Coleman's Walk-Off Sends Sooners to WCWS Championship Series

Tuesday, June 4

Oklahoma City, Okla.

1:00 PM

University of Oklahoma

57-7

Florida

54-15

Florida

Oklahoma

Photo by: Oklahoma Athletics

Coleman's Walk-Off Sends Sooners to WCWS Championship Series

June 04, 2024 | Softball

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By: John Rohde | SoonerSports.com contributor

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. – It's hard to imagine a player as excitable and talented as Oklahoma three-time All-American Jayda Coleman feeling like she was letting down her teammates, but such was the case Monday night just hours after the Sooners were forced to play a semifinal elimination game on Tuesday afternoon after a 9-3 loss to Florida in a Women's College World Series.

Less than 24 hours later, the infectiously influential Coleman reappeared with one swing of the bat, hitting a walk-off solo home run just inches over the outstretched glove of Gators left fielder Korbe Otis in the bottom of the eighth inning to give OU a heart-thumping 6-5 comeback victory at Devon Park.

"I had been a little frustrated," said Coleman, who entered Tuesday's game hitting .200 in the WCWS. "Obviously, I just want to do anything to help my team. … Going around the bases, I lost it, just started crying."

Through her tears, Coleman helped keep alive OU's bid for an unprecedented fourth straight NCAA softball championship.

The No. 2-seeded Sooners (57-7) now face No. 1-seeded Texas (55-8) in the best-of-3 championship series with 7 p.m. games on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (if necessary).

Coincidentally, when Coleman stepped on home plate for the game-winning run, it moved her past Jocelyn Alo on the school's all-time runs scored list with 282.

Coleman was hardly alone in her Tuesday heroics, however.

Lefthanded ace Kelly Maxwell (22-2) went the distance for the second time in the WCWS, scattering four hits and finishing with eight strikeouts, giving her 900 in her collegiate career. Her 22 victories also set a career single-season high.

All this was accomplished despite a slow start in which Maxwell surrendered three home runs and all five Florida runs by the top of the third inning, at which time the Gators took a 5-2 lead.

From that point forward, however, Maxwell shut out the Gators over the final five innings.

"I knew today was going to be tough," said Maxwell, who threw 148 pitches. "I knew coming out the gate. I didn't kind of have my best stuff. I knew I was going to make an adjustment (in the) middle of the game. I flipped a switch, chose my fighter and went to war."

OU was outscored 14-9 and stranded 20 baserunners in its two games against the Gators (54-15), but the Sooners did outhit Florida 22-11 to advance to their fifth straight WCWS championship series.

"I don't know that I could tell you that I believed that we would be here again, because it's so difficult to get here," OU head coach Patty Gasso said. "The way we did it was wonderful. We're blessed. We felt that. We just took advantage of all those blessings. That's that."

The Sooners' roster consists of 10 seniors, five of whom started and ended their careers at OU – Coleman, Tiare Jennings, Kinzie Hansen, Rylie Boone and Nicole May.

While those seniors weren't ready to say good-bye, two standout freshmen continued to introduce themselves with clutch performances.

Freshman designated player Ella Parker went 3-for-4 at the plate with three RBIs, which included a two-run homer to center that tied the score at 2 in the bottom of the first inning. She later knocked in the game-tying run with a single in the bottom of the sixth.

Meanwhile, freshman right fielder Kasidi Pickering went 2-for-3 with a double that hit halfway up the outfield wall in right-center that sparked a potential game-clinching rally in the seventh.

Parker also survived a vicious collision in the bottom of the fifth inning with a line-drive to right-center that she tried to leg into a double. As Parker slid, her face collided hard with the left shoulder of Gators shortstop Skylar Wallace, who dropped the ball.

Both players lay on the ground for a few minutes before returning to their feet. Wallace remained in the game while Maya Bland pitch-ran for Parker.

"I kind of don't really remember a whole lot of it just because of like I guess the adrenaline rushing," Parker said. "Just doing whatever to get to second base."

Gasso went out to second base to check on Parker. "She was talking," Gasso explained, "but she didn't want to move. I think her bell was rung pretty hard. It was a little bit scary because she's pretty tough. … Both (players) got hit pretty hard."

Tuesday elimination game featured six home runs, three by each team.

For the long ball to be so prominent should not have been a surprise. OU now ranks second nationally with 118 home runs this season while Florida ranks fourth with 100.

Senior first baseman Cydney Sanders has two hits so far in the WCWS, both being two-run homers. Her line-drive over the center-field wall in the bottom of the fourth pulled OU to within 5-4.

"I think one of the better games in College World Series history," Gasso said afterward. "A nail-biter. A little bit of everything. From their side … (it's) hard to get those guys out. They have big swings, they cover the zone."

OU has now won its last eight elimination games in the WCWS.

Monday's setback to the Gators snapped the Sooners' NCAA record postseason winning streak at 20 and Tuesday marked the first time in 11 WCWS games they were facing elimination.

Up Next

OU meets Texas Wednesday evening in game one of the WCWS Championship Series with a 7 p.m. CT first pitch. The game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN with Beth Mowins, Jessica Mendoza and Michele Smith on the call. All games can also be heard via 107.7 FM The Franchise in Oklahoma or nationwide on The Varsity Network with Chris Plank and alumna DJ Sanchez on the call.

For updates and more information on Oklahoma Softball, follow the Sooners on Twitter/X and Instagram (@OU_Softball) and like Oklahoma Softball on Facebook.