One shot, one mistake and now UCLA is one loss away from the end of the season.
No. 2 Oklahoma survived a pitcher’s duel in a 1-0 victory over No. 6 UCLA in the Women’s College World Series on Saturday at Devon Park, advancing to the semifinals with a solo home run from shortstop Tiare Jennings and 11 strikeouts by Kelly Maxwell.
UCLA (43-11) will face Pac-12 rival Stanford in an elimination game on Sunday at 4 p.m. PDT (ESPN2).
Saturday’s titanic clash of the sport’s winningest program against the current dynasty featured the two longest active winning streaks in the country. UCLA’s 14-game winning streak ended while Oklahoma extended its streak to 11 straight wins. The Sooners, who are trying to become the first program in history to win four consecutive NCAA softball championships, have won 20 consecutive NCAA tournament games. The Bruins were the last team to beat the Sooners (56-7) in the postseason in 2022.
Maya Brady was the hero in the 7-3 victory that forced a “if necessary” game in the 2022 national semifinals, but the fifth-year senior couldn’t muster anything against Maxwell on Saturday. The Oklahoma State transfer gave up just two hits and three walks in a complete game shutout.
UCLA’s top hitters — Brady, Jadelyn Allchin and Sharlize Palacios, who are three of UCLA’s top four hitters by average — combined to go 0 for 10 at the plate with six strikeouts. Brady, who turned 23 on Saturday, struck out three times, tying her career high in a game. She had a chance to keep the Bruins alive in the top of the seventh, but fouled out at second base.
UCLA, which thrived in the postseason with timely hitting, left seven on base.
The Bruins had two hits and no outs in the top of the third with the top of their lineup at the plate. With Brady, who had reached base in 16 consecutive at-bats, the Sooners called timeout. Maxwell then struck out the UCLA batter.
Maxwell retired three of UCLA’s most experienced players to end the threat. After sending Brady back to the dugout, Maxwell forced a shallow strike into the Allchin infield and struck out UCLA home run leader Palacios. The Bruins left the golden opportunity without even making a run.
Oklahoma immediately took advantage with a Jennings home run. The San Pedro shortstop sent Kaitlyn Terry’s first pitch over the fence in left-center field.
But the Bruins limited the damage to just one run with stellar play from their defense. After center fielder Janelle Meoño assisted on Jennings’ home run, the fifth-year UCLA senior robbed Kasidi Pickering of a two-run shot that could have shifted the momentum directly to the Sooners. Instead, the Bruins ended the inning with a Terry strikeout.
Terry, starting his second consecutive game, gave up three hits, one run and three walks with four strikeouts in four innings. Sophomore Taylor Tinsley pitched three innings in relief, allowing one hit with two strikeouts.
