Oklahoma Sooners.Photo:Ian Maule/Getty ImagesThe Oklahoma Sooners are champions — again.The unstoppable college softball dynasty rolled on Thursday night, winning its third-straight NCAA title with a 3-1 win over Florida State.The victory marked the Sooner’s sixth NCAA title in 10 years and extended their record-setting win streak to 53 games. It also capped off a season that nearly saw them become the first team ever to go undefeated from start-to-finish, minus a single one-run loss the day after a double-header in February.“They handled it like champions and that’s why we’re here right now,” head coach Patty GassotoldThe New York Timesafter her team’s title win.The pressure never seemed to get to Oklahoma, who appeared loose and confident throughout the NCAA Women’s College World Series.Even when Florida State’s Mack Leonard gave the Seminoles a one-run lead with a fourth-inning home run, the Sooners never flinched. Two batters later, they reclaimed the lead on back-to-back home runs of their own from Cydney Sanders and Grace Lyons, never looking back.“We stick together,” Sooners pitcher Jordy BahltoldESPN after her team celebrated another title. “It’s not just one person that feels it, we all feel it.”Oklahoma’s dominant run has the sports worldasking: Is this the best team in college sports? Is this the best college softball team ever?“It’s kind of like UConn women’s basketball and winning the championship how many years in a row?” Sooners coach Patty Gassosaidearlier this season, according to ESPN. “And people are like, ‘This is boring’ or ‘This is not good for the women’s game to have an elite team.’ But it’s our job, and I think for sport connoisseurs, they want to see what greatness looks like.“Patty Gasso.Ian Maule/Getty ImagesOklahoma Sooners.Ian Maule/Getty ImagesGasso’s team added to its legacy Thursday becoming the second school ever to three-peat as champions, putting together an unthinkable 176-8 record over the last three seasons.On the way there, Oklahoma faced criticism within the softball world for adding more and more of the sport’s top players to its roster through transfers, creating what the NCAAdescribedas “a softball machine.”Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.The team also spoke out against criticism that their players celebrated too much and too enthusiastically, a slight many of the young women on the team viewed as misogynistic. Playerstold ESPNthey were “unapologetic” about, slamming the “double standards” men and women face in sports.“What we do is to bring passion to our own circle, and it’s never against anyone else,” Lyons told the outlet earlier this week. “So, I just want to say that that’s not how we play. People may take it that way, but it’s all for our own joy and passion, never to tear down.“The Sooners have built a dynasty unrivaled in their softball world and maybe, as some are asking, in all of college sports.“Everybody’s out to get us,” Gasso said Thursday. “They want to bring down the Evil Empire.“And on Thursday, the empire rolled on.
Oklahoma Sooners.Photo:Ian Maule/Getty Images
Ian Maule/Getty Images
The Oklahoma Sooners are champions — again.The unstoppable college softball dynasty rolled on Thursday night, winning its third-straight NCAA title with a 3-1 win over Florida State.The victory marked the Sooner’s sixth NCAA title in 10 years and extended their record-setting win streak to 53 games. It also capped off a season that nearly saw them become the first team ever to go undefeated from start-to-finish, minus a single one-run loss the day after a double-header in February.“They handled it like champions and that’s why we’re here right now,” head coach Patty GassotoldThe New York Timesafter her team’s title win.The pressure never seemed to get to Oklahoma, who appeared loose and confident throughout the NCAA Women’s College World Series.Even when Florida State’s Mack Leonard gave the Seminoles a one-run lead with a fourth-inning home run, the Sooners never flinched. Two batters later, they reclaimed the lead on back-to-back home runs of their own from Cydney Sanders and Grace Lyons, never looking back.“We stick together,” Sooners pitcher Jordy BahltoldESPN after her team celebrated another title. “It’s not just one person that feels it, we all feel it.”Oklahoma’s dominant run has the sports worldasking: Is this the best team in college sports? Is this the best college softball team ever?“It’s kind of like UConn women’s basketball and winning the championship how many years in a row?” Sooners coach Patty Gassosaidearlier this season, according to ESPN. “And people are like, ‘This is boring’ or ‘This is not good for the women’s game to have an elite team.’ But it’s our job, and I think for sport connoisseurs, they want to see what greatness looks like.“Patty Gasso.Ian Maule/Getty ImagesOklahoma Sooners.Ian Maule/Getty ImagesGasso’s team added to its legacy Thursday becoming the second school ever to three-peat as champions, putting together an unthinkable 176-8 record over the last three seasons.On the way there, Oklahoma faced criticism within the softball world for adding more and more of the sport’s top players to its roster through transfers, creating what the NCAAdescribedas “a softball machine.”Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.The team also spoke out against criticism that their players celebrated too much and too enthusiastically, a slight many of the young women on the team viewed as misogynistic. Playerstold ESPNthey were “unapologetic” about, slamming the “double standards” men and women face in sports.“What we do is to bring passion to our own circle, and it’s never against anyone else,” Lyons told the outlet earlier this week. “So, I just want to say that that’s not how we play. People may take it that way, but it’s all for our own joy and passion, never to tear down.“The Sooners have built a dynasty unrivaled in their softball world and maybe, as some are asking, in all of college sports.“Everybody’s out to get us,” Gasso said Thursday. “They want to bring down the Evil Empire.“And on Thursday, the empire rolled on.
The Oklahoma Sooners are champions — again.The unstoppable college softball dynasty rolled on Thursday night, winning its third-straight NCAA title with a 3-1 win over Florida State.The victory marked the Sooner’s sixth NCAA title in 10 years and extended their record-setting win streak to 53 games. It also capped off a season that nearly saw them become the first team ever to go undefeated from start-to-finish, minus a single one-run loss the day after a double-header in February.
“They handled it like champions and that’s why we’re here right now,” head coach Patty GassotoldThe New York Timesafter her team’s title win.
The pressure never seemed to get to Oklahoma, who appeared loose and confident throughout the NCAA Women’s College World Series.
Even when Florida State’s Mack Leonard gave the Seminoles a one-run lead with a fourth-inning home run, the Sooners never flinched. Two batters later, they reclaimed the lead on back-to-back home runs of their own from Cydney Sanders and Grace Lyons, never looking back.
“We stick together,” Sooners pitcher Jordy BahltoldESPN after her team celebrated another title. “It’s not just one person that feels it, we all feel it.”
Oklahoma’s dominant run has the sports worldasking: Is this the best team in college sports? Is this the best college softball team ever?
“It’s kind of like UConn women’s basketball and winning the championship how many years in a row?” Sooners coach Patty Gassosaidearlier this season, according to ESPN. “And people are like, ‘This is boring’ or ‘This is not good for the women’s game to have an elite team.’ But it’s our job, and I think for sport connoisseurs, they want to see what greatness looks like.”
Patty Gasso.Ian Maule/Getty Images
Oklahoma Sooners.Ian Maule/Getty Images
Gasso’s team added to its legacy Thursday becoming the second school ever to three-peat as champions, putting together an unthinkable 176-8 record over the last three seasons.
On the way there, Oklahoma faced criticism within the softball world for adding more and more of the sport’s top players to its roster through transfers, creating what the NCAAdescribedas “a softball machine.”
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
The team also spoke out against criticism that their players celebrated too much and too enthusiastically, a slight many of the young women on the team viewed as misogynistic. Playerstold ESPNthey were “unapologetic” about, slamming the “double standards” men and women face in sports.
“What we do is to bring passion to our own circle, and it’s never against anyone else,” Lyons told the outlet earlier this week. “So, I just want to say that that’s not how we play. People may take it that way, but it’s all for our own joy and passion, never to tear down.”
The Sooners have built a dynasty unrivaled in their softball world and maybe, as some are asking, in all of college sports.
“Everybody’s out to get us,” Gasso said Thursday. “They want to bring down the Evil Empire.”
And on Thursday, the empire rolled on.
source: people.com
