Patty Gasso opens up on how Oklahoma managed weather delays during WCWS championship opener
Game 1 of the Women’s College World Series championship series had to wait an hour before first pitch between Oklahoma and Florida State due to weather. Then, just four outs in, Mother Nature got in the way again, meaning the teams had to navigate two delays through less than an inning of play.
One delay is tough, but two can be even more challenging. Still, Sooners head coach Patty Gasso said her team handled everything well.
After all, they have plenty of experience dealing with Oklahoma weather.
“Really good,” Gasso told ESPN’s Holly Rowe of how she thought her team did out of the delays. “We live in Oklahoma, so we’ve been in these positions before. It’s nothing new for us.”
Although Gasso said her team did well through the delays, Oklahoma’s offense struggled to get anything going against Florida State pitcher Mack Leonard. The Sooners managed just one hit through the first three innings and had some wasted opportunities in the early going as the game remained a scoreless tie.
Gasso wasn’t concerned with the early struggles, but acknowledged her team was having trouble making solid contact against Leonard. Still, there was plenty of softball to be played.
“We’re just trying to square it up,” Gasso said ahead of the fourth inning. “It’s early in the game. We’re just still getting a feel. But I’m not worried, really.”
Like clockwork, Oklahoma started clicking in its first at-bats after Gasso’s interview. After Florida State pulled Leonard, the Sooners scored three times in the bottom of the fourth inning to take a 3-0 lead over the Seminoles.
Oklahoma and Florida State have faced each other on the big stage before
Oklahoma is in the midst of another historic season under Gasso, and perhaps the most historic yet. The Sooners brought an NCAA-record 51-game win streak into Wednesday’s game, needing two more victories to come away with a third consecutive title. Oklahoma advanced to the championship series with a thrilling 4-2 victory over Stanford in nine innings on Monday.
Florida State isn’t an unfamiliar foe for the Sooners, though. They played against the Seminoles earlier this year in a 5-4 victory.
But they’ve also played each other in the championship series before — two years ago, in fact.
Oklahoma and Florida State went to three games in 2021 before the Sooners came away with the 3-2 series victory in the first of their back-to-back titles. They’ll now have a chance to bookend a three-peat with two wins over FSU this week at USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City.