help from the OU followers out right here,” she mentioned, earlier than saying the Longhorns’ devoted have been nonetheless rowdy in Arkansas. “We’ll want that help for certain. We’re prepared.”

Historical past will not be on the Longhorns’ aspect, both. The Sooners have gained 5 nationwide championships, together with final season’s. Texas, in the meantime, has made simply six appearances general within the WCWS, with this being its first since 2013. That was the 12 months of the one earlier Texas-OU matchup in Oklahoma Metropolis, the place the Sooners run-ruled the Longhorns 10-2.

However Dolcini is the rationale for Texas’ long-shot hopes at a second win over OU this 12 months. In two begins in opposition to the Sooners this season, she has allowed simply 5 complete runs, giving up three in a 3-0 loss on April 14, then two extra in a 4-2 win two days later.

Two of Oklahoma’s greatest threats, Tiare Jennings and Jocelyn Alo, are hitless in 13 at-bats in opposition to Dolcini this 12 months, based on ESPN Stats & Information. And whereas the Sooners have been held to 3 hits or fewer simply thrice all season, two have been in opposition to Dolcini.

“It was actually attacking them with no worry,” Dolcini mentioned. “You have to belief that your greatest stuff will beat their greatest swings and hold the ball down for a group that hits numerous lengthy balls.”

It was a exceptional initiation into the Pink River Rivalry for Dolcini, an excellent senior switch from Fresno State who was dealing with the Sooners for the primary time in burnt orange in that collection.

“It isn’t all the time one of the best group that wins,” Texas coach Mike White mentioned on Wednesday. “It is the group that performs one of the best, and on that specific day, we performed higher than they did. That they had their No. 1 pitcher [Jordy Bahl] throwing in opposition to us. It was a 0-0 recreation for some time, and we have been in a position to rating a giant hit on the proper time, and Hailey pitched one heck of a recreation, and that is what it’s a must to do.

The Sooners do not want any miracles with the machine that coach Patty Gasso has constructed. However they’re additionally coming off a Recreation 1 displaying that included the return of Bahl, who had been out with arm soreness since Might 6.

“We want her, however these two pitchers (Hope Trautwein, 19-1, 0.51 ERA; and Nicole Might, 15-0, 0.99) have been crushing it,” Gasso mentioned on Thursday. “So including Jordy (21-1, 0.95, 199 strikeouts in 132⅔ innings) to the combination and making you now practice for 3 completely different pitchers as an alternative of two is troublesome for groups.”

Oklahoma nice Alo, the game’s all-time dwelling run chief, says the Texas loss earlier within the season was a giant issue within the Sooners’ run so far, too.

“I’ve performed with numerous actually particular groups,” Alo mentioned on Wednesday. “Been right here for 5 years, so I’ve had my fair proportion. I feel that is one of the best group I have been on simply due to how full we’re and the way tight-knit we’re. Once more, I’ve by no means seen a pitching workers like this, they usually simply like to cube us up at observe, so I really feel like that is what makes us good. Simply iron sharpening iron daily. I feel I noticed this group actually begin trending in the proper course, I feel, after we misplaced to Texas, and I’ve simply seen us come out of some actually robust spots and deal with it with grace and fervour.”

A peaking Texas group and an Oklahoma squad on the cusp of historic greatness. Two weeks in the past, the No. 4 Texas girls’s tennis group upset No. 2 Oklahoma, which was 32-2 and set a program report for wins, for the nationwide title.

Can Texas softball discover the system for yet one more upset of its personal?

“I’ve all the time mentioned good pitching beats good hitting, particularly in stress conditions, and Hailey was in a position to put collectively top-of-the-line video games of her profession, and that is the best way to do it,” White mentioned earlier this week. “Hopefully, we will repeat it someday.”

Now they get their probability.