The road to the finals wasn’t easy. Texas and Stanford went into the seventh inning slightly different from the last matchup in the first round of the WCWS. At that point, the game was up in the air and no team could put a run on the scoreboard. Texas captain Alyssa Washington was ready.

In the final inning, Washington was stuck in the middle of the base paths with nowhere to go. Washington ran after an Ashton Maloney attempt to take the lead through a small ball. Closely chased by Stanford’s third baseman Jade Berry, the captain made the ultimate run and returned to the base. First-seeded Texas led.

“My initial reaction was ‘Go,’ but then I saw the pitcher had got it so I just froze a bit,” Washington said. “Instead of going back, I wanted to just beat her and get into that rundown.”

All she could think of was how she would do whatever it took to take her team to the finals.

“In a ball game like that it just takes one run to get ahead,” Washington said.

A veteran in the game, the senior infielder from Abilene took advantage of her experience and ability to read her opponents.

“The third baseman how she had it when she was chasing me down, instead of having the ball in her hand she had it in her glove,” Washington said. “So recognizing that that’s gonna take a little time to transfer and get it in there.”

Washington’s semifinal run was her 38th of the season.

“She’s become a leader for us, being the captain of the team,” head coach Mike White said. “I like the way she’s stepping up in some of our team talks and tough moments. She’s a galvanizing person for us on the safety squeeze.”