Texas softball uses 'attack mindset' to thump UCF, advances to super regional

AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Texas hit parade kept marching in the NCAA Austin regional Sunday at McCombs Field, this time past Central Florida 9-0, sending the Longhorns to their fifth consecutive super regional.

Texas, the No. 6 overall seed in the NCAA tournament, will face No. 11 Clemson in the best-of-3 super regional in Austin next weekend. Game times have yet to be announced.

The Longhorns smacked 43 hits over three games in the regional, including 14 against the Knights. Texas clubbed three homers Sunday, two from junior catcher Reese Atwood, smashing 2-run homers over the left field wall in the fifth and seventh innings. Her second long ball was part of a 5-run seventh inning to punctuate the regional title victory.

Second baseman Leighann Goode drove a 2-run homer over the center field wall in the second inning to get the Longhorns on the board.

For the regional, Texas hit nine homers and scored 35 runs, winning two games via run rule: 10-2 over Eastern Illinois and 16-4 over Michigan. After losing in the Southeastern Conference tournament semifinals 14-2 to Texas A&M, Atwood said this was exactly the jolt her team needed.

"It was a confidence boost," she said. "Everyone, 1-9, all of our pinch hitters ... everyone did their jobs this weekend and that's going to prepare us and make us more ready for what's ahead."

Texas pitcher Teagan Kavan scattered six hits with five strikeouts in a complete game, facing 28 batters with only one walk. She pitched 3.1 innings against Michigan on Saturday and was pleased with how the rest of the pitching staff performed throughout the tournament.

"It was good to see them be big and step up in big moments. It's going to take all of us," she said. "We're stronger together, and if it's good for me, then it's good for the whole team."

Kavan earned two of the pitching wins in the regional with freshman Cam Salmon picking up the victory in Friday's opener against Eastern Illinois.

Mia Scott led the Texas offense with three hits, collecting her 300th career hit and a program-record 56th double. When asked about it, Longhorns head coach Mike White showed a small smile when talking about his star utility player.

"She's a gamer," he said. "She's pretty banged up, to tell you the truth, but I won't go into those details. She comes out and performs to the best of her ability."

Atwood, Katie Stewart and Ashton Maloney each had two, and Atwood drove in four runs.

One more win will give the Longhorns their fifth 50-win season in program history and second in a row. White said the team hit a little bit of a low point coming out of the SEC tournament, but regrouped.

"It was more about what was going on between our ears than anything," he said. "We came out with an attack mindset, and we got some production from the bottom half of the lineup."