OKLAHOMA CITY — Texas battered star Texas Tech pitcher NiJaree Canady in the first inning and rolled, beating the Red Raiders 10-4 to win the decisive Game 3 of the Women’s College World Series championship series and the first national title in program history on Friday.
The Longhorns (56-12) had fallen in the WCWS championship series in two of the previous three seasons.
While the first two games of the series were tight and low scoring, featuring a total of 10 runs, but Texas blew open Game 3 early against Canady.
Texas scored five first-inning runs, highlighted by Leighann Goode’s three-run, two-out home run to cap the frame.
With one out, the Longhorns delivered four consecutive singles to get on the board before Goode belted her 10th home run of the season.
The five first-inning runs were the most surrendered by Canady, a junior, in one inning in her career.
After the first inning, Canady was lifted in favor of Chloe Riassetto.
It was the first pitching change the Red Raiders had made in the WCWS, with Canady pitching the first 36 innings for Texas Tech in Oklahoma City.
Texas added another run in the third, then made it a blowout in the fourth on Mia Scott’s grand slam that put the Longhorns up 10-0. It was Scott’s 10th long ball of the year.
Longhorns pitcher Teagan Kavan allowed just one hit through four innings before the Red Raiders (54-14) broke through with three runs on three hits and two errors in the fifth.
Kavan (28-5) allowed eight hits and four runs, all unearned, in the complete-game victory. She struck out three without walking a batter.
Henry finished with three hits. Texas’ Reese Atwood, Katie Stewart and Scott each had two hits, and Stewart drove in two runs.
Canady (34-7) yielded five runs on five hits and no walks with two strikeouts.
Texas Tech’s Hailey Toney went 3-for-4 with three RBIs, and Mihyia Davis had two hits.
–Field Level Media
