‘We’re not scared of OU’: Wichita State softball team reacts to Norman NCAA Regional
The Wichita State softball team learned its payoff for the best season in program history: a trip to the Norman Regional to face the overall No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, the Oklahoma Sooners.
For a team that entered with a top-25 national ranking, a No. 24 RPI and both championships from the American Athletic Conference, the Shockers received their desired No. 2 seed — the highest in program history — but expected a better regional placement from the NCAA selection committee. Instead, they were given perhaps the least-ideal No. 2 seed in the bracket.
“Would we have loved to have gone to a different regional other than the number one overall seed? Yeah, I think everybody would agree with that,” WSU coach Kristi Bredbenner said. “But at the same time, we have a chance to do something that hasn’t been done before. There have been teams that have done it before. You just have to go out there and believe in it and give it your best. We’ve got a tough road, but it will be fun.”
The Shockers (39-11-1) will play their first game of the double-elimination tournament against No. 3 seed Texas A&M (31-1), the 10th-place team from the powerhouse SEC, at Hynes Field in Norman at 5 p.m. Friday with the game broadcast on ESPN2. Meanwhile, the top-ranked Sooners (45-2) will play No. 4 seed Morgan State (23-15) in the nightcap.
To advance to the program’s first Super Regional, it’s all but guaranteed the Shockers will have to defeat Oklahoma at least once and most likely twice. The complete weekend schedule is expected to be released early this week.
“We’re not scared of OU,” WSU senior Madison Perrigan said. “Everyone might think, ‘Oh, Wichita State doesn’t want to go to the number one seed.’ Were we expecting it? No. Are we scared? No. We’re ready for it.”
Before the selection show, WSU hoped it would be assigned to the Stillwater region where it would battle with No. 5 Oklahoma State, a team it has beaten two out of three times this season. Not only did WSU feel like its resume deserved a favorable No. 2 seed, but it could also bus to Stillwater — a cost-saving move that the NCAA is usually always looking for in postseason play.
Instead, the Shockers (RPI of 24) were frustrated to see Mississippi State (RPI of 29) receive the No. 2 seed in the Stillwater regional, while WSU, with a higher national ranking and RPI, was shipped to the Norman regional.
“It’s just funny that all three schools (Mississippi State, Boston, Campbell) that are playing (in Stillwater) are probably flying, yet you’re going to have Wichita State bus to the number one seed with a higher RPI,” Bredbenner said. “It is what it is. We’re not men’s basketball. We’re not women’s basketball. We’re a sport that doesn’t get a ton of respect when it comes to the monetary side of things. They’re not going to spend a lot of money for softball programs to get to places.
“At the same time, it’s a growing sport and hopefully in the future that will change and it will be a more fair situation when you get a number one seed, then it’s the 32 team that is going there vs. the (24 team). You can love it or you can hate it, but it’s the NCAA. There’s no rhyme or reason to a lot of things, but the bottom line is we’re in and we’ve got a chance and our kids are going to embrace it and have some fun.”
While the initial reaction may have been disappointment or frustration on WSU’s part, the attitude quickly shifted after Bredbenner gave a passionate speech to her team after the selection.
The focus for WSU is on Texas A&M to start, but the Shockers know they will have to take down an OU team that just run-ruled them 14-3 at Wilkins Stadium two weeks ago. And they view that as an opportunity.
“If we’re going to beat anybody, OU is the team to beat,” Perrigan said. “Let’s go out with a bang and show everyone that you can send Wichita State to the number one seed, but we’re still going to give everything we have. If we beat the number one team in the nation, we’ll be the most talked about team out there and everybody will know just how good this team is.”
This story was originally published May 16, 2021 at 8:31 PM.
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