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How to watch Texas play Texas Tech for a second-straight softball national title

by: Josh Florey11 hours ago

With a 7-3 victory over Texas Tech yesterday, Texas needs one more win to take home a second consecutive national title. 

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The Horns exploded in the first inning, putting five runs on the board and forcing Tech pitcher Kaitlyn Terry out of the game. Nijaree Canady came into the game but was pulled at the start of the third. Then, Sam Lincoln pitched a very solid few innings, before Terry re-entered in the sixth for the Red Raiders. 

The good news for Texas is that they hit both Terry and Canady very well in the first inning. The bad news is they saw very few pitches from either. Canady will start for Tech tonight in a do-or-die game.

The Texas batting order has been hot against elite pitching lately. Katie Stewart is the most dangerous batter on the team right now, and will most likely be intentionally walked if there are runners on. Vivi Martinez has heated up in the last few games as well, while Reese Atwood has looked leagues better these past few games than she did earlier in the postseason. Jaycie Nichols has also played extremely well out of the nine spot, finding ways to get on base with her speed and having multiple quality at-bats.

Many of the batters in the Longhorn lineup faced Canady multiple times last year in the WCWS, which could help the Texas offense continue to put runs up. The Longhorns also excelled at reaching first with infield hits. If Texas can hit in a similar fashion to how they did in game one, they are in great shape. 

Teagan Kavan went all of game one on the mound, meaning Citlaly Gutierrez will most likely start game two, with Kavan available in relief. 

Texas Tech’s lineup is still full of power, mashing two home runs in game one. Kavan did a good job limiting other runners, allowing only a solo home run in the first and a two-run home run in the fifth. 

If the Horns win game two, they will have won back-to-back national titles. If they lose, they play a winner-take-all game on Friday.

The game will air on ESPN at 7 p.m. Central. 

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