Cal Softball’s Road to Omaha Starts With a Win Against Omaha

The Golden Bears Win Their First NCAA Regional Tournament Game 1-0 in a Tight Pitchers Duel

After a disappointing 8-0 loss to Georgia Tech (27-23, 10-11 ACC) resulted in a first round exit from the ACC conference championship tournament in early May, Cal softball’s (36-19, 11-13 ACC) attention turned to the NCAA WCWS tournament. The Golden Bears were one of 64 teams selected to participate, landing themselves in the Norman Regional along with Boston University (39-18, 14-4 Patriot), University of Nebraska Omaha (39-12, 14-4 Summit) , and the #2 seed University of Oklahoma (46-7, 17-7 SEC).

Cal picked up a win against their first opponent the Omaha Mavericks today by the slimmest of margins, eking out a 1-0 victory in a game that was defined by dominant pitching from both teams. Bears pitcher Annabel Teperson and Mavericks pitcher Maddia Groff both tossed over 100 pitches and remained in the circle for complete games in this pitchers duel.

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Teperson’s performance was nothing short of absolutely lockdown. She pitched four 3 up 3 down innings against Omaha, and had the Mavericks floundering before her change up. When asked about her pitches and placement in the first game of the tournament, Teperson said “I’ve just felt confident in executing each of my pitches to a specific location with my best spin and trusting that–regardless of the batter or the outcome–and just focusing on things I can control.” The senior pitcher allowed just 2 hits, 0 runs, 1 walk, and 4 strikeouts. Her counterpart Groff pitched a similar line, delivering four 3 up 3 down innings and giving up 4 hits, 1 ER, 1 walk, and 5 strikeouts.

On the offensive side of game one Cal struggled to get runners on the bases, unable to secure a hit until the fourth inning, where they also secured their lone run. Right fielder Elon Butler notched a double into center right, catching a lucky break when the ball bounced out of Omaha right fielder Sammy Schmidt’s glove at the warning track. First basewoman Tiana Bell hit a single to second base that was fielded poorly, giving Butler enough time to reach home on a diving slide while Bell made it to second.

The Maverick’s only threat to Cal’s lead came in the fifth inning, when a pair of consecutive fielding errors by the Bears put two runners on base with one out. However, Teperson and Cal’s defense quickly put the inning away with a strikeout and a groundout.

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The Bears face a daunting task tomorrow in playing against the #2 seed Oklahoma in Norman at 11am PST. The Sooners beat Boston University shortly after Cal wrapped up their game against Omaha 8-0. The winner of that game will move on to the final game in the Norman Regional, while the loser will play in an elimination game against the winner of Omaha vs Boston. Cal is looking to move on to the superregionals for the first time since 2012, while Oklahoma seeks an unprecedented fifth consecutive national title.