A Texas Bella Dayton player celebrates after hitting a home run against Texas A&M University in the second game of the NCAA College Division I softball tournament Super Regional in Austin, Texas, Saturday, May 25, 2024. (Meredith Seaver/College Station Eagle via The Associated Press)
AUSTIN (KXAN) — For the past two seasons, they’ve been on the softball diamond against the Stanford Cardinal with one goal in mind: to mount an offense against some of the best pitchers in the country.
No. 1 ranked Texas will try again in the Women’s College World Series on Thursday at 6 p.m. at OGE Energy Field in Devon Park. It feels like years ago, but Stanford sophomore Nijalee Canady pitched eight innings against the Longhorns at the Longhorns Invitational in Austin on Feb. 24, striking out 11 and walking two in a 4-3 win. It was Texas’ first loss of the season.
Texas sophomore shortstop Bibiana Martinez said the team is studying the game and trying to prepare for the different pitches and speeds Canady will throw.
“She’s a great pitcher, she has good velocity, she has a riser and she has a curveball,” Martinez said. “We’re just getting ready to start the first game, covering the ball and making adjustments. We want to learn everything we can from that game.”
Martinez and Canady played for Team USA in the 2023 Japan Series. Martinez played second base and Canady was one of the Stars’ top pitchers. What Martinez got out of being teammates with Canady for a short time was endearing.
“She’s a very nice person,” Martinez said.
To say Canady is a pillar of the Cardinals pitching staff would be an understatement. He has an astounding 204 2/3 innings, striking out 310 batters and walking just 37. He’s 22-5 this season with a nationally best ERA of 0.65. After a thorough loss to Louisiana State in the Super Regional opener, he’s not afraid of a little pressure as he leads the Cardinals to Oklahoma City with two straight shutout wins.
Longhorns head coach Mike White said that’s one of the reasons Canady is so good.
“She got hit pretty hard in the first game, but then she bounced back and pitched two shutout games. It just goes to show you what a good pitcher can do,” White said. “That’s what makes this game exciting.”
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Canady and Texas sophomore catcher Reese Atwood were both named First Team All-Americans on Wednesday. Of the seven home runs Canady has allowed this season, one was a two-run homer to Atwood. The two, along with Oklahoma State pitcher Lexi Kilfoyle, another First Team All-American, are nominated for the USA Softball Association Player of the Year award, and Texas could face Kilfoyle again in the next round of the WCWS.
Coming off arguably the toughest three-game stretch all season, including a Super Regional against No. 16 Texas A&M, White said he’ll be assessing whether that stress will be a positive or negative thing in the WCWS.
“It took a lot of grit and determination, but they lost every game,” White said. “You didn’t see any signs of panic in their eyes.”
