College softball's 64-team tournament was revealed Sunday, and Texas is the No. 1 seed. Behind the Longhorns are No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 3 Tennessee and No. 4 Florida.
The Sooners are looking to make history as the only NCAA team to win four consecutive Women's College World Series titles. Can someone stop them from repeating four?
We asked our softball analysts to break down the first stop on the road to Oklahoma City. From sleeper teams to bold predictions, they answer the biggest questions ahead of regionals.
Which unseeded team has the best chance of making it to the WCWS? Which host has the hardest path? Let's find out.
Jump to:
The most difficult path | Sleepers
Possible Super Regional matchups
Essential players | Bold predictions
Which regional host has the toughest road to OKC?
Jenny Dalton-Hill: FSU has a lot to overcome to return to OKC. The Seminoles lost the ACC championship and have struggled in the circle this season. However, they love to find extra bases and led the ACC in doubles again this season. Both Auburn and UCF can put together complete pitching performances to win, but I think this regional will be about who can outhit their own pitchers. Each team's circle in Tallahassee is capable of limiting a team to minimal hits, but has stumbled in the regular season. My biggest question is which team can present a complete, united front with solid pitching, error-free defense, and effective 1-9 hitters? If the Seminoles get out of their regional, they'll face Oklahoma in supers, and who wants to see the Sooners before OKC?
Amanda Scarborough: LSU. The Tigers have a challenging region with a strong Pac-12 team in Cal and a Southern Illinois team that has one of the best freshman pitchers in the country in Maddia Groff. If they win at home and get out of their regional, they will likely have to face the best pitcher in the country, Stanford's NiJaree Canady, visiting California. Facing Canady and trying to beat them two out of three in a super regional is a tall order for any opponent.
Michelle Smith: Oklahoma State will be challenged in the Stillwater Regional with Kentucky and Michigan as strong Power 5 teams. Kentucky is a team that has performed well at times this season, and if it plays good fundamental softball, it could be in the hunt for the WCWS. Michigan won the Big Ten Tournament and can do damage. If the seeds hold, that will set up a showdown with Arkansas in the Stillwater Super Regional. Arkansas is a very good team that can hit for power, has speed and good arms in the circle…this will be a very challenging super regional.
Madison Shipman: Louisiana has a really tough road to the WCWS. Ole Miss has played some of its best games of the season, winning its last two SEC series. Baylor's Aliyah Binford can be tough against any offense. And the Ragin' Cajuns would have a possible matchup against Florida in the Super Regional, and I don't know if there's a team with a hotter offense than the Gators.
Which unseeded team has the best chance of making it to the WCWS?
Dalton-Hill: Utah played well to finish the season by winning two games against Washington to conclude the regular season. They reached the Pac-12 championship game after beating Oregon (a team they lost to twice in the regular season) and Stanford (a team that swept them in conference play) and lost a close game to UCLA 2- 1. This is a team that doesn't hit for a lot of power or extra bases, but their speed can wreak havoc on a defense. The Utes aren't afraid to play close games, and while they do have losses to South Carolina (who they will play in the Durham Regional), that loss was earlier in the year and now they are playing like a different team. Utah could potentially travel to Missouri for the super regional against a team it lost to in its second game of the season. For the Utes, their opponents on the road to OKC are very familiar.
Scarborough: Virginia Tech. The Hokies have hit 113 home runs and play on a small field at UCLA, where the ball flies. If they can get to UCLA's pitching and put some runs on the board, they can try to overcome the Bruins' strong offense. UCLA has a small pitching staff, so if (and it's a big if) it can get to Kaitlyn Terry and Taylor Tinsley, it will be in a good situation. Then, if the spots hold, they will face a Georgia team that has also given up some runs. Virginia Tech has a chance to beat everyone on their way to OKC if they can hit like they can and put runs on the board. On paper, the Hokies have some favorable pitching matchups for their gutsy offense.
Blacksmith: Washington is a team that plays in a very strong Pac-12 conference and has a lot of experience playing against tough teams. Ruby Meylan is a very good pitcher, and if the Huskies' bats come alive, Washington can do some damage in the Columbia Regional. If he wins the regionals, he will head to Duke, assuming the Blue Devils get through their regional and have a chance to face another strong team.
Sailor: I firmly believe that if you have dominant pitching, you can go far in the postseason. I'm excited to watch Jessica Mullins and the Texas State Bobcats to see how far they can go. He's already beaten Texas A&M this season and pitched in two close games against Texas. Mullins appears to have a bionic arm with over 229 innings pitched on the season.
Which potential super-regional matchup would be the most captivating?
Dalton-Hill: Rematch between FSU and Oklahoma if both seeds win. These teams are familiar with each other, but both teams' pitching is dynamically different than last season. Will Oklahoma feel the pressure of the fourth mob and the fight? Can FSU keep the Sooners' bats calm? Anything less than OKC for Oklahoma will devastate that group.
Scarborough: Coming from Aggie, Texas vs. Texas A&M, if the seeds hold. Nothing beats an in-state rivalry with former Big 12 foes and now future SEC foes! Interestingly, both teams have head coaches who have come from the Pac-12 to Central Texas, many Texas players who know each other and in any sport, this rivalry is always spicy. There's a lot of history between these two teams, and they even met twice last year in the Austin Regional, including the regional final when Texas advanced.
Blacksmith: If the seeds hold, I think Georgia at UCLA could be a very interesting super region. The Bulldogs have numerous players who can knock the ball out of the park, as do the Bruins with superstar Maya Brady. Both teams have been vulnerable to the long ball in the circle, so it could be a very explosive super regional from a hitting perspective.
Sailor: LSU and Stanford would be a very intriguing super regional matchup. The Tigers are a team full of veteran players. They have a lot of left-handed hitters who don't strike out much. They have only a 10.2% swing/miss rate, which is the best among all Power 5 schools. On the other hand, Stanford's NiJaree Canady ranks second in the country in strikeouts this season with 251. He would be a good matchup between bats that make contact and pitchers who swing and miss a lot.
Who is the most important player to watch in the tournament?
Dalton-Hill: I'm watching Oklahoma's Tiare Jennings just like I have been for four years. Yes, it is for selfish reasons. If Oklahoma advances to OKC, there are enough games for me to surpass my RBIs. She's been slow at the end of this season, but you can never count her out. She is very good and playing shortstop this season after three years at second base. Keep moving, boy.
Scarborough: Reese Atwood from Texas. The way he can string together games and rack up RBIs has been something to watch this spring! She enters the tournament with 86 RBI and 22 home runs, and when she's on a roll, her at-bats are worthy of attention. Behind the plate, she is a great leader for a unique pitching staff. With many different looks, she handles each game with ease.
Blacksmith: NiJaree Canady of Stanford. Enough talk.
Sailor: Miami Ohio's Karli Spaid is the player to watch this postseason. She already has 36 home runs (putting her one home run shy of tying Arizona's Laura Espinosa's single-season record of 37) and bringing her career home run total to 103, where she ranks second behind Jocelyn Oklahoma Alo on the Career Home Run Leaders List.
What is your bold tournament prediction?
Dalton-Hill: Florida is very hot right now, but let's take a different route. . . Duke advances to the WCWS for the first time in program history. I think his regional and super regional path can take them there with Jala Wright, Cassidy Curd and Lilly Walker in the circle. The Blue Devils will have a tough ride to win it all in OKC because it's overwhelming to play for the first time in that stadium and get all that attention, but this is a group that's clicking right now.
Scarborough: I don't know if this is bold NOW based on how he's played the last few weeks, but at the beginning of the season, coming off the season he had last year and all the key freshmen on his roster: Florida makes it to the WCWS. This team is young in a lot of different areas, which is always a question mark, but the Gators can outperform any team in the country and provide support to their young staff. If they need to win a game 8-7 or 13-12, their offense can step up to score whatever it takes and these last two or three weeks of the season have shown that.
Blacksmith: I agree with Amanda… The Gators are chasing the Natty. They are chewing!
Sailor: I'm on the same page as Michele and Amanda. Could this be the year another SEC team takes the national title? The odds seem long with the way Florida has been hitting and the way Tennessee has pitched this season with Karlyn Pickens and Payton Gottshall.
