NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — Kasidi Pickering went 2 for 4 with a home run, Maya Bland threw two perfect innings of relief and Oklahoma beat Florida State 4-2 Friday night, sweeping the best-of-three Norman Super Regional and stretching its win streak to a record 17 straight games in NCAA Tournament play.
Oklahoma (54-6) clinched its eighth trip to the Women’s College World Series in program history and its fourth in a row.
The Sooners beat Florida State 2-0 in a best-of-three series to win the 2023 WCWS.
After Jayda Coleman flied out to lead off the top of the third inning, Tiare Jennings singled to right, advanced to second on a wild pitch and moved to third on a passed ball. Ella Parker walked on four straight pitches and Jennings scored when, a couple of pitches later, Parker was caught in a pickle and tagged out. Florida State’s Jaysoni Beachum led off the bottom half of the inning with a homer to make it 1-1.
Coleman led off the fifth inning with a single and, after Jennings lined out, moved to third on a single down the line in right by Parker. Coleman scored and Parker took second on a wild pitch and, after Alyssa Brito lined out, Pickering hit a two-out, two-run homer that made it 4-1.
Kalei Harding hit a solo shot in the bottom of the fifth that cut Florida State’s deficit to two.
Karlie Keeney (6-1) came on in relief of Kierston Deal with one out in the third and pitched 2 2/3 innings, allowing a run on three hits to earn the win. Bland pitched the sixth and seventh innings without allowing a baserunner to notch the save.
Mimi Gooden came on in the sixth inning and allowed two runs on three hits over 1 2/3 innings to take the loss for Florida State (46-16), runners-up at the 2023 and 2021 WCWS.
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