I'm pretty surprised Gators are only sec team going to OKC. Thought for sure the hogs would make it. Their softball team going the way of their sec champion baseball team last year.
Looking ahead to Oregon State, UF is the better team, but can't be giving up free passes like candy. The best defense in the nation can't continually bail out walks to good teams. The slight edge I'd give to OSU is with their pitching. The ERA for both teams is almost identical, but OSU is stingy with walks, this will be quite the battle with our hitters who have good eyes and patience, and they strike out a lot of batters. Pitching can be their equalizer. It was at the Tennessee regional and at the Stanford super regional.
Classy fans also -- while we were walking around before the games, many fans made a point of coming up to our group and saying, "Welcome to Blacksburg" and engaging in friendly small talk. After getting run ruled 12-0, several VA Tech fans came by and said, "Congrats -- good luck in OKC" while walking out. Good people. The stadium is not exactly a dump, but definitely a throwback to when softball was a minor sport: very small, the press box is basically a trailer on top of the stands, no bathrooms/running water in the stadium (have to walk to the next building), the players leave the field after the game by walking into the stands and then out the gate with the spectators, and wiring/electrical limitations caused ESPN to only have half the cameras compared to the week prior at KSP. And the sound system was atrocious. The field was marginal -- CTW insisting on a mid-game pitching mound repair is something I've never seen before. The rain stopped a few hours after the first game was halted and the weather actually got pretty nice -- but the field was unplayable. You wouldn't see that at KSP. And the outfield grass -- well, my back yard looks nicer. Maybe Smiley should consult for VA Tech in his retirement. Their coach seemed to lack the class of CTW, but regardless he should go to the AD and demand an upgrade. The VA Tech players and fans deserve it. And KSP is such a palace. We are very lucky. Is there a better stadium in the SEC?
Congratulations to Hannah. She just won the Rawlings Golden Glove award at second base. Each position gets one award.
To do list: 1. Add 2022 to WCWS in outfield = COMPLETED 2. Add space to trophy case for WCWS Winners Trophy = PENDING
The team really came together down the stretch and was rewarded with a trip to the CWS. There are some missing pieces for the team to be a true contender, but congrats to coach for pushing the right buttons and to the team for a great season overall!
It wasn't a great season. They we're the 14 seed in the NCAA tournament, our lowest in decades. We didn't host a Super for the first time in forever. We finished well enough, with an upset win in Blacksburg and a single WCWS win, and then two shutout losses and were run-ruled in our final game. It was a decent ending to what, BY UF standards, was one of our worst seasons in a while. Don't let a road win and a WCWS win over a team missing its ace strikethru the realities of a disappointing year.
Being in the final six is not a disappointing year. I would be thrilled if the football and basketball teams could be anywhere near as successful as the softball team.
Watching Cheyenne and Nat's very emotional press conference proves that CTW has the locker room. Nat was crying when she said that CTW not only made her a better softball player, but CTW made her a better person and credited him for the woman she is today.
It certainly wasn’t a perfect season, but I’m pretty there’s not many teams around the country that wouldn’t trade for ours. I understand the concerns/problems but choose to focus on the positives. Don’t think any season that ends in the CWS can be too disappointing.
Agree. It was a flawed team, from an outsider's perspective. Not Walton's best job. But kudos for getting back to the CWS, which some of us (including me) did not expect. But in the end the program is better than this and hope that Walton can get it back to a consistently high level as he's done in the past.
Where have you seen gator softball players in the portal? I’ve looked on softball America and the extra Innings Softball, and I do not see any.
Have read that Decker is transferring along with two more. Decker is supposedly on one of the softball sites officially transferring but I haven’t seen it yet. Don’t be surprised if you do.
