NU softball team reaches Big 12 final
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BY LORI GRIFFIN / Lincoln Journal Star
Many young softball players with dreams of playing at the college level grow up watching the Women’s College World Series at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City.
But very few have had the chance to compete at the Mecca of softball stadiums. Let alone win at those hallowed grounds.
For the Nebraska softball team, those dreams begin and end Sunday in the Big 12 Tournament final.
The 10th-seeded Huskers (25-27) advanced to the championship game with a 6-1 semifinal victory against Texas Tech on Saturday.
“For some of the younger players to be here in a uniform on that field, they were a little starry-eyed early,” NU coach Rhonda Revelle said in a telephone interview. “To be on that field, it’s just a pretty special field.”
Nebraska, which advanced with a first-round win against Kansas on Friday, recorded a 6-5 victory against seventh-ranked Oklahoma to move on in the single-elimination tournament. It was the first year the Big 12 has used a single-elimination format.
“It’s overwhelming the first time you play in that stadium,” NU junior pitcher Molly Hill said. “We’re lucky to be playing in that stadium in the championship game.”
Against Tech, Nebraska jumped to an early lead when junior Crystal Carwile connected on a three-run home run just three batters into the game.
“It’s amazing being able to come out here and put the hits together,” Carwile said. “But we’re not done yet.
“We knew that nobody expected us to do well and we knew what we could do. That was the best part of it.”
Nebraska turned two double plays in the game and did not commit an error.
Nebraska stretched its lead to 5-1 in the second inning. With the bases loaded and two outs, junior Haley Long singled up the middle to score Darcy Rutherford and Carwile.
Long scored the final run while Whitney Barrett was caught in a rundown.
In the upset of Oklahoma, the 2007 tournament champion, Nebraska scored five runs in the first three innings and held off a late Sooner rally.
It was only the second time in the 13-year history of the tournament that a No. 10 seed has beaten a No. 2 seed.
The last Husker win against a top-10 opponent came April 9, 2005, against ninth-ranked Baylor, a streak of 186 games.
“I’m extremely proud of this team,” Revelle said. “We had great pitching, great defense, timely hits.
“I know we did something today because right now I can’t get any more text messages because my text messaging is full,” Revelle said.
Nebraska will face top-seeded and regular-season champion Texas A&M, a 3-1 winner against Texas in Saturday’s late semifinal, in Sunday’s championship. First pitch is set for noon. The game will be televised by FSN (channel 37).
“We are working together as one unit,” Revelle said. “It’s one heartbeat and we’re going to go out (Sunday) and play our hearts out.”
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