Stanford beats Oklahoma State, stays alive in Women’s College World Series

OKLAHOMA CITY — Facing elimination, Stanford turned to the nation’s premier pitcher to extend its stay at the Women’s College World Series on Friday night.

This time, NiJaree Canady got plenty of runs to work with.

Ava Gall and Kaitlyn Lim homered off Oklahoma State ace Lexi Kilfoyl and the Cardinal — shut out the night before — rebounded to win 8-0 in six innings.

Canady, pitching on less than 24 hours rest, limited the Cowgirls to three hits and struck out seven in a win-or-go-home game for both teams.

Stanford (49-16) will play Sunday against the winner of Saturday’s game between Oklahoma and UCLA.

“Just really proud of the team today,” said Stanford coach Jessica Allister. “Really, really proud of the way we came back. Not surprised. We’ve been resilient all year. We’ve been really resilient in the postseason. We’ve played really well in elimination games. We’ve pushed back.

“Happy to get to stay in Oklahoma City for a couple more days.”

The eight runs were the most scored by a Stanford team in a world series game since 2004.

“I think today we were more aggressive, we were more assertive,” Allister continued. “We played Stanford softball. Yesterday we just felt like we were almost paralyzed just a little bit. I don’t know where that comes from.

“Today just felt more comfortable, more competitive. We were a completely different ballclub. But I think it’s in our approach.”

Canady pitched a complete game the night before in a 4-0 loss to No. 1 seed Texas, but struggled with her control, walking four and throwing a wild pitch.

Friday night she didn’t walk a batter until the fifth inning. Canady also got help from Cardinal center fielder Emily Jones, who took away a home run from the Cowgirls’ Micaela Wark with a leaping catch at the wall.

Canady threw a pitch off her knee in the sixth inning and received treatment after the game. She did not attend the post-game press conference.

“NiJaree motivates me so much. She’s an amazing player,” said infielder Jade Berry, who knocked in two runs. “I think she’s the greatest of all time. She’s just a stud. Playing behind her is so fun. She motivates us because she’s so good.

“Seeing her lead our team in the circle, it’s amazing. … I think we feed off of that for our at-bats. We want to do good for each other and for her.”