ASU Softball returns to Oklahoma City amongst a deep College World Series field

For the tenth time in school history, the Arizona State Sun Devil softball team has returned to Oklahoma City for the Women’s College World Series.

The defending national champions are among a field that consists of two other Pac-12 schools (Oregon and California), three SEC schools (Alabama, LSU and Tennessee), Oklahoma from the Big-12 and South Florida of the Big East.

“It’s going to be a great show,” mentioned ASU head coach Clint Myers from Oklahoma City on Wednesday. “It’s going to be great competition and all of us are excited to be here.”

While it is a field that consists of many of the countries top softball programs, those in Oklahoma City could not help but notice the absence of both UCLA and Arizona who seem to have second homes in Oklahoma City this time of year. Clint Myers explained that it just shows the parity of the sport today.

“The toughest part is getting here,” explained Myers, who has the record of 375-88 in his tenure to this point at as ASU head coach. “The regionals are getting a lot more quality teams. The super regionals, they speak for themselves and eight teams that are just fortunate to get here.”

The third seeded Sun Devils first matchup will be on Thursday at 6:30 pm where they will face in-conference foe, the eleventh seeded Oregon Ducks who are making their first appearance in the Women’s College World Series since 1989 and their second appearance overall. The two teams met twice this season in Eugene, Oregon, where both teams won one game.

Playing in-conference teams in Oklahoma City has not been a strong suit for ASU in the past. They are a combined 2-7 when facing another Pac-12 opponent in the College World Series.

On ASU and Oregon’s side of the bracket are SEC rivals, the two seeded Alabama Crimson Tide and the seven seeded Tennessee Volunteers. The Women’s College World Series format is double-elimination until the championship matchup where it is a best of three series.

Coverage of ASU’s quest to repeat as National Champions will be on ESPN 2 and online on ESPN 3 for the duration of the tournament.

For more Arizona State athletics, follow Jared Cohen on Twitter at @JaredPros2Preps.