Atwood delivers late, Texas beats Texas Tech in Game 1 of WCWS Champ Series

Reese Atwood entered the Women’s College World Series Championship Series hitless in Oklahoma City. She picked no better time to find her first. Atwood grounded one past Texas Tech shortstop Hailey Toney for a two-run go-ahead single in the sixth to lead the Longhorns to a 2-1 win over the Red Raiders.

Kayden Henry lined Texas’ second hit of the game into left field with two outs. Mia Scott tried to check her swing, but ended up hitting the ball and finding dirt to put two on for Atwood. Despite NiJaree Canady’s success against the All-American catcher, Texas Tech decided to intentionally Atwood…or at least try. Canady’s first three pitches were pretty close to the plate. Her fourth was too close, and Atwood took a hack at the 3-0 pitch, sending it into the outfield.

After review, this pitch was obstructed by @atwood_reese bat. #HookEm | 📺: ESPN pic.twitter.com/UUGgsJxVsY

— Texas Softball (@TexasSoftball) June 5, 2025

“The first pitch, I think she kind of left a little. After that, I was looking for something just a little bit,” Atwood said. “The game’s really tight, and I knew I was going to have to take a risk to try and do something for my team. Props to NiJa because she definitely kept us real tight throughout that game. She’s a great pitcher. I saw my opportunity, and I took it.”

“I kind of was, if it’s there, hit it. I didn’t know she was going to swing. I kind of joked with her, I didn’t give you the 3-0 green light,” head coach Mike White said. “I’m glad she didn’t listen to me. I think (hitting) coach (Steve) Singleton was telling her to swing.”

After the game, Texas Tech head coach Gerry Glasco was asked if Canady and Texas Tech practiced intentionally walking, especially the way Texas Tech catcher Victoria Valdez was set up.

“I just told (pitching coach) Tara (Archibald), if we don’t practice intentional walk once a week, maybe we learn something we’d better write in our book for next year. I really don’t know how often they practiced it,” he said. “I’m sitting here listening, and I didn’t realize it was her first intentional walk all year. You think about it, I guess we haven’t. I know we pitched around people, and maybe I should have just said pitch around her because we definitely have pitched around several people this year, but we didn’t stand up. Maybe that was a coaching error on my part.”

Henry fouled a ball with good contact before her hit. Clearly, the third time through the order, Texas had better timing on Canady.

“I think there was never a time or an at-bat we felt was wasted,” Henry said. “We communicated throughout the whole entire game. We battled her throughout the whole entire game. At some point we knew we were going to execute and get through, and it just happened to be in the sixth inning.”

Teagan Kavan matched Canady for most of the game, even battling a questionable call in the fifth. The righty continued her great Women’s College World Series. She still hasn’t allowed an earned run in Oklahoma City. Kavan yielded three hits, two of them to the first two batters of the ball. She only struck out three compared to 10 groundouts and seven flyouts.

Kavan has seen an uptick in her dropball usage this season and its proving to be pivotal for her in the postseason.

“Coming back from the fastpitch days, and she was coached by Bill Hillhouse, who was a men’s fast pitch pitcher. We believe in vertical movements, up and down and then off-speed, and those are the three pitches she has,” White said. “She’s able to move them those through the planes and make the pitches look similar but break different ways.

“I think it came down confidence. From her earlier days, she could get away from throwing one pitch. She found out sometimes the hard way at this level you’ve got to be able to mix and match and reinvent yourself and do different things.”

Texas Tech loaded the bases in the first after back-to-back singles and a catcher’s interference on a swing by Lauren Allred. Kavan won her first battle against Canady, the batter, rolling a double-play ball. Alexa Langeliers bounced one back to Kavan to leave two runners in scoring position.

Mihiya Davis, who came into the game with six hits and a .545 career batting average against Teagan Kavan, broke the scoreless contest in the fifth. Davis flared a ball into right field that found grass for a two-out, RBI single.

Texas Tech did take advantage of the opportunity at hand. Pinch-hitter Logan Halleman hit a sharp grounder at Kayden Bennett, who was a few steps in and couldn’t handle it. Halleman then tried to steal second, but was thrown out easily by Atwood. Texas Tech challenged the call and was awarded obstruction on the call, putting Halleman at second base.

Texas didn’t record its first hit until Ashton Maloney’s second at-bat when she hit a two-out single. She moved to second after Valdez couldn’t nab a riseball from Canady. The Texas Tech ace induced an inning-ending groundball from Henry.

Canady only tossed 88 pitches in her sixth defeat of the season. She tossed six innings, allowing the two runs on four hits, three back-to-back-to-back in the sixth, while striking out seven. Canady is expected to start once again on Thursday.

Game Two will take place at 8 p.m. on ESPN as the Longhorns are one win away from their first National Championship.

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