Breaking down every super regional matchup in the college softball championship
Here’s everything you need to know ahead of super regionals. The winners will advance to the Women’s College World Series.
The regional round of the 2024 NCAA Softball Championship was relatively uneventful. A few unseeded teams made regionals exciting by pushing the hosts to a seventh game. In the end, it was mostly chalk during the first weekend of the tournament.
None of the strong mid-majors advanced, including No. 16 seed Louisiana. Only two unseeded teams—Arizona and Baylor—advanced to super regionals and both came from power leagues. The pair will have steep climbs if they hope to make it to the Women’s College World Series.
All games will be aired or streamed on ESPN platforms but channels have only been set for the first game in each region.
So what should fans look for when the super regional round kicks off on Thursday, May 23?
Austin Super Regional
Teams: No. 16 Texas A&M Aggies (43-13, 15-9 SEC) @ No. 1 Texas Longhorns (50-7, 23-4 Big 12)
Game 1: Friday, May 24 at 6 p.m. ET on ESPN2
Game 2: Saturday, May 25 at 5 p.m. on TBD
Game 3: Sunday, May 26, if necessary
Many of this year’s super regionals feature teams that will be conference foes next season when the latest round of conference realignment goes into effect. This all-Texas affair is one of those. The SEC looks to get even more dangerous next season when the top-seeded Longhorns join the league.
Texas was expected to advance from its home regional fairly easily, but Texas A&M had a tougher group of teams to overcome.
The Aggies didn’t care. They swept their home regional 3-0, including two wins over Sun Belt Tournament champion Texas State. Texas State was not an easy opponent, so the sweep was impressive.
This is a big step up.
Texas is first in the country in team batting average (.383) and total hits (576). Its 8.16 runs per game are second in Division I. It is third in slugging percentage (.634). Its 1.47 home runs per game come in eighth while its 84 total home runs are tied for eighth. It is tied with Texas A&M for ninth with 219 total walks, although Texas played one more game. In the circle, the Longhorns have the fourth-best team ERA (1.75).
One place the Aggies have a clear advantage is on defense. They are ranked 19th in DI with a .975 fielding percentage compared to Texas at 103rd with a .966 fielding percentage. TAMU also ranks in the top 25 in runs scored (14th at 6.29) and slugging percentage (24th at .505).
Texas A&M is trying to get to the WCWS for the first time under second-year head coach Trisha Ford. It would be the Aggies’ first appearance since 2017 while the Longhorns were national runners-up in 2022. UT’s absence from Oklahoma City likely ends at one year.
Norman Super Regional
Teams: No. 15 Florida State Seminoles (46-14, 19-5 ACC) @ No. 2 Oklahoma Sooners (52-6, 22-5 Big 12)
Game 1: Thursday, May 23 at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2
Game 2: Friday, May 24 at 8 p.m. ET on TBD
Game 3: Saturday, May 25, if necessary
There are very few offensive statistical categories that don’t feature Oklahoma in the top five. The Sooners are first in Division I in walks, second in batting average and slugging percentage, and third in runs scored and home runs per game.
That offensive firepower lifted the Sooners to a 3-0 sweep of their home regional. They outscored their opponents 18-5 in those games.
Florida State seemed to find its groove during regionals, as well. The Seminoles also swept the field at home, outscoring their opponents 18-7. It was a nice rebound after losing the ACC tournament championship to Duke on May 11.
FSU will be back on the road this time. That’s just one thing that favors OU in this series.
The Seminoles can take solace in the fact that four of the Sooners’ six losses have come on their home field this season. Two were in their final regular season series against Oklahoma State. It’s difficult to see the FSU pitching staff, which has a collective ERA of 3.60, replicating the performance of OSU’s Lexi Kilfoyl.
Knoxville Super Regional
Teams: No. 14 Alabama Crimson Tide (36-17, 10-14 SEC) @ No. 3 Tennessee Lady Volunteers (43-10, 19-5 SEC)
Game 1: Friday, May 24 at 4 p.m. ET on ESPN2
Game 2: Saturday, May 25 at 11 a.m. ET on TBD
Game 3: Sunday, May 26, if necessary
To say the Lady Vols were dominant in their regional is an understatement. Three straight shutouts helped them outscore their opponents 21-0. Now, they will welcome fellow SEC team Alabama.
The Crimson Tide struggled to score against the Lady Vols when the two teams met in Tuscaloosa during the conference regular season. Alabama managed one win, but it was in a 1-0 victory. That was the only run it scored in three games. UT outscored Bama 7-1.
It’s how Alabama’s season has gone. The Tide are not an offensive powerhouse. Their .257 batting average ranked 211th in the nation and 11th in the SEC this season. The low average is accompanied by a lack of power with a slugging percentage (.394) that ranks 149th in the country and 12th in the SEC. Do they make up for that by being patient and drawing walks? Their 159 total walks—good for 92nd in the country and 12th in the SEC—suggest otherwise. At 4.21 runs per game, they were 151st in DI and 11th in the league.
Alabama does have a very effective pitching staff. It is third in the SEC with a 1.98 ERA. The problem is that Tennessee is first at 1.40 and has a much more effective offense. It’s tough to see the Crimson Tide giving the Lady Vols problems, especially in Knoxville.
Gainesville Super Regional
Teams: Baylor Bears (35-21, 14-13 Big 12) @ No. 4 Florida Gators (49-12, 17-7 SEC)
Game 1: Friday, May 24 at noon ET on ESPN2
Game 2: Saturday, May 25 at 11 a.m. on TBD
Game 3: Sunday, May 26, if necessary
Baylor is one of the two unseeded teams to advance to super regionals. The Bears went to Lafayette and dismissed Sun Belt regular season champion Louisiana. The Ragin’ Cajuns were thrilled to get to host the opening weekend and they looked to have a good path to at least supers, but the Bears proved that playing in a strong Big 12 can have its payoffs.
It didn’t come easy. The Lafayette Regional was one of only four that went to seven games. It came down to a three-game series between the hosts and the Bears. They exchanged blowouts in the first two then Baylor took the final game in a tight 4-3 decision.
Florida also had a tough mid-major out of the Sun Belt in its regional. The Gators made it look easy with a sweep of the regional, including two run-rule victories over South Alabama.
The Gators are peaking at the perfect time. They’re on an 11-game winning streak, most of it against good competition in the SEC.
Two years ago, three unseeded teams made it all the way to the WCWS. One of them played in the championship series. It would be a shock if either unseeded teams advanced this year given the strength of their opponents.
Stillwater Super Regional
Teams: Arizona Wildcats (37-16-1, 13-11 Pac-12) @ No. 5 Oklahoma State Cowgirls (47-10, 21-6 Big 12)
Game 1: Friday, May 24 at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN2
Game 2: Saturday, May 25 at 7 p.m. ET on TBD
Game 3: Sunday, May 26, if necessary
Arizona was sent to an SEC team’s field for regionals and swept the regional for the second straight appearance. The Wildcats have not lost to an SEC team in regionals or super regionals since 2016. That’s 16 straight games, the last eight of which have been on the road. Their only postseason losses to SEC teams over that period were two defeats by Alabama in Oklahoma City.
The problem for the Wildcats is that their time in SEC land is over. They are headed to Stillwater to play a future Big 12 conference foe. That foe has lost 10 games this season but only one was at home.
The only aspect of the game where Arizona is superior is defense. The Wildcats are ranked third in the nation in fielding percentage at .980. Even there, the Cowgirls aren’t bad. They rank 20th at .975.
Arizona is a very good offensive team, but Oklahoma State is slightly better. The Cowgirls are even further ahead in the circle, which is where the game is really won or lost.
OSU ace Kilfoyl is one of three finalists for USA Softball Player of the Year. She is second in the nation with a 1.08 ERA. She is 11th in hits allowed per game at 4.20. Her six shutouts rank 22nd in DI. She ranks 28th with 4.55 strikeouts per walk.
More importantly, the rest of the staff is strong, too. Oklahoma State is 13th with a 1.99 staff ERA. Their 14 shutouts rank 18th.
Arizona’s staff has not demonstrated that it can match that. Its 3.70 ERA ranks 150th in the country and eighth of the nine teams in the Pac-12. The entire staff has eight shutouts, just two more than Kilfoyl has by herself. The only pitcher who has a complete game shutout for the Wildcats is Aissa Silva. It is the only complete game thrown by an Arizona pitcher this season.
Arizona is playing its best softball of the season and has made it to the WCWS the last three times it appeared in the postseason. It would be a shock if that streak stretched to four.
Los Angeles Super Regional
Teams: No. 11 Georgia Bulldogs (43-17, 12-12 SEC) at No. 6 UCLA Bruins (40-10, 17-4 Pac-12)
Game 1: Thursday, May 23 at 9:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2
Game 2: Friday, May 24 at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN2
Game 3: Saturday, May 25, if necessary
If UCLA still had something to prove after getting swept out of its home regional last season, it proved it. The Bruins had a strong field in their regional this year but they didn’t blink.
UCLA had two run-rule victories and were just good enough to hold off an offensively talented Virginia Tech team.
Georgia ran into some problems in the Athens Regional. As expected, those problems were courtesy of Liberty. The Bulldogs won their first game but were knocked into the losers’ bracket in the matchup between day one winners. They had to win three elimination games, including defeating Liberty twice on Sunday.
UCLA has a superb offense, but its young pitchers can surrender a lot of runs. While eight of the 13 teams in the SEC are outside the top 50 in scoring, Georgia ranks 25th with 5.93 runs per game. That would rank third in the Pac-12 behind Arizona and UCLA.
The problem for most Pac-12 teams when facing the Bruins was having the pitching to counter their strong offense. At the end of the season, Arizona twice had the Bruins on the ropes with late leads of 7-0 and 4-0 only to lose those games because of the formidable UCLA offense.
Georgia has a decent pitching staff, statistically speaking. The Bulldogs have a staff ERA of 2.67, putting them in the top 40 of DI teams. However, both of their primary pitchers have an ERA of 2.50 or higher.
These should be close games, but the Bruins have shown themselves to be clutch this season. They never give up, and they have the proven ability to rip the hearts out of their opponents at the last moment. It would be a surprise if UCLA didn’t return to the WCWS this season.
Columbia Super Regional
Teams: No. 10 Duke Blue Devils (50-6, 20-4 ACC) @ No. 7 Missouri Tigers (47-16, 13-11 SEC)as a
Game 1: Friday, May 24 at 2 p.m. ET on ESPN2
Game 2: Saturday, May 25 at 1 p.m. ET on TBD
Game 3: Sunday, May 26, if necessary
Duke was another team that might have felt it had something to prove. The Blue Devils were third in RPI on Selection Sunday but they did not get a top eight seed and a super regional at home. They also had a strong field in their region. They didn’t let any of that defeat them.
In Columbia, things got a bit more difficult for the home team. It wasn’t a power conference team that pushed Missouri, though. It was Omaha.
The Mavericks sent Mizzou to the losers’ bracket on day one, but they couldn’t take advantage of it. In the end, the Tigers came back on Sunday and beat Omaha twice to advance. It took nine innings to get the 1-0 victory in Game 7.
Will that awaken Missouri or does it show some weakness that Duke can exploit? Omaha pushed the Tigers to the limit by allowing them to score just seven runs on 16 hits over three games. Two of those games went nine innings.
Duke is a well-rounded team. Statistically, it has a big advantage on the offensive side of play and a small but significant advantage in the circle.
The Blue Devils average 6.88 runs per game, ranking them sixth in the nation. The Tigers score 4.81 runs per game, which is 87th in DI. In the circle, Duke is third in the nation with a staff ERA of 1.50 compared to Missouri’s 10th-ranked ERA of 1.96.
Despite not getting that super regional in Durham, Duke may end up getting the perfect draw to advance to its first WCWS.
Stanford Super Regional
Teams: No. 9 LSU Tigers (43-15, 12-12 SEC) @ No. 8 Stanford Cardinal (46-14, 17-7 Pac-12)
Game 1: Friday, May 24 at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN2
Game 2: Saturday, May 25 at 9 p.m. ET on TBD
Game 3: Sunday, May 26, if necessary
Stanford didn’t put its best foot forward during regionals and it almost cost them. They were one of the home teams that was pushed to seven games before escaping with two wins on Sunday.
The Cardinal did what they have done for most of the season. They won close games. They had to sweat out all three wins and got blown out in a loss. Cal State Fullerton won Game 6 by the score of 8-1 before Stanford won Game 7 by the score of 4-2.
It wasn’t the most comforting display for a Stanford fan, especially if they remember the Cardinal’s loss to Utah in the Pac-12 Tournament semifinals or their loss to Oregon in the final game of the regular season. The team seems to be trending down at a crucial time.
LSU had a much easier time of things in regionals. The slate was not especially difficult. Southern Illinois proved to be the toughest opponent, and the Tigers handled the Salukis with little trouble.
The old adage is that pitching and defense win championships. Stanford has the superior pitching as long as NiJaree Canady is in the circle. As for the defense, the Cardinal committed one error in each of its games against the Titans. It almost cost them, giving CSF an unearned run in each contest.
LSU may not be as strong in the circle as Stanford, but it’s no slouch. The Tigers’ staff ERA is 2.19, good for 19th in the country. Stanford is 8th with a 1.82 team ERA.
Neither team is great on offense, but the Tigers are superior to the Cardinal. LSU’s 5.00 runs per game rank 67th in DI. Stanford is 91st with 4.77 runs per game.
If the Cardinal do not play clean defensive games, the Tigers have more than enough talent on both sides of the ball to win this series.