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Sanders' 2-homer day leads Oklahoma to WCWS win over Oregon

Screenshot 2024-07-31 at 7.46.34 PMby:Brady Vernon•06/01/25•

BradyVernon

Screenshot 2025-06-01 at 8.24.03 PM
Crash Kamon/Softball America

Cydney Sanders hasn’t been the most explosive bat in the Oklahoma lineup during her career, but there’s something about Oklahoma City. After leaving the bases loaded early in the game, Sanders picked herself up. The senior smashed a pair of home runs to lead Oklahoma to a 4-1 win over Oregon in Sunday night’s elimination game.

“Honestly, I think just being present today was a really big factor for me,” Sanders said. “I don’t think it was like a little bit different from the other moments. But I don’t know, it was pretty cool. I have never done that before, especially in the World Series. So that was, like, awesome. I don’t know, I have never seen that before. It was pretty exciting, but it may not look like it on TV or whatever, but I was excited on the inside.”

Both Patty Gasso and Melyssa Lombardi tried to give their aces a bit of rest, but it didn’t take long for Sam Landry and Lyndsey Grein.

Grein came in after Elise Sokolsky threw two innings. Sokolsky got out of a bases-loaded jam in the first thanks to a diving play by Kaylynn Jones at second. Sokolsky finished the frame by getting Sanders to pop up.

She only kept the Sooners off the board for so long, allowing a game-tying solo home run by Isabela Emerling.

Isabela Emerling comes home after her homer at the WCWS (Crash Kamon/Softball America)

Sanders redeemed herself in the third. After Grein allowed a single to Nelly McEnroe-Marinas, Sanders hit a two-run homer to left field to give Oklahoma the lead for good. The score had remained the same until Sanders stepped back up to the plate in the fifth. She crushed a no-doubter to push the lead to three.

Sanders has now hit five home runs at the Women’s College World Series in her career.

“Just super happy for Cyd Sanders and her senior year. What a wonderful memory to have with these home runs, and just really timely hitting for some of them,” Oklahoma head coach Patty Gasso said.

Kierston Deal lasted 2.2 innings in her start. She surrendered a solo shot to Oregon’s Dezianna Patmon in the second. She ran into trouble in the third after allowing the first two batters to reach. Although Deal was helped out by an incredible play by Gabbie Garcia on a flare off the bat of Kedre Luschar. Garcia made the running catch and doubled up pinch-runner Regan Legg after Ailana Agbayani made a great pick on the throw.

Landry pretty much had her way with the Oregon lineup in relief. She allowed two hits and struck out six batters in her 4.1 innings of work. Landry’s changeup was very effective, even going back to it multiple times during her at-bats.

Sam Landry celebrates a strikeout at WCWS
Crash Kamon/Softball America

Oklahoma will face Texas Tech, needing to beat the Red Raiders to advance to their sixth straight WCWS championship series. The first game will begin at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2. It’ll be all hands on deck for the Sooners in the circle with Landry having thrown 310 pitches already this week.

Gasso also talked about the uphill climb of facing Texas Tech ace NiJaree Canady.

“Yeah, (hitting coach) JT (Gasso)’s got a lot of work to get going on,” she said. “I do — to someone’s point, we talked about the amount of elite pitchers that we have faced and had some success with, and that’s what we’re going to live off of.

“We’re going to have to make a few adjustments for sure, but, I mean, we’re fighting. We’re fighting for our lives now, and that is what it’s going to look like. It’s going to be a fight on our side to say we will not surrender for anyone or anything. So that’s how we’re going to approach it.”

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