OKLAHOMA CITY — Teagan Kavan threw yet another complete game at the Women’s College World Series and Katie Stewart added to her record-setting amount of home runs as Texas softball rallied for a 3-1 win over Nebraska Sunday at Devon Park.
While Nebraska (52-8) had its hopes of a first national championship end, the Longhorns (49-12) keep their dreams of a second consecutive championship alive. But they’ll need to beat Tennessee twice Monday in order to advance to the best-of-three championship series later in the week.
For much of the game, the Longhorns didn’t have answer for Nebraska two-way star Jordy Frahm, the national player of the year. Frahm led off the game with a solo home run off Kavan and then kept the Texas bats at bay until late in the game. Reece Atwood, the Longhorns’ All-American catcher, broke up Frahm’s bid for a perfect game in the fifth inning, and freshman third baseman Jaycie Nichols picked up the first Texas hit with an infield single in the sixth.
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But Nichols’ hit seemed to open a crack in Frahm’s dominance. Kayden Henry followed with a single into right field, and Stewart then launched her single-season school-record 28th home run of the season into the left-field bleachers to give Texas a 3-1 lead.
Those runs proved more than enough for Kavan, who gave up just four hits while earning her eighth career complete-game win in a WCWS game.
Read below for a replay and highlights from Sunday as the Texas Longhorns beat the Nebraska Cornhuskers in the Women’s College World Series.
MORE: ‘Glad she’s a Longhorn’: Kaiah Altmeyer makes surprise WCWS impact for Texas softball
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Texas pitcher Teagan Kavan, center, gathers with her infield during the Longhorns’ game against Tennessee Thursday at Devon Park in Oklahoma City in the Women’s College World Series.
Photo courtesy of University of Texas
Texas ace Teagan Kavan outduels Nebraska’s Jordy Frahm to lift the Longhorns into a Monday meeting with Tennessee. Kavan gives up just four hits in yet another complete-game win.
Katie Stewart smashes a three-run shot, and the Longhorns have finally gotten to Nebraska ace Jordy Frahm. 3B Jaycie Nichols battles hard and gets the first Longhorn hit, and Kayden Henry follows with a single into right before Stewart’s 28th homer of the season, a single-season school record. Texas will keep Teagan Kavan in the game to secure three more outs and a spot in the semis against Tennessee.
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Texas 2B Leighann Goode robs Nebraska of two singles with back-to-back diving snags. Goode has developed into one of the best two-way second basemen in the nation, and she showed why on those two plays. Now, Texas could use Goode’s bat – or anyone’s bat against Husker starter Jordy Frahm.
Texas catcher Reese Atwood breaks up the perfect game by Nebraska’s Jordy Frahm with a one-out walk, but the Husker still has a no-hitter working after Texas can’t move pinch runner Adayah Wallace past first.
Jordy Frahm comes up with two on and two out, but Texas starter Teagan Kavan gets her to ground out to short. Big moment, that. Some good glove work from 2B Leighann Goode and 3B Jaycie Nichols helps Kavan get through another scoreless inning even though Bella Bacon and Lauren Camenzind slap two-out singles to bring up Frahm.
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Texas went 0-for-9 through its order for the first time this season, and it doesn’t seem like they’ve learned much against Nebraska pitcher Jordy Frahm. The top of the order again goes down in order, and the Longhorns are looking for their first base-runner.
Hannah Coor, a former Sooner, gets the second hit of the game with a double to the wall, but Texas starter Teagan Kavan doesn’t let another ball out of the infield. Coor crosses home on a grounder by Jesse Farrell that deflects off the glove of Kavan, but replay confirms that 2B Leighann Goode gets her at first. That was thisclose to the Huskers’ second run.
Jaycie Nichols almost legs out the first hit of the game for Texas, but the Huskers have a pretty salty defense. SS Ava Kuszak makes a nice play to get her at first.
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This time, Texas pitcher Teagan Kavan gets the best of Jordy Frahm, who grounds out to third for the third out. Frahm’s solo homer in the first remains the game’s only hit.
Nebraska pitcher Jordy Frahm is perfect through two innings with three strikeouts and 21 total pitches.
One thing about Texas starter Teagan Kavan: She keeps her poise. After the leadoff homer in the first, Kavan has retired six straight batters.
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Jordy Frahm needs just nine pitches to send down the top of the Texas order. Vivi Martinez only struck out seven times all season entering the WCWS but has now fanned in each of the past two games.
Jordy Frahm blasts a leadoff homer into the centerfield stands for her first dinger since May 3 and her 20th of the season. The best player in the nation gives Nebraska an early lead against Texas ace Teagan Kavan.
Texas is the designated home team, which means Nebraska hits first. Teagan Kavan throws a strike to Jordy Frahm in a matchup between two All-Americans, and we’re off at the WCWS.
Nebraska will turn to Jordy Frahm, the 2026 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year and NFCA Player of the Year. She boasts a 21-5 with a 1.30 ERA and 12 saves, which ties the Big Ten single-season record and ranks sixth in NCAA history. She’s also tossed eight shutouts and has struck out 246 batters and only walked 32. But in two games and 12 innings at the WCWS, Frahm has just a 3.50 ERA and a 1.417 WHIP.
By the way, Frahm also hits leadoff and leads the Nebraska offense with a .404 batting average, 19 home runs, 50 RBIs and 59 runs scored. She has a slugging percentage of .798 and an on-base percentage of .498.
Texas coach Mike White will counter with ace Teagan Kavan, last season’s Most Outstanding Player of the WCWS. She brings a 26-6 record, a 2.45 ERA, a 1.11 WHIP and 235 strikeouts with 57 walks in 205⅓ innings.
SpotPos# PlayerBatsTodayAvg1cf21 Kayden HenryL0-0.41221b20 Katie StewartR0-0.4253ss23 Viviana MartinezL0-0.38142b43 Leighann GoodeR0-0.3465c14 Reese AtwoodR0-0.3316lf44 Kaiah AltmeyerL0-0.2927dp13 Hannah WellsR0-0.2848rf7 Ashton MaloneyL0-0.30393b24 Jaycie NicholsR0-0.32810p17 Teagan KavanR0-0-SpotPos# PlayerBatsTodayAvg1p98 Jordy FrahmR0-0.4042cf23 Hannah CoorR0-0.3263dp9 Hannah CamenzindL0-0.3834ss7 Ava KuszakR0-0.3045c25 Jesse FarrellR0-0.3026rf14 Kacie HoffmannL0-0.34773b29 Samantha BlandR0-0.30881b3 Bella BaconR0-0.30292b2 Lauren CamenzindR0-0.26910lf27 Natalia HillR0-0.000
Where: Devon Park, Oklahoma City
TV/radio: ABC; texaslonghorns.com
Reach Texas beat reporter Thomas Jones via email at tjones@statesman.com.