Softball CWS

The Women's College World Series opens Thursday with all eight teams in action. A champion will be crowned either June 6 or 7. Here are the opening-day matchups.

all times,.. ET

Game 1: (9) Texas A&M vs. (1) Florida, noon (ESPN)
Game 2: (13) LSU vs. (5) UCLA, 2:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 3: (6) Washington vs. (3) Oregon, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 4: (15) Baylor vs. (10) Oklahoma, 9:30 p.m. (ESPN2)


Ranking the final eight contenders at the Women's College World Series

1. Florida: Yes, Florida became the first No. 1 seed extended to a winner-take-finale in each of the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament, first by Oklahoma State and then by Alabama. But the Gators still have Kelly Barnhill and Delanie Gourley in the circle (not to mention Aleshia Ocasio, should anyone else be needed). So while opponents may be able to stay close, it is still difficult to imagine this team losing twice in quick succession. That pitching firewall keeps the top seed as the favorite entering the World Series.

2. Oklahoma: The Sooners took the scenic route from Norman to Oklahoma City, by way of four elimination games in a regional and a trip to Auburn for a super regional. But the team that swept the Tigers looked a lot like the team that won the championship a year ago against the same opponent, only with more choices in the circle. It's also worth pointing out that, regional drama aside, Oklahoma didn't do anything wrong to draw a double-digit seed. It just ran afoul of a selection committee hell-bent on strength-of-schedule data.

3. UCLA: The fifth-seeded Bruins won Pac-12 series against Arizona, Oregon and Washington. They scored 36 runs in going 5-0 through regional and super regional play. They solved the May mystery that was Ole Miss ace Kaitlin Lee in that super regional. The top of the order alone -- Delaney Spaulding, Kylee Perez, Madeline Jelenicki and Brianna Tautalafua -- averages eight total bases per game. And redshirt freshman pitcher Rachel Garcia, the former national high school player of the year, is playing with poise beyond her years.

4. Oregon: The selling point is a pitching staff that goes three deep with interchangeable arms that shut down the Pac-12. The tricky part is that trio includes two freshmen and a sophomore, all in the World Series for the first time. That hint of uncertainty is a bit of a theme. Like UCLA and no one else in the field, Oregon is unbeaten in the postseason. Three wins were by shutout. But the third-seeded Ducks also needed two seventh-inning rallies to avoid a more precarious path. Still, in a field of top-heavy lineups, the Ducks are the most balanced, one through nine in the order.

5. Washington: The Huskies were shut out by Stanford on May 6, an opponent otherwise allowing nearly nine runs per game in Pac-12 competition. That didn't sit well. The team with the second-best slugging percentage among World Series teams, Washington scored 83 runs in its next 10 games to get to Oklahoma City. The top five in the batting order are a nightmare to navigate, beginning with Team USA member Ali Aguilar. One concern, especially should the sixth-seeded Huskies fall into the losers bracket, is Taran Alvelo has thrown more innings than any pitcher in the field.

6. LSU: It may be that opening opponent UCLA is the lucky one. It doesn't have to play LSU when the Tigers are on the brink of elimination. While the 13th-seeded Tigers would prefer to stay on the winners' side of the bracket in Oklahoma City, five wins this season in NCAA tournament elimination games and nine in the past two seasons sum up this group's identity. Not unlike Florida, an inconsistent offense sometimes digs holes, but the pitching of Carley Hoover and Allie Walljasper makes them so very tough to bury.

7. Baylor: The Big 12 team went through James Madison's Megan Good and Arizona's Danielle O'Toole to get here, two pitchers who were among the final 10 candidates for USA Softball Player of the Year. And they got to O'Toole on Arizona's turf in Tucson. That is about all the résumé needed to prove the No. 15 seed belongs in Oklahoma City. Baylor has historically had speed but little power. This team can run, but Shelby Friudenberg and Shelby McGlaun give it the power that proved decisive in wins against both James Madison and Arizona.

8. Texas A&M: It was difficult to know what to make of the ninth-seeded Aggies, who didn't play Alabama, Auburn, Florida or LSU in the SEC and dropped series against Kentucky and Tennessee, two of the league's other super regional participants. (They swept the third, Ole Miss). The answer provided in the postseason is a balanced team that eased through a regional and held its nerve after losing the super regional opener on the road at Tennessee. The World Series has a way of exposing weak links as much as highlighting strengths. Texas A&M doesn't have many glaring weaknesses.