The Texas Longhorns softball team would capture its second national championship in the rematch against its former Big 12 rivals, Texas Tech, in the Women’s College World Series championship in a complete sweep.
Last season, these two teams would come down to a deciding best-of-3 series where the Longhorns would take care of business against the Lady Red Raiders. This year the Longhorns would complete the sweep, which had to go through a tough, brutal schedule in the CWS.
After falling to Tennessee 6-3 in the opener of the CWS, the Longhorns would find a way in the losers bracket to bounce back by beating Mississippi State 4-0 to eliminate the Bulldogs.
Meanwhile, Texas Tech would win its first game of the tournament in its opener against Mississippi State before falling to Tennessee 2-1 in 9 innings in the winners’ bracket.
It would take both teams to fight hard in their elimination brackets, which Texas would get by Nebraska 3-1, and Tech would have to fight hard to get by eight seed UCLA8-7.
Texas would have to play the Lady Vols, which needed just one win to make it to the CWS Finals. The Longhorns would show that championship formula, which they would have Teagan Kavan work hard in both games. They won the first game 4-0, and then Kavan would make sure to pitch the best game of the tournament.
Katie Stewart would hit a pair of home runs with Kayden Henry, and the Longhorns would send Tennessee packing in a 5-2 victory.
Texas Tech would have to do the same in its matchup with the top-seeded Alabama. Mia Williams, the daughter of former NBA champion Jason “White Chocolate” Williams, would hit a home run that would put the Lady Raiders in a winner-takes-all elimination finals against the Lady Crimson Tide.
Tech would knock off the Tide 2-0 to make it back to the national championship game.
In game one, Texas Tech took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first, but in the bottom of the first, the Longhorns would pour in 5 runs, including a solo shot from Stewart. Vivi Martinez would have a pair of RBIs, and Texas would have a strong pitching performance from Kavan to win it 7-3.
It was all Texas in game two as they would take advantage of Texas Tech pitcher Najay Kanady, who had a strong performance in the first two innings. However, the Longhorns would close it out on a strikeout from Kavan and a great solo home run from Henry to win the game 4-1 and a back-to-back national championship.
