UW softball looks to avenge last season’s early exit in NCAA regionals
The past doesn’t matter anymore.
That’s what Heather Tarr is telling her team. Because, this time a year ago, Washington lost in the regional round of the NCAA softball tournament for the first time since 2015. After being anointed the No. 13 overall seed, UW fell at home to the upstart Texas Longhorns — who later finished as the national runner-up.
UW’s quartet of fifth-year senior leaders — infielders Baylee Klingler and SilentRain Espinoza and outfielders Sami Reynolds and Madison Huskey — surely remember that abrupt ending.
But when seventh-seeded Washington (38-12, 16-8 Pac-12) hosts its seventh consecutive regional this weekend, the past won’t come into play.
“I think this group is savvy enough to know there’s no excuse for not being able to come through on Sunday last year. Because we definitely had every opportunity to win and advance,” Tarr, UW’s 19th-year head coach, said Wednesday. “Sometimes it depends on how other teams are performing, and unfortunately we matched up with a team that was pretty red hot.
“I don’t know if you followed Texas’ finish, but they finished where that team probably should have, and unfortunately we caught the front end of it. So I think these guys are wise enough to know what we ran into. It’s not these guys’ story.”
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Indeed, Klingler, Espinoza, Reynolds, Huskey and Co have an opportunity to extend their story — starting Friday, when Washington hosts Northern Colorado (26-21) at 6 p.m. A date with either Minnesota (37-17) or McNeese State (44-14) awaits the winner.
The Huskies do have some history with their guests, having decimated Northern Colorado 15-2 and 9-0 last season before falling 3-2 to McNeese State on Feb. 20.
But don’t forget the cardinal rule.
“We’re literally trying to learn to play Husky softball one pitch at a time. It doesn’t necessarily matter who it’s against,” Tarr said, disregarding resumes. “It matters how we play. So that’s really what we’re trying to center ourselves on. We know that games aren’t played on paper. They’re played in the head and in the heart and on the field.”
On the field, UW offers an intriguing combination of experience and youth. Fifth-year seniors Klingler (.406 average, 11 homers, 44 RBI), Reynolds (.369, 8, 31), Espinoza (.313, 2, 25) and Huskey (.312, 11, 41) lead the way offensively. But though seniors Kelley Lynch and Brooke Nelson and junior Lindsay Lopez are all capable arms, the pitching pressure will fall on true freshman Ruby Meylan — who compiled a team-best 16-5 record, 2.11 ERA and 178 strikeouts in 39 appearances, 20 starts and 152.1 innings.
How will the Omaha, Nebraska, native fare in her regional debut?
We’ll all find out this weekend.
“It’s not on any one person,” Tarr said. “When we’re vibing together, and this group has it going in the right direction, it’s 17 on one. It’s nine on one. It’s not one person that’s going to carry the load.
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“From a pitching standpoint, we’ve got four arms that can go into any one of these games and carry the load. But for the freshmen specifically, yeah, they’ve never been here before. But it’s not a different game. The bases are still 60 feet. You still have to turn left, and you’ve just got to play this thing one pitch at a time and not make it bigger than it is.”
From here on out, each game gets a little bigger. But Espinoza acknowledged that “the innocence of our younger players is great. It can be a blessing or curse, but I think it’s great because they’re hungry. They’ve never been a part of a postseason. Just to have that energy around us is really good for people that have been here for four or five years and know how hard it can be. But also, we’re glad to be here in this position.”
It won’t be easy for Washington to return to the Women’s College World Series for the first time since 2019. But come Friday, throw out the record books.
The past can’t pitch and hit.
“Nothing that’s happened before matters now,” Espinoza reiterated. “It is a new season. So we’re just continuing to grow together, learn about each other, play together … and win and advance.”
Former UW WR Davis chooses Cal
Taj Davis will return to Husky Stadium on Sept. 23.
Though the view won’t be the same from the visitors sideline.
Davis — a 6-foot-2, 200-pound junior wide receiver from Upland, Calif. — announced a transfer to Cal on social media Wednesday night.
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In three seasons and 24 career games, Davis — who opted out of the 2020 campaign — produced 47 catches, 606 receiving yards and four touchdowns. That included 21 catches, 277 yards and three scores as a reserve last fall.
Most notably, Davis hauled in a game-tying 62-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter of UW’s 37-34 win at rival Oregon on Nov. 12.
But at UW, the path to playing time was precarious at best — with Rome Odunze, Jalen McMillan and Ja’Lynn Polk returning as established starters, and senior Giles Jackson, sophomore Michigan State transfer Germie Bernard and redshirt freshman Denzel Boston all enjoying standout springs. Freshmen Rashid Williams, Taeshaun Lyons and Keith Reynolds will also arrive this summer.
Still, Davis’ catch-and-run against Oregon will continue to live in UW lore.
That’s more than most can say.
Extra point
Source: The Seattle Times
