Two people walked by the National Softball Hall of Fame two hours before Texas and Oklahoma played in Oklahoma City.
Judkins, an Oklahoma State fan, wore a homemade shirt that she made by cutting two shirts in half and sewing them together to have an Oklahoma Sooners logo on the front and an Oklahoma State Cowboys logo on the back. She likes both teams and doesn't see why she shouldn't. She said that the Sooners are too good to dislike because of the attention they get.
The lifers are proud of their work. They have had season tickets for a long time. They say it has never been as exciting.
We had tickets behind home plate. The only thing there was was the Pacific 10 schools. You might get Michigan or Wisconsin occasionally. It was mostly Arizona State and Arizona. Back then, we were coming.
The Cowgirls are here as well as the Sooners, who are in the midst of a historic run.
She said it was the best feeling in the world. We were talking on the way over here. My team is in the game and we are getting to watch it. It's wonderful.
Since 1990, the Women's College World Series has been held in Oklahoma City, and the Pac-12 won 19 titles in that time. The power has shifted to the South in the last 10 years. Oklahoma has claimed four of the last eight titles and is a favorite to do it again this year behind the brilliant dominance of Jocelyn Alo.
The sport is in high demand. The first day of the tournament averaged 901,000 viewers, coming on the heels of the Texas-Arkansas super regional, which drew over one million fans. Saturday and Sunday's games were broadcast on ABC, which Oklahoma coach Patty Gasso described as a "WOW" moment for her.
The attendance record for a single day was set in Oklahoma City. They are locals and long time supporters. Young girls in town for softball tournaments are roaming the stadium in their jerseys in order to get a good look at their heroes.
Eric drove his daughter from Texas to Oklahoma City so she could play softball for the first time. She scored a run when she leaped to catch a foul ball from Alo in front of her seat in the right-field line.
I'm going to keep it in my room if it's signed by me. I was hoping for something like this.
The Clarks traveled close to four hours from Kansas to take in the action. The two stood out with their shirts on. They don't have an affiliation with either team, but they both love the exciting Sooners and the OSU pitcher who is known for her calm demeanor.
"We've been watching all season, we've been watching all season, we've been watching all season, we've been watching all season, we've been watching all season, we've been watching all season, we've been watching all season, we We enjoy softball. It's one of our family's favorite sports. My husband loves watching it when we're not playing softball or running around to another sporting event.
After purchasing tickets on a whim, they were very excited to see their two adopted teams. Being there was the most exciting thing.
"They're superstars to her as much as any athlete is." She is pretty impressed with all of them.
Evie said she got a high-five from the catcher.
This will be the last one-day trip for the World Championship of Women's Softball. She has four kids between 2 and 11 years old and can't wait to bring the rest of the crew back.
She said she thought it was amazing. I want to bring my other kids and my husband with me next year. We've watched it before on TV, but it's bigger than we thought.
Arkansas had two people come from there. The Razorbacks were supposed to be here as well, but a Texas upset in the super regionals made that impossible. They wore t-shirts made by a friend with a Razorbacks logo on the front. A native of SEC country gave her high praise after she made her first trip to the World Championship Series.
"I have never really gotten into softball until this year." This is a big time game. It's really great.
After the Longhorns' loss to Oklahoma, White acknowledged the buzz in the stadium.
White said that people want to return to watch women's fastpitch. You will see the game on when you walk past a restaurant. The people are invested in this game. They really like it.
The day before the event started, the Arizona coach who was a four-time All-American and won the WCWS as a player marveled at how it has continued to grow.
It's crazy because you can see it now with the triple deck. Every year it improves. The ratings improve every year. The competition continues to improve. The sport is growing and it's cool. The tournament was embraced by Oklahoma City and the state of Oklahoma.
The rivalry between neighbor and neighbor is the kind of rivalry fans can respect.
Last month in the Big 12 tournament, the Oklahoma dynasty was dealt a blow when the Cowgirls upset the Sooners and they lost to Texas in the conference title game.
More Oklahomans can embrace the tournament because of the Cowgirls' success. The food trucks were manned by an OSU fan. He has a 6-year-old son named Boone who is named after either a billionaire or a stadium. He has had dogs named Gundy, Pistol, and Bullet after Oklahoma State athletes.
The singular version of the Sooners' new football coach is calledBrent Venables.
Josalyn has been playing softball for a long time. Venable was invited to bring his trucks to the event this year, and he didn't know what to think.
It's been a learning experience for her. She's on the fence because we run cattle and she wants to go somewhere else. It makes me wish I'd brought them before now.
It has been an added bonus to be able to see the players warm up before the crowd.
He said that being a carnie kid gave him some perks. It's cool to look around and take in the moment when you're here.
Both the Sooners and Cowboys have won their first two games. It would be bedlam for a national championship.
Problems have been caused by it. They are a good problem to have.
The Oklahoma State coach was happy for his fans. I am happy for our alumni and our team. It's really crazy. All of them are cheering. Trying to take care of everyone, we have a lot of tickets. We are trying to buy them. The prices are ridiculous. It's wonderful, but it's ridiculous. Everyone should be a part of this.
At a tailgate for Oklahoma players' families, Brandon Brito, father of Oklahoma's Alyssa Brito, who grew up in California and played at Oregon before transferring to Oklahoma, looked around and was impressed by the crowd.
He said that they are part of a family trying to grow a female sport and show the world what it's really like. There is a lot of support. It's hard to describe.
Gayla Carnagey said, "It's exciting and it gives every little girl here in Oklahoma hope"
It's not just in Oklahoma.
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Baptist said it's a big deal because we share the same culture and ethnicity. It's cool to see someone from a small state playing in a big game.
While the Sooners have conquered America, the Cowgirls are still giving hope to the locals, like Venable.
He experiences the rivalry daily, mostly by living his everyday life and showing up for appointments, only to see disappointed faces when they realize he's the wrong person. With business booming and rowdy crowds every day, he's excited to be a part of a historic WCWS.
Venable said that his in-laws are die-hard Sooner fans and he's a die-hard Cowboy fan. It is an in-house deal all the time. It has been a lot of fun. It's a good place to be. Both Oklahoma teams should be in the finals.
I'm definitely going to be cheering for OSU.
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