Florida softball destroys Oklahoma to force Women’s College World Series elimination game

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Image Credit: NCAA

Four home runs — including two blasts by redshirt senior shortstop Skylar Wallace — supported another tremendous pitching performance as the No. 4-seed Florida Gators kept themselves alive in the 2024 Women’s College World Series. Florida never cooled down Monday on its way to a 9-3 win over the No. 2-seed Oklahoma Sooners in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

Not only did UF force an elimination game for Tuesday — the winner will advance to the WCWS Championship Series — it ended OU’s 20-game winning streak in NCAA Tournament play.

Wallace (2/4, 3 RBI, K) was sensational at the plate, jacking a solo home run in the bottom of the second and extending the Gators’ advantage with a two-run shot in the fifth. Her first homer followed an tremendous inside-the-park variety from junior centerfielder Kendra Falby (2/3, RBI), while her second came an inning after junior designated player Reagan Walsh smacked a three-run shot to blow the game open in the fourth.

“We’ve just [done] a really good job of making the pictures work in the zone,” Wallace said after the game. “Everyone here is really good; the pitchers are phenomenal, so we just have to be really tight in our zones, hit balls that we can hit, trust our mechanics, all of our work and preparation — just get after the pitch.”

UF scored in each of the game’s first five innings and did so in clutch fashion; all nine runs came with two outs on the board. Freshman right-handed pitcher Keagan Rothrock (33-8) continued her solid play this season consistently getting out of jams while boosted in confidence by her run support. While noot perfect, Rothrock (7.0 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 7 BB, 4 K) escaped two on and no out in the sixth and bases loaded with two outs in the seventh.

Florida and Oklahoma will rematch Tuesday in a WCWS semifinal elimination game with the winner advancing to the WCWS Championship Series. The Gators are seeking their first trip since 2017, while the Sooners are hoping for an opportunity to win a record fourth straight national championship