Softball WCWS!

It's that time of the year again. The time for the College World Series. First up is the one for women's softball. As I've been doing for the entire tournament so far, I'll preview the WVWS. In the WCWS, eight teams play a double-elimination mini-tournament, which features winners and loser brackets, as well as a best two-of-three series to decide the championship. Washington is the defending champion and is also the highest remaining seed, at No.3.

Hawaii - The Rainbows face the No.9 Missouri Tigers in the first game of the tournament. The trip to Oklahoma City is the first in the history of the Hawaii program.

The Rainbows upset the top seed, Alabama in Tuscaloosa last weekend, using a two-run walk-off homer in the bottom of the seventh by Jenna Rodriguez to win in the third and deciding game 5-4. Rodriguez accounted for all five runs on two home runs. The Rainbows win in the second game of the Super Regional broke the Crimson Tide's 28-game winning streak and their eight runs also marked the most ever scored against the top seed since the Super Regionals Era began.

Stephanie Ricketts went 1-1 last weekend, raising her record to 29-8. The 29 wins are tied for the second most in Hawaii history. She now has an ERA of 2.54 ERA and 153 strikeouts. Her teammate Kaia Parnaby leads the team with 185 strikeouts.

Missouri - Missouri's 7-2 victory against Oregon on Sunday sent the Tigers to the Women's College World Series for the second consecutive season. The Tigers have now made five trips to the WCWS in school history (1983, 1991, 1994, 2009, 2010). The back-to-back trips to the World Series is a program first. Missouri has now set a school record for wins this season at 51. The previous mark of 50 wins was set in 2009.

Missouri's potent offense exploded for the first time in the NCAA Tournament last weekend, when it defeated Oregon 7-2 to clinch the WCWS berth. The team had not scored more than four runs in an NCAA Tournament game. Nicole Hudson unloaded a solo home run, her 10th of the year. She is the first true freshman with double figure home runs in a season since Jen Bruck in 2005.

Kristin Nottlemann pitched another complete game en route to her fifth win of NCAA action. She is now 24-7 this season. Her 24 wins are eighth in school single-season history. The complete game was her 15th of the year and four of her five NCAA wins have been of the complete-game variety, including four consecutive complete-game triumphs. In NCAA play, Nottelmann has thrown 31.0 innings, allowed just 25 hits and three earned runs and is an unblemished 5-0. Her NCAA ERA is 0.87.

UCLA - The fifth-seeded Bruins breezed through their Super Regional, defeating Louisiana-Lafayette by scores of 10-1 and 10-2. The Bruins improve to 45-11 on the season, advancing to their 24th Women's College World Series.

Megan Langenfield and Aleah Macon picked up wins last weekend in the two SR games. Gionna DiSalvatore, Samantha Camuso 2, Dani Yudin, Kaila Shull and B.B. Bates each had home runs for the Bruins last week. Camuso, who is leading the team with a .571 postseason BA, drove in seven of UCLA's 20 runs last weekend. Her 14 NCAA Rbi more than double the total of Yudin, who is second on the team with six.

Florida - The fourth-seed University of Florida softball team defeated 13th-seed Arizona State, 5-2, on Sunday afternoon to move on to the program’s third straight Women’s College World Series appearance.

The Gators moved on after defeating the Sun Devils in two games, 5-2 and 8-0. Stephanie Brombacher picked up both wins last weekend, improving her total to five in the postseason. The righty (34-6) has registered a 0.90 ERA in the postseason while moving into second on UF’s career wins list with 76 victories and third on the career strikeout list with 541.

Kelsey Bruder led the team with six RBI and two home runs last weekend.

Washington - Well, what do we have here? The top-ranked Washington softball team earned a chance to defend its NCAA championship Friday as the Huskies won a pair of games vs. Oklahoma Friday at Husky Softball Stadium to earn a berth in the Women's College World Series next week in Oklahoma City.

Washington, ranked No. 1 in the nation and seeded third in the tournament, won 3-0 in game two of the best-of-three NCAA Super Regionals and then wrapped up the Series berth with a 4-0 victory in the nightcap thanks in large part to a three-run homer from freshman Shawna Wright in the first inning.

On Thursday, the Huskies (50-7) suffered their first-EVER home loss in NCAA play, falling 6-1 to Oklahoma. In that game, back-to-back National Player of the Year Danielle Lawrie gave up five home runs, the most in her Husky career. Friday though, had Lawrie back to her old tricks. In the second game of the series, she threw a two-hit shutout, striking out 10, while she fanned 17 in the five-hit shutout that decided who went to the WCWS.

Lawrie picked up both wins Friday to notch the second 40-win season in UW history. Last season, she won 42. She also moved into a tie for sixth in NCAA history with 136 career victories.


Georgia - Georgia will be making its second trip to the WCWS having made the program's initial appearance in 2009, when the Bulldogs advanced to be one of the final four teams remaining. Georgia opened last year's series against Washington, falling 3-1. The Bulldogs then advanced through the loser's bracket with a 5-2 win over Missouri and a 7-5 defeat of Michigan to set up a second contest with the Huskies. Georgia then defeated Washington, 9-8, in nine innings before the Huskies turned around and won a third-game between the schools, 9-3.

Georgia advanced after sweeping Cal 7-0, 10-1. In addition to earning a spot in the WCWS, Saturday's victory also marked the 500th win at Georgia for head coach Lu Harris-Champer, who's overall collegiate coaching career record now stands at 709-243-1 over 14 seasons including a 500-179 record in 10 seasons at UGA.

Sarah McCloud picked up both wins last weekend, giving up a combined seven hits in the two games. She improved her 2010 record to 13-1.

Megan Wiggins smacked six RBI in the Super Regional and along with Alisa Goler and Kristyn Sandberg, is one of three Bulldogs that smacked one homer last weekend.

Arizona -The Wildcats return to OKC for its 22nd WCWS appearance and sixth consecutive. Outside of 2004, Arizona has been to every WCWS since 1988.

Arizona swept through its Super Regional against BYU, winning 2-1 and 10-2. Sarah Akamine and Kenzie Fowler each had a win in last week's Super Regional. Fowler struck out 10 in her start, as she improved to 34-6, while Akamine pitched five innings in her win, improving her record to 14-5.

The Wildcats have six hitters who have one home run each and Lini Koria leads the team with eight NCAA RBI.

Tennessee - The Volunteers are going to their fourth WCWS after upsetting the second seed Michigan in two games, 5-0, 4-3. The last time they made the World Series, 2007, they finished second to Arizona, their first round opponent. Prior to last weekend, the Wolverines had won 36 consecutive games at home.

The Vols used both their stud pitchers this weekend, as Ivy Renfroe improved to 29-4 and Cat Hosfield to 17-8. Renfroe's win was a two-hitter against one of the best offenses in the nation.

Tennessee used three home runs to build its 4-0 lead - including two by senior Erinn Webb in the deciding game.


The WCWS features numerous All-Americans, named by the NFCA. First Team All-Americans include Kenzie Fowler (Arizona), Danielle Lawrie (Washington), Melissa Gonzalez (Hawaii), Brittany Lastrapes (Arizona), Megan Langenfield (UCLA), Niki Williams (Washington), Giona DiSalvatore (UCLA) and Jenn Salling (Washington). Second Team All-Americans include Stacie Chambers (Arizona), K'Lee Arrendondo (Arizona), Kelly Majam (Hawaii), Taylor Schlopy (Georgia), Charlotte Morgan (Alabama), Kayla Braud Alabama), Alisa Goler (Georgia) and Francesca Enea (Florida). Third Team All-Americans include Raven Chavanne (Tennessee), Rhea Taylor (Missouri), Stephanie Brombacher (Florida), Kelsi Dunne (Alabama) and Kat Dotson (Tennessee).