Key players to watch for each team in the Women’s College World Series

This week, the eight teams who qualified for the Women’s College World Series will descend upon Oklahoma City to crown the 2023 national champion. While the Oklahoma Sooners are the favorite to win the title, they’ll be challenged along the way.

Each of the eight teams in the Women’s College World Series is bringing some serious talent with them to USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium.

While there are certainly a lot of talented players worth mentioning from each team, here’s a look at some of the key players in this year’s WCWS field.

No. 1 Oklahoma Sooners

Jordy Bahl, P

You could go with any of Oklahoma’s three starters here, but Jordy Bahl’s performance this postseason has been fantastic. The Sooners didn’t have her a year ago as Bahl worked through a shoulder injury. But she’s back and her performance to close out the super regionals was clutch.

Tiare Jennings, 2B

Again, there’s a number of players that you could put in this spot, but let’s not forget that Tiare Jennings has twice had 20 home run seasons and averaged 89.5 RBIs in her first two years in Norman. Jennings leads the team in batting average and RBIs and is one shy of the team lead in home runs.

No. 3 Florida State Seminoles

Kathryn Sandercock, P

Kathryn Sandercock is 26-3 with a 1.10 ERA across 172.1 innings. She helped Florida State reach the super regionals with a perfect game. Sandercock’s thrown 10 shutouts and has 107 strikeouts on the season.

Kalei Harding, UTIL

Kalei Harding is third on the team in home runs and second in RBIs, but she leads the Seminoles with 21 doubles, is tied for first with three triples, and leads Florida State with an OPS of 1.008.

No. 4 Tennessee Volunteers

Ashley Rogers, P

Ashley Rogers is second in the country in ERA at 0.75, is 18-1 on the season and has 173 strikeouts in 131.1 innings pitched. Rogers certainly has a case for consideration as pitcher of the year in collegiate softball.

Kiki Milloy, OF

While the Sooners certainly have a case for being snubbed from the National Player of the Year award, Tennessee’s Kiki Miloy may have a stronger case. Miloy’s hitting .420 this season with 25 home runs and 56 RBIs. She’s also stolen 39 bases on 40 attempts and racked an OPS of 1.550.

No. 5 Alabama Crimson Tide

Montana Fouts, P

Montana Fouts has been battling a hyperextended knee injury she suffered in the SEC tournament. Relegated to relief appearances in a “break glass if needed” scenario, she returned for Alabama’s super regional with Northwestern. She appeared in all three games and looks to be healthy going into the Women’s College World Series.

On the year, Fouts as thrown 223 innings and has a 1.48 ERA. She’s 25-10 on the season with 319 strikeouts.

Ashley Pronge, IF

Alabama’s most impactful hitter is Ashley Pronge. She’s hitting .324 on the season with 16 home runs and 46 RBIs. She also has 11 doubles in 2023. Since the start of the NCAA tournament, Pronge has hit .421 for the Crimson Tide with five doubles and an RBI.

No. 6 Oklahoma State Cowgirls

Kelly Maxwell, P

Softball fans are quite familiarized with the talent of Kelly Maxwell. She’s been Oklahoma State’s ace for some time and she’s having another great year in 2023. This season, Maxwell’s gone 16-5 with a 1.77 ERA and has helped the Cowgirls overcome the slump they were in to end the regular season. Since the start of the NCAA tournament, she’s thrown 16.1 innings and allowed just two runs while striking out 25.

Rachel Becker, IF

Oklahoma State has several players worth mentioning, but we’re going to go with Rachel Becker. She’s hitting .449 on the season with three home runs and 28 RBIs. While she may not have the power stroke that Kiley Naomi has, Becker’s been the fuel that makes the Oklahoma State offense go. In the super regional clincher vs. Oregon, she went 2-for-3 with a double and two RBIs.

No. 7 Washington Huskies

Ruby Meylan, P

Freshman Ruby Meylan has carried the Huskies pitching staff this season with 169.1 innings pitched this season. No one else has more than 80 innings pitched. She’s gone 18-5 with a 2.19 ERA.

Baylee Klingler, INF

Fifth-year senior Baylee Klingler hasn’t had the best postseason for Washington, but she’s one of the best players in the country, capable of turning it on at any moment. She’s just 3-for-18 since the start of the NCA tournament, but she boasts a season average of .388 with 12 home runs and 47 RBIs in 2023.

No. 9 Stanford Cardinal

NiJaree Canady, P

NiJaree Canady is one of the best pitchers in collegiate softball. Her 0.48 ERA is the lowest in the nation. She’s 16-1 on the season with 193 strikeouts in 116.1 innings pitched. Oh, and she’s just a freshman.

Aly Kaneshiro, C

Junior catcher Aly Kaneshiro provides the power for the Stanford Cardinal. Of Stanford’s 24 home runs in 2023, Kaneshiro has seven of them or 29.1% of the Cardinal’s long bombs. In the NCAA tournament, Kaneshiro’s hit .352 with a home run, two doubles, and seven RBIs. And you can’t overlook her work behind the plate handling the Stanford pitching staff, which has been one of the best in the country.

No. 15 Utah Utes

Mariah Lopez, P

Mariah Lopez threw a complete game in Utah’s 7-4 win over UCLA to win the Pac-12 tournament. She’s the workhorse for Utah, throwing 16 innings in the three-game series against San Diego State. On the year, Lopez is 23-6 with a 2.15 ERA and has thrown 191.2 innings with 201 strikeouts.

Ellessa Bonstrom, UTIL

The Utes have a trio of players with double-digit home runs, but Ellessa Bonstrom also has 10 doubles and a pair of triples. Bonstrom leads the Utes in slugging percentage and on-base percentage.

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Story originally appeared on Sooners Wire