The 2021 Women’s College World Series field is set to determine the NCAA Division I softball champions, and the eight-team field in the finals includes several canine schools.
The teams taking part advanced through Regionals and then Super Regionals to reach this point in a double-elimination bracket format.
These teams include the Oklahoma Sooners and the Oklahoma State Cowgirls from the Big 12 Conference, the James Madison Dukes from the Colonial Athletic Association, the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Georgia Bulldogs from the Southeastern Conference, the Florida State Seminoles from the Atlantic Coast Conference, and the Arizona Wildcats and the UCLA Bruins from the Pac-12 Conference.
Georgia and Oklahoma State are both schools with vet med programs, while Arizona represents the feline mascots out there.
The 2021 Women’s College World Series features canine schools going to Oklahoma City.
Oklahoma will be the favorites, appearing in their 14th Women’s College World Series, finishing the regular season as the No. 1 team in the nation with a 45-2 record. They defeated the Washington Huskies in their Super Regional final.
Oklahoma State finished the regular season at No. 7 in the coaches poll, with a 42-9 record.
James Madison finished the regular season at No. 22 with a 34-1 record; their sports teams are named after the second school president, Samuel Duke, not the royal title, which explains why the women’s teams aren’t called the Duchesses. They do, however, have both a live animal dog mascot and a traditional cartoony mascot, both of which are Bulldogs. JMU also topped the mighty Missouri Tigers (both feline representation and vet school representation there) in their Super Regional, and the campus features several solid a cappella groups, according to the Mickey Rapkin book Pitch Perfect (which the movies were based on).
Georgia wasn’t even supposed to be part of the WCWS field, as they snuck out of nowhere to defeat Holland the Pup‘s Florida Gators in their Super Regional final.
Similarly, Arizona’s bats started clicking once playoff time approached, as they defeated mighty Arkansas in their Super Regional final.
UCLA is another traditional powerhouse on the softball diamond, as they finished out the regular season at No. 2 with a record of 42-4 on the season.
Alabama clocked in at No. 3 in the coaches poll, posting 45 wins against just seven losses.
Florida State finished the regular season at No. 8 with a 39-10-1 record; we’re not quite sure how softball could end in a tie, since games are not always stopped by rain. There’s probably a good story there.
The first round of the 2021 Women’s College World Series takes place on Thursday, June 3 on ESPN at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City, as JMU takes on Oklahoma at noon ET, Georgia and Oklahoma State battle at 2:30 p.m. ET, Arizona and Alabama clash at 7 p.m. ET and Florida State faces UCLA at 9:30 p.m. ET.
The finals of the Women’s College World Series will be Monday, June 7 to Wednesday, June 9 (if necessary) at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN. Good luck to all the teams competing!