Kavan's one-hit gem sends Texas past Stanford into WCWS final - ESPN

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — No. 1 Texas advanced to the WCWS championship finals for the second time in three seasons with a 1-0 one-hit shutout of Stanford, eliminating the Cardinal and closing the book on the storied history of Pac-12 softball.

Longhorns freshman Teagan Kavan outdueled Stanford's NiJaree Canady, last year's breakout freshman star, for the second time this week, after another 1-hit gem on Thursday in a 4-0 shutout of the Cardinal.

Texas (55-8) stands two wins away from its first national title, awaiting the winner of Tuesday's semifinal matchup between No. 2 Oklahoma and No. 4 Florida on Wednesday.

«Obviously that was an old-fashioned ballgame right there, 1-0,» Texas coach Mike White said. «Pitchers' duel, two tremendous pitchers going at it. Whoever was going to blink first was going to win.»

The game came down to a play at the plate, with Alyssa Washington scoring the lone run in the seventh inning, just sliding underneath a tag at the plate after a rundown following a bunt by Ashton Maloney.

«When she was chasing me down, instead of the ball in her hand, she had it in her glove,» Washington said. "[I was] recognizing that's going to take a little time with the transfer to get it in there, sliding my hand in there, recognizing where the catcher stands and the timing of the transfer."

The call at the plate was upheld after a Stanford challenge.

For the Cardinal, it was a heartbreaking ending, just inches away from surviving a sixth elimination game in this year's NCAA tournament. Canady, who led the country in ERA and strikeouts, went 5-1 record in those games, giving up only two earned runs in 40 innings over that span.

«NiJaree Canady, what can you say?» White said. «She's really, really tough. We're