Texas vs Tennessee softball highlights: Longhorns advance to WCWS championship – USA Today

By the end of the day Monday, one SEC team with some shade of orange and the initials “UT” would be headed to the championship series of the 2025 Women’s College World Series while the other would see its season come to an end.
In just one game, Texas provided an answer to the question.
Behind a solo home run from Katie Stewart and a combined shutout from Mac Morgan and Teagan Kavan, the No. 6 Longhorns defeated the No. 7 Lady Vols 2-0 in the WCWS semifinals on June 2 at Devon Park in Oklahoma City in the WCWS semifinals.
With the victory, Texas moves on to the WCWS championship series for the third time in the past four seasons. In each of their previous two appearances, the Longhorns fell to archrival Oklahoma. The No. 2 Sooners will need to beat No. 12 Texas Tech in order to make it back to the championship series to try to win their fifth consecutive NCAA title.
Tennessee’s season ends with a 47-17 record and the program’s second WCWS appearance in the past three years.
Texas, which is one of two undefeated teams in the event, needed just one win to advance while Tennessee, which already had a loss to its name in the double-elimination tournament, would have needed to beat the Longhorns in back-to-back games to keep its season alive.
Stewart’s fourth-inning solo shot just cleared the outfield wall and broke what had been a 0-0 deadlock. She was the only player on either team to finish the game with more than one hit. The Longhorns doubled their lead in the sixth inning with a run on a wild throw to first base.
Morgan and Kavan combined to allow just three hits and two walks while striking out seven. Karlyn Pickens took the loss for the Lady Vols despite a strong outing in which she allowed two runs, only one of them earned, and struck out nine in six innings.
Here’s the score, updates, highlights and more Texas softball’s win against Tennessee in the semifinals of the 2025 WCWS:
This section will be updated throughout the game.
Teagan Kavan strikes out Emma Clarke and Texas is off to the championship series of the Women’s College World Series with a 2-0 victory against Tennessee.
It’s the third appearance in the WCWS title series in the past four years for the Longhorns, who, once there, have lost to Oklahoma in each of the previous two trips.
With runners on first and second with two outs, Texas’ Victoria Hunter hit a grounder to third base, but Tennessee’s Taylor Pannell’s throw to first goes high, sending Joley Mitchell from third to home to double the Longhorns’ lead to 2-0 in the bottom of the sixth inning.
The Lady Vols limit any further damage, getting a groundout with runners on second and third, but they’ll need at least two runs in the seventh inning to continue their season.
The Lady Vols are down to their final three outs.
The Tennessee lineup goes down in order in the top of the sixth inning, allowing Texas to hold on to its 1-0 edge.
Three up and three down for the Longhorns, who are unable to build on their 1-0 lead in the bottom of the fifth inning.
Tennessee had the chance to provide a quick answer to Texas, but the Lady Vols weren’t able to capitalize.
With a runner on second base with one out after Texas made a pitching change from Mac Morgan to Teagan Kavan, Gabby Leach strikes out swinging and Taylor Pannell pops out to right field to end the threat and allow the Longhorns to hang on to a 1-0 lead.
After allowing the home run to Stewart, Pickens settles down and strikes out the next three Longhorns she sees. Even so, with Kavan in the bullpen and the Vols down 1-0, Tennessee goes into the fifth on tenterhooks.
Texas breaks the scoreless tie with a home run off the bat of Katie Stewart. The ball looked like a flyout off the bat, but it just kept carrying and cleared the wall to give Texas a 1-0 lead. Now, with Morgan rolling and Kavan waiting in the wings, the real game begins for Texas manager Mike White.
Another clean inning on the scoreboard for Mac Morgan sees Tennessee assistant Craig Snider get ejected. Snider was arguing balls and strikes and got run, so the Vols will be down a coach for the rest of the game.
A game defined by missed opportunities just had its biggest one yet.
With just one out, Texas had the bases loaded and two of its most productive hitters due up. Instead, Karlyn Pickens was able to get out of a jam, striking out Reese Atwood swinging and getting Joley Mitchell to foul out to first. Pickens had spotted Mitchell a 3-0 count, but fights her way back to get the out.
Atwood had been 7-for-9 this season with the bases loaded before her latest at-bat. Pickens had to work to get out of the inning, though, logging 27 pitches.
The Lady Vols now have three hits, but nothing to show for it, with Taylor Pannell singling to left field, but Ella Dodge lining out in the next at-bat to end the inning.
Through two innings in Oklahoma City, neither team has broken through.
Texas gets a single from Leighann Goode, but nothing else, with Goode unable to advance past first.
Two innings and two missed opportunities for the Lady Vols.
This time, Tennessee gets Laura Mealer to second base after a single up the middle and a groundout. But with two outs, Emma Clarke grounds out to shortstop to end the inning.
Right after Tennessee stranded a runner on second base, Texas does the same.
Ashton Maloney gets on base to lead off the inning on a fielding error by Laura Mealer and gets to second base with just one out, but Mia Scott fouls out and Karlyn Pickens strikes out Longhorns star Reese Atwood swinging to end the threat.
The Lady Vols looked to be in a good position to get an early run after a two-out double from Ella Dodge, but Texas’ Mac Morgan strikes out Sophia Nugent swinging that holds Tennessee without a run.
It was only the 36th strikeout of the season for Morgan, who is appearing in her 26th game of the season today.
Here’s the lineup Texas is rolling out against Tennessee Monday, with Mac Morgan getting the start at pitcher:
Here’s the lineup Tennessee will trot out against Texas, with Karlyn Pickens getting the start at pitcher:
Click here to see the official bracket for the 2025 Women’s College World Series.
Pickens, the record-setting Tennessee pitcher who the Lady Vols are likely to turn to in Monday’s game, is listed at 6-foot-1 on the official Tennessee roster.
First pitch for Tennessee and Texas’ softball game in the 2025 Women’s College World Series is set for noon ET from Devon Park in Oklahoma City.
Monday’s WCWS semifinal game between Tennessee and Texas will air on ESPN. Beth Mowins (play-by-play), Michele Smith (analyst) and Jessica Mendoza (analyst) will be on the call while Holly Rowe will serve as the sideline reporter.
Streaming options for the game include the ESPN app, which requires a valid cable login to access, and ESPN+, ESPN’s subscription streaming service.
This section will be updated when odds become available
Prediction from the Knoxville News-Sentinel: Tennessee 6, Texas 3
In explaining her pick, Tennessee beat writer Cora Hall says:
The Lady Vols have proven they have what it takes to win games in Oklahoma City. With Pickens still relatively fresh this deep into the WCWS, Tennessee can steal a game from Texas, especially with how its offense is performing.
Below is Tennessee’s NCAA tournament schedule. For the Lady Vols’ full 2025 schedule, click here.
Knoxville Regional:
Knoxville Super Regional:
Women’s College World Series:
Below is Texas’ NCAA tournament schedule. For the Longhorns’ full 2025 schedule, click here.
Austin Regional
Austin Super Regional
Women’s College World Series
The Women’s College World Series began May 29 and will run through either June 5 or June 6. The WCWS three-game championship series will begin on June 4 and end on June 5 or 6, depending on whether the series concludes in two or three games.
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