Alo’s 2 HRs lead Oklahoma past UCLA, into WCWS finals
Jun 6, 2022, 12:35 AM | Updated: Jun 9, 2022, 3:08 pm
Oklahoma's Jocelyn Alo (78) hits a grand slam during fifth inning of an NCAA softball Women's College World Series elimination game against UCLA on Monday, June 6, 2022, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Alonzo Adams)
(AP Photo/Alonzo Adams)
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Jocelyn Alo hit two homers, including a grand slam, and No. 1 seed Oklahoma beat No. 5 UCLA 15-0 in the second game of a doubleheader on Monday to advance to the Women’s College World Series finals.
UCLA needed to beat Oklahoma twice to advance to the championship series, and the Bruins won the first game 7-3 thanks to two homers from Maya Brady, the niece of seven-time Super Bowl winner Tom Brady. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback tweeted his reaction to the performance.
Alo took command for the powerhouse Sooners in the second game, backing a two-hitter from Hope Trautwein (21-1), who struck out six and threw just 67 pitches in a game that was shortened to five innings because of the mercy rule.
Oklahoma (57-3) will defend its national title against either No. 7 seed Oklahoma State or Texas in a best-of-three championship series starting Wednesday. Both teams have defeated the Sooners once this season.
Alo, the two-time USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year, increased her Division I career-record home run total to 120. She went 4-for-4 and scored three runs.
Because the Sooners entered Monday unbeaten in the double-elimination format and UCLA had a loss, the Bruins (51-10) needed to beat Oklahoma twice on Monday to qualify for the championship series. They got the power they needed in the first game from Brady, who hit a three-run blast in the first inning that made it 5-1. Her two-run shot in the seventh increased UCLA’s lead to 7-3.
In the second game, Jayda Coleman hit a three-run homer in the first inning of UCLA starter Holly Azevedo (21-3), and Oklahoma rolled from there.
After Azevedo allowed the first two baserunners to reach in the second, Megan Faraimo relieved and retired two batters before Alo blasted the first pitch for a three-run homer to make it 6-0.
Alo’s grand slam was the highlight of an eight-run fifth inning for the Sooners.
Faraimo (24-5) was the winning pitcher in Game 1 for the Bruins, and Azevedo held the Sooners hitless for the final three innings to earn her first save.
Nicole May (15-1) allowed five runs in 2 1/3 innings for the Sooners in the first game, including a two-run homer in the first inning by Delanie Wisz that gave the Bruins a lead they would not relinquish.
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