Texas pitcher Teagan Kavan put on a performance worth remembering to lead the Longhorns over Stanford, advancing them straight to the winners’ bracket on Saturday.
In that 4-0 win over the Cardinal, Kavan even made a bit of history, becoming the first pitcher in program history to throw a complete game shutout in the Women’s College World Series. After the game, Kavan broke down her historic performance and explained why she was easily able to hold off the nerves in perhaps the biggest game of her career.
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“I think last week honestly helped a lot when I came into a big situation to come here,” Kavan said of having played postseason ball already in the Big 12 Tournament. “I think that calmed me. I knew I was prepared,” she added.
The bright lights were nothing new to her: “I’ve been in front of a big stage before. Just kind of staying locked in with Reese the whole time, calming my nerves, breathing, really focusing on my breath.”
What’s even more impressive is that Kavan went toe to toe vs. Stanford starter NiJaree Canady, the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year, and won.
“I just wanted to keep it keep them off the board and let my offense work,” Kavan said. “When you’re facing a great pitcher like that, that’s what you need to do. But, I just told myself to compete on every single pitch.”
Not only did she compete with Canady, Kavan flat-out won the matchup, which is why Texas avoided the elimination round on Friday. In seven innings, Kavan only allowed one hit and four walks while throwing eight strikeouts. And with the win, Kavan’s record improved to 19-2 on the season. Her ERA moved down, barely, to a mind-boggling 1.92.
Despite incredible numbers all year and her best performance to date when it mattered most, Kavan refused to take sole responsibility for her stunning performance on the mound.
“The crowd and everything just really helped me ease into this one,” Kavan said. “We just do it together and it works.”
The success is only Kavan’s latest accomplishment. Following the regular season, Kavan was named the Big 12 Freshman of the Year. Plus, Teagan Kavan had plenty of time to soak in her victory with the day off. Now, Texas will get back into action on Saturday when they face off against Florida, who took down Oklahoma State in the elimination game Friday.
The post Teagan Kavan explains what led to strong Game 1 showing appeared first on On3.
