Alabama softball has been dominant thus far in the NCAA Tournament, outscoring its opponents 31-1 in the Regional and Super Regional rounds to clinch a 16th appearance in the Women's College World Series.
The Crimson Tide rolled through their Regional, earning dominant wins over USC Upstate (x2) and Belmont, before sweeping SEC rival LSU in the Supers by a combined score of 11-1.
But the road will get much, much tougher in Oklahoma City as Patrick Murphy looks to guide Alabama to the program's second national championship.
Despite some upsets in the Supers that landed Mississippi State and Texas Tech in the Women's College World Series, there's no re-seeding in the tournament. So instead of facing the lowest remaining seed (Miss. State), the No. 1 overall seed Crimson Tide will instead face No. 8 UCLA, which is red-hot and featuring one of the most feared lineups in softball.
Alabama opens the WCWS against national title favorite UCLA
UCLA is playing so well that despite entering the tournament as the No. 8 overall seed, the Bruins are now the national title favorite, according to DraftKings. Aided by Oklahoma's stunning loss in the Supers, UCLA is +360 to win the national championship. They are the only team ahead of Alabama (+370) in championship odds right now.
(Note: odds were pulled at 1 pm ET and are liable to change at any time)
Softball national title odds, according to DraftKings:
UCLA: +360
Alabama: +370
Nebraska: +450
Texas Tech: +500
Texas: +500
Tennessee: +800
Arkansas: +850
Mississippi State: +2500
Alabama has elite pitching led by Jocelyn Briski and freshman sensation Vic Moten, but UCLA's lineup will present the biggest challenge of their careers thus far. To put in perspective how powerful the Bruins have been at the dish, Alabama is No. 11 in the country in total home runs and has hit 103 fewer than UCLA this season.
UCLA has four players who have hit 20+ home runs this season: Megan Gant (40), Jordan Woolery (34), Bri Alejandre (24), and Aleena Garcia (21). Gant and Woolery, in particular, make opposing pitchers pay for every mistake.
Alabama's bats are going to have to be at their best on Thursday to keep up with UCLA. Even against Briski, the Bruins are going to put some runs on the board.
Brooke Wells struggled against LSU in the Supers, but she's going to have to figure things out and join some red-hot Tide bats like Alexis Pupillo, Jena Young, and Audrey Vandagriff, all of whom have been raking in the postseason.
Alabama will face UCLA on Thursday at 6 pm CT in OKC. The winner will put itself in a strong position to get to the championship series, advancing to play the winner of Nebraska/Arkansas. The loser will have to fight its way back from the loser's bracket, while likely being prepared to beat the winner two times to advance.
To be the best, you have to beat the best. Alabama just happens to potentially be opening the WCWS this year against the best.
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