OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Finally, Texas has broken through.
Mia Scott hit a grand slam, Teagan Kavan won again and Texas defeated Texas Tech 10-4 in Game 3 of the Women’s College World Series championship series on Friday night to claim its first national title.
Texas had lost to Oklahoma in the championship series two of the previous three years. Oklahoma was one of the teams Texas beat on its way to the championship. And Texas coach Mike White finally won in his ninth World Series trip between his coaching stints at Oregon and Texas.
“I’m still trying to process the whole thing,” White said. “Actually, it’s something you dream about.”
Kavan, a sophomore, allowed no earned runs in all 31 2/3 innings she pitched at the World Series. She went 4-0 with a save in the World Series for the Longhorns and was named Most Outstanding Player.
She was happy to win it for White in the Longhorns' first year playing in the Southeastern Conference.
“Without coach White, I don’t know if we’re here,” she said. “He’s the best. He’s so competitive. He wants it just as bad as we do, of course. And he pushes us to be better every day. He makes me a better pitcher mentally and physically. And so there’s no one else I’d rather play for. He’s the bomb, and I’m glad we got it done for him.”
Leighann Goode hit a 3-run homer, Kayden Henry had three hits and Scott, Reese Atwood and Katie Stewart each had two hits for Texas (56-12).
Texas Tech star pitcher NiJaree Canady, who had thrown every pitch for the Red Raiders through their first five World Series games, was pulled after one inning in Game 3. The two-time National Fastpitch Coaches Association Pitcher of the Year gave up five runs on five hits and only threw 25 pitches. The loss came after she signed an NIL deal worth more than $1 million for the second straight year.
Not even support from former Texas Tech football star Patrick Mahomes and his wife, Brittany, who were in attendance, could put the Red Raiders (54-14) over the top.
Canady’s night started like many of her others, as she struck out the first batter she faced. After that, she didn’t resemble the pitcher entered the game leading the nation in wins and ERA. Goode's homer in the first put the Longhorns up 5-0.
Texas Tech coach Gerry Glasco said he was pleased with Canady's effort throughout the season, but he pushed her a bit too far.
“If I had a game in two days, that’s who I want beside me to go to war with," he said. "She’s an unbelievable talent.”
Scott’s blast came in the fourth inning and gave Texas a 10-0 lead.
Hailey Toney was a bright spot for the Red Raiders. She singled to knock in two runs in the fifth, then singled to knock in another run in the seventh.
It was a surprise run for the Red Raiders. Glasco left Louisiana to coach at Texas Tech this season. The team only had three returning players and had to mix a group of newcomers together.
They won the Big 12 regular season and tournament titles and reached the World Series for the first time.
“To end up in this position, playing for the national title, making it go all the way to three games -- just a historic season, and I’m really proud of my team and the effort that they give us from top to bottom,” Glasco said.
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Texas' Adayah Wallace, front, and Kayden Henry, back, celebrate after winning the Women's College World Series softball championship against Texas Tech in Oklahoma City, Friday, June 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Kyle Phillips)
Texas' Shylien Brister, left, and Vanessa Quiroga celebrate after winning the Women's College World Series softball championship against Texas Tech in Oklahoma City, Friday, June 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Kyle Phillips)
RABAT, Morocco (AP) — Morocco coach Walid Regragui has angrily rejected suggestions his team is benefiting from favorable refereeing decisions as the Africa Cup of Nations host.
“We’re the team to beat. As the team to beat, people will try to find all sorts of reasons to say Morocco has an advantage,” Regragui said after his team’s 2-0 win over Cameroon in the quarterfinals Friday. “The only advantage that Morocco has at this Africa Cup is playing in front of 65,000 spectators. The rest is on the field, we speak on the field.”
On the field, however, Cameroon might have had two penalties if experienced referee Dahane Beida hadn’t decided in favor of the home team.
Morocco defender Adam Masina was involved in both, appearing to catch Bryan Mbuemo’s right boot after missing the ball when Cameroon was trying to level the match, then in the final minutes appearing to strike Etta Eyong’s head with his elbow in the penalty area.
Beida, who refereed the final at the last edition, also decided not to show Bilal El Khannouss a second yellow card for stopping Danny Namaso on a counterattack shortly before Ismael Saibari wrapped up the win.
“Many people want to believe or make others believe that we have advantages from the referees. Personally, I saw penalties that could have been awarded to us. As for the referees, I never talk about the referee,” Regragui said.
The Morocco coach then spoke about a penalty his team was not awarded against South Africa in the previous tournament in Ivory Coast, and wrongly said he was “suspended for no reason” at that tournament.
Regragui was suspended for two games at the previous edition for his role in a dispute with Congo captain Chancel Mbemba at the end of their game that led to a melee between players and team officials.
“The statistics always show us as better than the others,” Regragui said, getting back to this edition. “We create far more opportunities than our opponents. Not a single goal was disallowed for Cameroon, or for any other team. When you want to get rid of something, you find a pretext.”
Mali and Tanzania also had penalty claims against Morocco rejected in previous games, while Morocco also had a penalty awarded after a VAR check in the draw against Mali.
Thousands of whistling Moroccan fans tried to help referee Abdou Abdel Mefire make up his mind while he consulted replays before he eventually decided to penalize Mali's Nathan Gassama for handball. He initially ignored Jawad El Yamiq’s penalty-area foul on Mali’s Lassine Sinayoko before awarding it some minutes later after a VAR check.
There did not appear to be any VAR checks against Cameroon on Friday.
Morocco has played all its matches at the near 70,000-capacity Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat, where the vast majority of supporters are shouting for the home team, creating an intimidating atmosphere for opponents and referees.
“Today, Cameroon played the match they needed to play. I think they lost against a better team. I don’t think any player, coach, or anyone else is going to talk about the refereeing because there were a lot of physical battles today. This is Africa. But today I think we deserved our victory,” said Regragui, who added his team also deserved to win all its previous games.
“That’s it. We’re trying to play on that field. I don’t think it’s fair play from those who want to see us fall. The best team will win this tournament, inshallah,” he said.
Morocco will play either Nigeria or Algeria in the semifinals on Wednesday. The final will also take place at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium on Jan. 18.
AP at the Africa Cup: https://apnews.com/hub/africa-cup-of-nations
Morocco's Achraf Hakimi listens to head coach Walid Regragui during the Africa Cup of Nations round of 16 soccer match between Morocco and Tanzania in Rabat, Morocco, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)
Morocco's head coach Walid Regragui observes during the Africa Cup of Nations quarterfinal soccer match between Cameroon and Morocco, in Rabat, Morocco, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)
Morocco's head coach Walid Regragui talks to Morocco's Brahim Abdelkader Díaz during the Africa Cup of Nations quarterfinal soccer match between Cameroon and Morocco, in Rabat, Morocco, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)
