STORAKO CRIED AS she embraced pitching coach Jennifer Rocha.Ī moment later, she and fifth-year senior shortstop Grace Lyons locked eyes, held hands and, jumping up and down, screamed in unison, "We did it! We did it!"Īround and around Storako went, grinning as she wore a championship T-shirt and hat that a year ago felt unattainable.Īnd to think, she wasn't sure what to expect when she decided to transfer from Michigan in May 2022. This is the story of how greatness happens - the players who are drawn to it and the coach who has built a program that has the rest of softball competing for second place. It's kind of like UConn women's basketball and winning the championship how many years in a row? And people are like, 'This is boring' or 'This is not good for the women's game to have an elite team.' But it's our job, and I think for sport connoisseurs, they want to see what greatness looks like." "Is that good for the game?" Gasso asked. "I go after the best as long as they fit." She had scholarships available, she said, and why would she go after the second-best player? "That makes no sense," she said. Well, she explained during an interview earlier this year, it's simple. Sooners coach Patty Gasso heard the breathless questions from reporters and fans: Why do you need that? The additions of Alex Storako, Haley Lee, Cydney Sanders and Alynah Torres this past offseason - all either all-conference or All-American picks at their previous schools - prompted superteam comparisons and made their critics that much more vocal. They could sense it building with each passing win, an NCAA-record 53 and counting. There's a phrase for it internally: Oklahoma fatigue. Their dominance might irk others, particularly the way they hoard talent. "Just to see the joy of the transfers and the freshmen, for them, that's what I love," she said.įor the players on the field, this didn't feel stale or expected or. It was fun, Coleman said later, watching the newcomers figure out where to be and how to behave. She raced from her spot in center field to join the dog pile that seemed to form in the blink of an eye between the pitcher's mound and home plate. Jayda Coleman, a junior who has known nothing but national titles, understood the drill when Jordy Bahl struck out the final batter and Oklahoma beat Florida State 3-1 to win the championship series. Then they ran over the collection of crimson and white and gold paper with a Billy Goat lawn mower, shredding it and shredding it and shredding it until it was indistinguishable from the dirt.īackpack blowers wheezed in the background as the Oklahoma Sooners lingered in the outfield, their families and friends joining in on the celebration that so many of them had become accustomed to by now. So they got to work, digging up the chalk lines with shovels and sweeping confetti into a pile with rakes. OKLAHOMA CITY - THE TEARS and hugs and group photos were taking so long that the grounds crew couldn't wait any longer. Oklahoma softball: Dynasty, superteam, 2023 WCWS champion » Click here for Oklahoma Time to Local Time Conversion.You have reached a degraded version of because you're using an unsupported version of Internet Explorer.įor a complete experience, please upgrade or use a supported browser » Click here for EDT to Local Time Conversion.
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