OKLAHOMA CITY — Kayla Beaver's dreams came true Friday night.
The graduate student pitched 3⅔ innings of perfect relief, Marlie Giles scored two runs and No. 14-seeded Alabama defeated No. 10 Duke 2-1 in an elimination game in the Women's College World Series.
Beaver is a transfer from Central Arkansas who was playing in his first World Series game. He replaced Jocelyn Briski and earned the victory a day after pitching six innings in a loss to UCLA.
“It means everything,” Beaver said. “Wearing the A is a dream. Being here makes it even better. Everything I wanted to happen this year, to have a year to do it, there were a lot of things I wanted to do in a year. I've done it all. There's one more thing left. “
Giles' performance supported Beaver's effort.
“Tonight he saw the ball as big as a basketball,” Alabama coach Patrick Murphy said of Giles. “It was perfect timing. We had a runner, she hit a double. The next time she hit a home run. Two RBIs, one RBI. That's all Beaver needed.”
Alabama (39-19) will face the loser of Saturday's game between No. 1 Texas and No. 4 Florida on Sunday in an elimination game.
Duke (52-9) made history. Coach Marissa Young became the first Black head coach to lead a team to the World Series, according to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association and Duke.
It was also the Blue Devils' first trip to the World Series.
“I'm sure it won't affect us until we get back to Durham, get on the field and see the Women's College World Series logo on the outside wall,” Young said.
Duke's Cassidy Curd allowed one earned run and four hits in the loss.
Giles hit an RBI double in the first to open the scoring. Duke responded in the second with a solo home run by Ana Gold.
Alabama's Kali Heivilin appeared to have a solo home run in the third, but Duke's Amiah Burgess reached her glove over the fence to grab it.
Giles hit a solo home run in the sixth to put Alabama up 2-1.
Duke couldn't muster any offense against Beaver in the sixth or seventh to extend the game. Still, the atmosphere after the game was celebratory.
“I mean, our goal this year was to get to the World Series,” said Gold, a junior. “I think, especially this senior class, they are very deserving. They have led our team very well. Since I came on campus, they have been there for me every step of the way. I am very happy that I could do it for them in their last year. They deserve it very much.
Stanford 8, Oklahoma State 0
With the season on the line, Stanford's NiJaree Canady delivered the type of performance one might expect from the best player in college softball.
The sophomore pitched a three-hitter and the Cardinal defeated Oklahoma State 8-0 in six innings in another elimination game in the Women's College World Series.
Canady, the USA Softball College Player of the Year, struck out seven and walked three in bouncing back from an opening loss to Texas on Thursday.
I was tired, but it didn't matter.
“We had conversations with her, being completely transparent this morning,” Stanford coach Jessica Allister said. “'Are you ready to go? We've asked you a lot.' She said, 'Yes, coach, I want the ball.'
“I think that speaks to her as a competitor. To have the performance that she had… I can't say enough about what that means to the team, what she did today.”
It was Stanford's fourth victory in an elimination game this postseason.
“I'm really proud of the team today,” Allister said. “Really, really proud of the way we came back. Not surprised. We've been resilient all year. We've been very resilient in the postseason. We've played really well in the elimination games. We've regressed.”
Aly Kaneshiro, Ava Gall and Caelan Koch each had two hits for No. 8 seed Stanford (49-16). The Cardinal will play the loser of Saturday's Oklahoma-UCLA game in an elimination game on Sunday.
The pitching matchup featured Canady and Oklahoma State's Lexi Kilfoyl, one of three finalists for the player of the year award. Canady leads the nation in clean performance average, while Kilfoyl ranks second.
Kilfoyl lasted 3 2/3 innings and allowed four runs on five hits before being replaced.
“Give them credit,” Oklahoma State coach Kenny Gajewski said. “They made things happen here tonight against one of the best pitchers in the country. I didn't think Lexi was particularly smart, but they still took advantage of it. That's what good teams do. That's why they'll advance.”
It was Oklahoma State's fifth straight trip to the World Series and it was another disappointing finish. The fifth-seeded Cowgirls (49-12) have reached the semifinals just once in those trips and have never reached the championship series. They did not score in their two games.
Stanford, which has struggled to produce runs in previous World Series games over the years, had no problems Friday. Jade Berry's double in the third scored two and put the Cardinal up 3-0.
Stanford's Kaitlyn Lim hit a solo home run in the fourth, just her fifth of the season, prompting Oklahoma State to retire Kilfoyl.
Stanford increased its lead to 6-0 with two runs in the fifth.
Oklahoma State's Micaela Wark hit a deep shot to center to start the fifth that could have ended the shutout, but Stanford's Emily Jones caught the ball off the wall. Her glove fell on the fence, but she held on.
“Sometimes in the outfield, you don't get to see the big plays all the time because it takes the perfect ball,” Allister said. “Nothing she does surprises us because we see it in practice every day.”
Oklahoma State got two runners in the sixth, but Canady finished the game with a strikeout, even after hitting his knee on the ball while throwing a pitch late in the game.
Allister had no update on Canady's status.
“We'll find out, right?” Allister said. “It's late. It's almost midnight. I have a day off tomorrow, which will be important. We'll have those conversations as we go. But we'll worry about that tomorrow.”
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
