KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — The eyes of Vol Nation will be on Oklahoma City this week with Tennessee competing in the Women’s College World Series for the first time since 2015.
The Lady Vols punched their ticket to the biggest tournament in college softball by dispatching Texas at home in the NCAA Super Regional round.
The eight-team, double-elimination tournament runs from June 1-9 with the final two teams competing in a best-of-three series for the national championship.
Tennessee beat Alabama on Thursday in the tournament opener to set up a showdown with top-ranked Oklahoma. The Lady Vols fell to the two-time defending national champions on Saturday to set up an elimination game on Sunday against Oklahoma State.
Senior pitcher Ashley Rogers led the Vols to a 3-1 win on Sunday to eliminate the Cowgirls and advance to their first semifinal since 2013.
Tennessee and Florida State will face off Monday night for a spot in the WCWS Finals. With the Seminoles yet to lose in this double-elimination tournament, the Lady Vols will need to win two consecutive games to advance.
Game 1 will begin on Monday at 7 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN. If Tennessee wins, the second game will begin roughly 35 minutes after the completion of Game 1 and also be shown on ESPN.
The Sooners have won the last two national titles and entered the tournament on the longest winning streak in the history of NCAA Division 1 softball.
It has been a historic season for the Lady Vols. Tennessee won their second SEC regular-season title in program history, the first since 2007. They followed it up a week later with their first SEC Tournament championship since 2011. It is the first time in school history Tennessee won both in the same season.
Tennessee announced that softball head coach Karen Weekly has signed a contract extension to stay on Rocky Top through the 2028 season.
