OKLAHOMA CITY — Everything seems to be happening fast for Arizona. Too fast.
The Wildcats flailed at 70-72 mph pitches from Alabama’s Montana Fouts in Thursday’s Women’s College World Series-opening loss, striking out 16 times to one of the game’s hardest throwers.
Now, their stay in Oklahoma City could be in jeopardy.
The 11th-seeded Wildcats (41-14) can extend their stay in the double-elimination tournament by beating No. 10 Florida State (44-11-1) at 11:30 a.m. Saturday at USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium. But even if they do, the road ahead could be brutal: The Wildcats would have to win again Saturday night, and twice again on Sunday, to make the WCWS best-of-three finals.
This is not how Arizona envisioned it. Not on the 30th anniversary of UA coach Mike Candrea’s first of eight national championships. Not on the final games of the super seniors’ careers. And not during what is rumored to be Candrea’s last go-around as head coach of the Wildcats.
Thursday night’s 5-1 loss to Alabama was disappointing — especially given that Arizona is known for its power hitting. You could see the frustration on the faces of the Wildcats, especially the 2021 Batting Champion and Pac-12 Freshman of the Year Janelle Meoño and All-American senior Jessie Harper.
The Wildcats entered Thursday’s game having outscored their opponents 45-17 over their previous five postseason games — all wins. They then scored just one run on two hits — scoring only when Harper parked her 92nd career home run in the seventh inning. Harper has tied former UA teammate Katiyana Mauga for second most in college softball history. Only former Oklahoma standout Lauren Chamberlain (95) has more.
All postseason long, Arizona's players have rallied around coach Mike Candrea, who is rumored to be retiring following the season.
As Thursday bled into Friday, however, the Wildcats turned their attention to Florida State. The Seminoles fell to UCLA 4-0 late Thursday to fall into the loser’s bracket.
“Coach always tells us that as long as we have innings to play, we have a chance to win and we’re really taking that mindset … and we’re ready to win,” Meoño said.
To help turn around their fortunes, the Wildcats got back into their routines.
“We’re going to go hit … we’re going to work on the little things,” Harper said. “As long as you have trust in yourself and trust the people in front of you and behind you, you’ll be good to go.”
And while the odds are stacked against them — just 7% of the teams that have lost on Day 1 have gone on to win a national championship — the Wildcats believe.
In 2007, the last time Arizona won a national championship, the Wildcats faced five elimination games and survived. That’s when the lore of now-assistant coach Taryne Mowatt-McKinney was born. The Wildcats ace and Most Outstanding Player of the series threw 60 innings (and 1,035 pitches), striking out 76 batters despite her finger splitting open.
Arizona could turn to senior pitcher Alyssa Denham in Saturday’s elimination game. She helped clinch the Wildcats’ spot in the WCWS with a win in last weekend’s NCAA Super Regionals.
Candrea has not said who will start in the circle for the Wildcats Saturday. He could call on Alyssa Denham, a veteran pitcher who earned the win in the Wildcats’ Super Regional clincher over Arkansas last week and pitched two innings in Thursday’s loss to Alabama, surrendering three runs. Hanah Bowen could return to the circle after allowing two runs over four innings on Thursday. Or it could be Mariah Lopez, who threw a three-hit shutout in Arizona’s 1-0 win over Florida State in March. She struck out nine batters and walked one.
In that game, Arizona’s heart of the order delivered: Harper doubled, Dejah Mulipola was walked intentionally and Sharlize Palacios singled to left-center field to drive in the game’s only run.
Florida State is likely to counter with Kathryn Sandercock, who is 24-3 with a 1.14 ERA and beat the Wildcats 4-2 in Tallahassee in March. Caylan Arnold went 1-1 in the three-game series against UA in March, and carries a 9-5 record an 1.66 ERA into the elimination game.
Whoever it is, don’t expect the Wildcats’ bats to be silent for long. Throughout the season, Arizona has shown a knack for rallying after being shut down. Take Mulipola: The Wildcats’ All-American catcher was held hitless in Game 1 of the NCAA Regionals. The next day, she belted two home runs and drove in five runs against Ole Miss.
Expect the Wildcats to be ready for their next game at the World Series — it’s what they’ve played for all season long.
“We’re going to do whatever we have to do to make it back to the top,” Harper said. “But, hey it’s softball, we’re playing. That’s all we can do is just keep playing our game, be super thankful that we’re here. We’ve earned the right to be here. … I’m excited. We have another game left and I get to put this uniform on again.”
Arizona Wildcats softball coach Mike Candrea joined The Star's Justin Spears on The Wildcast Podcast to look ahead to the UA's matchup with Alabama in the Women's College World Series in Oklahoma City, and why enjoying every moment along the way has been important to him this season.
