WCWS 2024 highlights, results: Oklahoma beats UCLA as Kelly Maxwell dominates Bruins, Brady – USA TODAY

Two of the most storied softball programs in the country met Saturday in Game 7 of the Women’s College World Series. No. 6-seed UCLA – a program with a record 12 NCAA softball championships – faced off against three-time defending champions and No. 2-seed Oklahoma.
Women’s College World Series:Softball teams battle to win 2024 NCAA tournament
After scoring a combined 78 runs in the tournament prior to this game, this matchup of national powers became a pitching duel. Oklahoma’s Kelly Maxwell had one of the best performances of her career to shutout the Bruins and give the Sooners a 1-0 win.
Maxwell’s strikeout of UCLA’s Thessa Malau’ulu in the top of the seventh gave her a season-high 11 in the game. The graduate transfer from Oklahoma State threw 116 pitches and surrendered just two hits in her first complete game since the tournament opener against Oregon.
“I’m proud of this team and I’m proud I made this decision (to transfer),” Maxwell said on the field after the game.
Tiare Jennings’ solo home run for the Sooners in the third inning was the difference on the day. It marked her ninth career Women’s College World Series home run as Oklahoma earned its 11th win in a row.
In a duel between the All-American pitcher Maxwell and the All-American shortstop Maya Brady, the former earned a resounding win with three strikeouts against the Bruins’ top hitter.
Maxwell held it down in the circle for the Sooners. Her UCLA counterpart, freshman Kaitlyn Terry, played well to limit Oklahoma to just four hits on the day. But she couldn’t completely stifle one of the best hitting teams in the country. Jennings’ home run was the lone setback and it proved to be the difference in a low-scoring game.
Shortly after Jennings’ home run, Kelly Pickering nearly went yard for the Sooners again but Bruins centerfielder Janelle Meoño made a crucial catch to keep Oklahoma from scoring again.
Both teams played well in the field with just one error by Oklahoma in the game.
UCLA will face No. 8-seed Stanford tomorrow at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2.
Oklahoma awaits the winner of tomorrow’s game between No. 14-seed Ala
Maxwell struck out Thessa Malau’ulu to open the seventh inning and set a new season-high.
Tinsley notched two strikeouts in the frame to keep the deficit at 1-0 heading into the final inning.
With two on, Oklahoma’s Kelly Maxwell struck out Ramsey Suarez to hold UCLA scoreless again and tie her season-high of 10 strikeouts. Sooners lead 1-0.
A infield single to second got Megan Grant to first and a walk for Jordan Woolery makes it two on for UCLA with one out. Lauren Hatch is in to run for Grant.
It took Tinsley and the Bruins just 11 pitches to get three outs and retire the Sooners’ side. Oklahoma’s lead stays at 1-0.
After four innings pitched, Kaitlyn Terry is done for the day and Tinsley heads to the circle for the Bruins in the bottom of the fifth.
Jadelyn Allchin’s fly out to right field made it three outs with one on for the Bruins. Sooners hold a 1-0 lead heading into the bottom of the fifth.
Maxwell struck out Maya Brady for a third time today to tie her tournament-high with eight strikeouts in this game.
Cydney Sanders made it to first with two outs after getting hit by a Kaitlyn Terry pitch. But Meoño caught Jayda Coleman’s fly out to centerfield to retire the Sooners’ side. Oklahoma’s stays at 1-0.
A Seneca Curo ground out to third made it three outs and another scoreless inning for the Bruins. Oklahoma leads 1-0.
After the overturned call, Hansen struck out swinging on the next pitch. UCLA’s Kaitlyn Terry retired the side to keep the score 1-0.
With one on and two outs, UCLA’s Sharlize Palacios made a diving catch behind home base to earn a third out. Oklahoma challenged the ruling of a catch and upon further review, it was ruled a foul ball. 2-2 count for Kinzie Hansen.
Like Jennings before her, Pickering hit a shot deep to centerfield but Janelle Meoño made the catch to get the out.
After two and a half scoreless innings, Tiare Jennings went deep to centerfield on the first pitch of the bottom of the third. It’s her ninth career home run in the Women’s College World Series. Oklahoma leads 1-0.
UCLA had two on and two outs with Sharlize Palacios at the plate. Oklahoma’s Kelly Maxwell rebounded from a rough start to the inning and struck her out to retire UCLA’s side after a scoreless half of the inning.
After an infield fly hit Alynah Torres in the head, Hodge came in at second base.
UCLA’s Thessa Malau’ulu and Janelle Meoño made it to first and second with no outs. Brady’s next up in the order and Oklahoma pitcher Kelly Maxwell took a meeting in the circle to get reset.
UCLA got two outs early with a ground out and a fly to right field in quick succession. Terry walked Sanders to give Oklahoma one on but Coleman ground out to her to close the inning. Score remains 0-0 through two frames.
A strikeout, a catch by Cydney Sanders at first on a line driver, and another strikeout in quick succession retired the Bruins’ side in 12 pitches. She’s up to four strikeouts over the first two innings.
Oklahoma had bases loaded with Kinzie Hansen at the plate. Terry struck her out swinging in four pitches to retire the Sooners’ side and keep the game at 0-0.
A wild pitch brought Coleman to third and Jennings to second. A walk for Kasidi Pickering loads the bases for Oklahoma with two outs in the first inning.
With two on and one out, Oklahoma’s Alyssa Brito hit a ball deep to right field and Grant made a crucial catch to sevure the second out and keep Coleman at second and Tiare Jennings at first.
Kaitlyn Terry nearly hit Coleman with her ninth pitch and gave the Sooners senior a walk to first.
Maxwell nearly had three strikeouts in row before an error on a Sharlize Palacios hit got the Bruins catcher to first base. Megan Grant couldn’t make it to first in time and was out to retire the Bruins’ side for the first inning. Score remains 0-0.
Maya Brady stepped up to the plate first for the Bruins to start the first inning. Oklahoma pitcher Kelly Maxwell struck her out swinging in four pitches.
How to watch:Catch Women’s College World Series softball tournament with ESPN+
Saturday, June 1
Sunday, June 2
Monday, June 3
Championship Finals
Best-of-three series from June 5-7. All games at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN.
The game was originally scheduled to tip off at 3 p.m. ET. Due to a short delay the game start is now set for 3:15 p.m. ET.
The Sooners are favored to beat the Bruins, per the latest DraftKings odds, and continue their quest for a fourth consecutive championship.
Looking to wager? Check out the best mobile sports betting apps offering sports betting promos in 2024.
Justin Martinez writes: “OU’s offense didn’t have much trouble scoring against Duke, which entered Thursday’s WCWS opener with the third-best team ERA in the nation (1.55). Now the Sooners will face the Bruins, who have a young pitching duo of freshman Kaitlyn Terry and sophomore Taylor Tinsley. Both players earned All-Pac-12 first team selections this season, but asking them to contain an experienced OU offense on the sport’s biggest stage is a tall order.”
Bryan Clinton says: “Oklahoma’s offense was on fire against an excellent Duke pitching staff, and while UCLA has been playing terrific softball of late, their staff ranks seventh out of eight teams that made it to OKC with a 2.71-team ERA. If the Sooners’ bats stay hot, they should be able to pull away in this one. I’m not predicting a third consecutive shutout in the series, as OU’s pitching staff isn’t as good as it was in 2022 or 2023, but this group of seniors has had a vendetta against UCLA, and that will continue.”
Edward Sutelan writes: “The Sooners are once again dominant in nearly all facets of the game. They rank seventh in team ERA (1.85), first in on-base percentage (.473) and second in slugging percentage (.724) among all Division I teams. They have outscored opponents 483-107 this season.”
The Bruins won their third Pac-12 conference regular season championship of the last four years behind a five-game winning streak to close the season. In the conference tournament, UCLA took care of business against Arizona State 6-0 before one-run wins over Arizona (6-5) and Utah (2-1) secured their title.
UCLA opened the NCAA softball tournament with wins over Grand Canyon (9-0), Virginia Tech (7-6), and Grand Canyon (9-1) again in the regionals round. In the super regionals, the Bruins beat Georgia twice by a combined score of 14-1 to secure a spot in the Women’s College World Series bracket. They opened with a 4-1 win over Alabama Thursday to secure their spot against Oklahoma today.
For the first time since 2011, Oklahoma did not win the Big 12 regular season title. Texas took the title by one win but Oklahoma got back on top in the Big 12 conference tournament by beating the Longhorns 5-1 in the championship game.
The three-time defending NCAA champions have kept the winning up from there. In the regionals round, Oklahoma beat Cleveland State 9-0 before beating Oregon twice by a combined score of 9-5. In the super regionals, Oklahoma beat Florida State 11-3 and 4-2 to make it to the Women’s College World Series bracket. They started the final part of the tournament with a 9-1 win over Duke Thursday.
LHP Kaitlyn Terry, Fr.
Terry’s Women’s College World Series debut in the circle went well against Alabama. She allowed four hits, one run, and recorded three strikeouts in four innings pitched. She’s posted a 21-1 record this season and finished second on the team in ERA (2.35) and strikeouts (154). In a game against one of the best hitting teams in the country, she’ll be a key factor for the Bruins.
SS Maya Brady, Sr.
Brady’s long been one of the best hitters on the team and this season was no different. She’s leading the team in hits (71), runs (59), and RBI (68) with the second-best batting average (.436). She’s stepped up in the tournament, going 13-for-19 from the plate with 11 runs scored and seven RBI. Oklahoma’s the second-highest scoring team in the country. UCLA will likely need Brady to continue that production to keep up.
LHP Kelly Maxwell, Gr.
Maxwell came to Norman as a graduate student this year following a successful career with Oklahoma State. She proceeded to post a 20-2 record and lead the team in strikeouts (136) with a 1.96 ERA. In the tournament, she’s allowed just seven hits and five runs in 17.2 innings pitched. UCLA’s not as productive as Oklahoma from the plate but the Bruins are no easy matchup. Another strong showing from the circle by Maxwell could keep the Sooners on track for a fourth consecutive title.
INF Tiare Jennings, Sr.
In a lineup stacked with productive hitters, the First Team All-American may be the most important one. She holds multiple Women’s College World Series records is enjoying a solid run this year. She’s gone 8-for-20 from the plate (including three home runs) with six runs scored and six RBI in the tournament. Some of her biggest performances in the Women’s College World Series have come against UCLA and she could step up once again.
Starting pitcher: Kaitlyn Terry
Starting pitcher: Kelly Maxwell
We occasionally recommend interesting products and services. If you make a purchase by clicking one of the links, we may earn an affiliate fee. USA TODAY Network newsrooms operate independently, and this doesn’t influence our coverage.
Gannett may earn revenue from sports betting operators for audience referrals to betting services. Sports betting operators have no influence over nor are any such revenues in any way dependent on or linked to the newsrooms or news coverage. Terms apply, see operator site for Terms and Conditions. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, help is available. Call the National Council on Problem Gambling 24/7 at 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ, OH), 1-800-522-4700 (CO), 1-800-BETS-OFF (IA), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN). Must be 21 or older to gamble. Sports betting and gambling are not legal in all locations. Be sure to comply with laws applicable where you reside.

source