Texas holds on to defeat Texas A&M, advance to Women's College World Series
After a scare on Saturday – and another on Sunday – No. 1 seed Texas is heading back to Oklahoma City. The Longhorns knocked off in-state rival Texas A&M in the Austin Super Regional to advance to the Women’s College World Series.
Texas took a 3-1 lead into the sixth inning of Sunday’s game, but added some much-needed insurance after Texas A&M added a run in the top half, but left the bases loaded. The Aggies then struggled to get something going again in the seventh as Teagan Kavan slammed the door and propelled the Longhorns to a second WCWS berth in three years.
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Kavan came in to relieve Mac Morgan and made some big-time pitches to get out of the sixth-inning jam. However, Texas A&M didn’t go down without a fight as Julia Cottrill made it a one-run game on one swing in the seventh, cutting the Texas lead to 6-5 with one out.
But Kavan once again came through, even after allowing a back-to-back walks with two outs, to pick up the save and seal the victory with her signature change-up. Texas will now head to Oklahoma City for the seventh time in program history.
Morgan got the start for the Longhorns, throwing 5.1 innings and allowing two runs, although neither were earned. But Mike White turned to his Kavan for the final 1.2 innings, and she had three strikeouts to eventually get the save.
Texas bounces back in Super Regional action
It was quite the comeback in the Super Regional for Texas, which lost the first game of the Austin Super Regional 6-5. The Longhorns then found themselves trailing in Game 2 with their backs against the wall facing elimination, but battled back in one of the craziest softball games in recent memory.
Texas trailed 5-1 heading into the sixth inning, but rallied for five runs to take a 6-5 lead. That advantage later grew to 8-5, but Texas A&M tied things up in the bottom of the seventh to take back the momentum and force extra innings.
After a scoreless eighth, Texas got on the board again in the ninth to take a 9-8 lead. That held as the final as the Longhorns fought off the upset and forced an if-necessary game with a trip to OKC on the line.
After securing the seventh of eight bids to the Women’s College World Series, Texas will quickly turn its attention to the LSU vs. Stanford game Sunday night. The winner of that matchup will take on the top-seeded Longhorns in Oklahoma City.