Kelly Maxwell on being ready to pitch Game 2: 'This is my last opportunity'

Oklahoma Sooners head coach Patty Gasso has heavily relied on Kelly Maxwell in the circle during the Women’s College World Series. That included the first game of the final, against rival Texas.

Now, even with the physical and mental struggles that come with the kind of workload that Maxwell has been given, she’s made it clear that she’s ready for game two because this is her last opportunity to go out there.

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“I think just the mental side of it,” Kelly Maxwell said. “This is it. This is my last opportunity. I’m just going to do everything I can to keep this team in it. I know that they have my back and I got theirs. That side of it.”

Kelly Maxwell came to Oklahoma for the 2024 season as a transfer from Oklahoma State. She quickly became one of Patty Gasso’s most trusted pitchers, appearing in 35 games this season. That includes Oklahoma’s last two games, an elimination game against Florida and then Game 1 against Texas. In total, she went 15 innings while pitching on back-to-back days.

During that game against Texas, Patty Gasso said she’d go as far as she could on the arm of Kelly Maxwell. That ended up being the distance, as she pitched seven innings and only gave up one earned run in the win.

“Then physically, I’m doing good,” Maxwell said. “The staff here is doing everything they can to keep me going and feeling good.”

The second game of the Women’s College World Series will be played on Thursday, which would make it the third day in a row Kelly Maxwell would pitch for Oklahoma. Given that context, it would be interesting to see how far she can go with a national championship on the line.

Tiare Jennings: ‘There’s something going on with Kelly Maxwell right now’

Following the Game 1 win, Oklahoma infielder Tiare Jennings explained that there’s something special about what Kelly Maxwell is doing for the Sooners right now.

“There’s something going on with Kelly Maxwell right now. The Lord is working through her, and you can just see it all over her face and it’s bleeding through this team,” Jennings said.

“We’re just gonna go down and just gonna go out there and keep fighting with her. But there’s something going on Kelly Maxwell right now and she’s looking real good. Just all faith and all confidence in what I’m doing and this team. We’re just gonna keep fighting. Kelly just pitched another great game as well. But just going out there having fun and just doing whatever we can to get this first game.”