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OKLAHOMA CITY — What lies ahead for Texas softball at the Women’s College World Series seems daunting.
If the defending champion Longhorns (49-12) hope to get back to the best-of-three championship series for a third consecutive season, they’ll have to beat Tennessee (50-10) twice in Monday’s matinee matchup while the Vols need just one win
And they’ll have to top a Volunteer bunch that had the day off Sunday after staying in the winner’s bracket with a 2-1 win Saturday over Texas Tech. That means ace Karlyn Pickens didn’t work seven innings in 96-degree heat and under cloudless skies, like Texas star Teagan Kavan had to do in a 3-1 win Sunday over Nebraska.
Nor did fellow All-American pitcher Sage Mardjetko or Erin Nuwer, who help form a pitching staff that has a collective ERA of 1.35, the lowest in the nation.
But don’t tell Kavan she may be drained after throwing 91 pitches in her eighth complete-game win in three trips to the WCWS.
“I’ve always got gas in the tank for this team on this stage, any day,” Kavan said after the win over Nebraska. “I want the ball, of course.”
Texas Longhorns pitcher Teagan Kavan (17) talks to catcher Reese Atwood (14) during the NCAA Softball Championship Super Regional final against Arizona State at Red & Charline McCombs Field on Sunday, May 24, 2026 in Austin. (Aaron E. Martinez/Austin American-Statesman)
But will Texas coach Mike White give her the ball? He doesn’t have the options in the circle that Tennessee coach Karen Weekly has, since senior Citlaly Gutierrez is the only Texas pitcher besides Kavan to see action in three games at the WCWS.
“We need to fill her up with some high octane,” White said about Kavan. “We'll see how she's feeling in the morning.”
White has plenty to think about, since Hannah Wells and Cambria Salmon haven’t thrown in the WCWS or the Austin Super Regionals, and Gutierrez has allowed 15 runs in 32.1 innings over her past eight appearances.
“It's going to be a strategy,” he said. “The strategy is do you go for it all in the first game, worry about what happens in the second game, try something different? That's what I'm going to be sleeping on tonight, talking with my coaching staff, figure out what plan we're going to play.
“You don't get to the second game unless you win the first game. Captain Obvious there. It is what it is. We feel really confident right now that we can hit in those situations.”
MORE: 'Glad she's a Longhorn': Kaiah Altmeyer makes surprise WCWS impact for Texas softball
Texas didn’t hit much in its 6-3 loss Thursday to Tennessee that knocked the team into the loser’s bracket. The Longhorns had just one hit in four innings against Mardjetko, who started the game. Pickens came in to start the fifth, and Texas tagged her for four hits and three runs, a tally that included a two-run homer by second baseman Leighann Goode.
But everyone from the hitters and the batters to the coaches will make adjustments from Thursday’s game.
“They have a great pitching staff, credit to them,” Texas third baseman Jaycie Nichols said. “It’s just really paying attention to what we've been pitched, making adjustment in-game.”
Slugger Katie Stewart, who keeps adding to her single-season school record for home runs, agreed. After she lifted Texas to the win over Nebraska with a three-run homer in the sixth inning and her 28th homer of the season, Stewart said “we’ve got to make quicker adjustments.”
“Knowing they're a really good pitching staff and they're going to bring it, just being ready for that,” she said.
While the players embrace the challenge of going up against Tennessee, White welcomes the game-planning.
“These pitchers are so good now, they're able to study what we did, what they did,” he said. “It becomes that cat-and-mouse game of strategy. That's what we love about the game, is all the strategy. It's going to be a fun matchup.”
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If the defending champion Longhorns (49-12) hope to get back to the best-of-three championship series for a third consecutive season, they’ll have to beat Tennessee (50-10) twice in Monday’s matinee matchup while the Vols need just one win
And they’ll have to top a Volunteer bunch that had the day off Sunday after staying in the winner’s bracket with a 2-1 win Saturday over Texas Tech. That means ace Karlyn Pickens didn’t work seven innings in 96-degree heat and under cloudless skies, like Texas star Teagan Kavan had to do in a 3-1 win Sunday over Nebraska.
Nor did fellow All-American pitcher Sage Mardjetko or Erin Nuwer, who help form a pitching staff that has a collective ERA of 1.35, the lowest in the nation.
But don’t tell Kavan she may be drained after throwing 91 pitches in her eighth complete-game win in three trips to the WCWS.
“I’ve always got gas in the tank for this team on this stage, any day,” Kavan said after the win over Nebraska. “I want the ball, of course.”
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Texas Longhorns pitcher Teagan Kavan (17) talks to catcher Reese Atwood (14) during the NCAA Softball Championship Super Regional final against Arizona State at Red & Charline McCombs Field on Sunday, May 24, 2026 in Austin. (Aaron E. Martinez/Austin American-Statesman)
Texas pitching doesn’t have depth of Tennessee staff
But will Texas coach Mike White give her the ball? He doesn’t have the options in the circle that Tennessee coach Karen Weekly has, since senior Citlaly Gutierrez is the only Texas pitcher besides Kavan to see action in three games at the WCWS.
“We need to fill her up with some high octane,” White said about Kavan. “We'll see how she's feeling in the morning.”
White has plenty to think about, since Hannah Wells and Cambria Salmon haven’t thrown in the WCWS or the Austin Super Regionals, and Gutierrez has allowed 15 runs in 32.1 innings over her past eight appearances.
“It's going to be a strategy,” he said. “The strategy is do you go for it all in the first game, worry about what happens in the second game, try something different? That's what I'm going to be sleeping on tonight, talking with my coaching staff, figure out what plan we're going to play.
“You don't get to the second game unless you win the first game. Captain Obvious there. It is what it is. We feel really confident right now that we can hit in those situations.”
MORE: 'Glad she's a Longhorn': Kaiah Altmeyer makes surprise WCWS impact for Texas softball
Katie Stewart: Batters have to adapt to Tennessee pitchers
Texas didn’t hit much in its 6-3 loss Thursday to Tennessee that knocked the team into the loser’s bracket. The Longhorns had just one hit in four innings against Mardjetko, who started the game. Pickens came in to start the fifth, and Texas tagged her for four hits and three runs, a tally that included a two-run homer by second baseman Leighann Goode.
But everyone from the hitters and the batters to the coaches will make adjustments from Thursday’s game.
“They have a great pitching staff, credit to them,” Texas third baseman Jaycie Nichols said. “It’s just really paying attention to what we've been pitched, making adjustment in-game.”
Slugger Katie Stewart, who keeps adding to her single-season school record for home runs, agreed. After she lifted Texas to the win over Nebraska with a three-run homer in the sixth inning and her 28th homer of the season, Stewart said “we’ve got to make quicker adjustments.”
“Knowing they're a really good pitching staff and they're going to bring it, just being ready for that,” she said.
While the players embrace the challenge of going up against Tennessee, White welcomes the game-planning.
“These pitchers are so good now, they're able to study what we did, what they did,” he said. “It becomes that cat-and-mouse game of strategy. That's what we love about the game, is all the strategy. It's going to be a fun matchup.”
Continue reading...
