Florida State softball embarks for Oklahoma City eyeing 2nd national championship
Wheels were up at Tallahassee International Airport Tuesday afternoon.
The Florida State softball team gathered and departed from Million Air Tallahassee on its journey to Oklahoma City for the 2023 Women's College World Series.
While it's a journey that many players made in 2021, the anticipation and excitement were building with the biggest prize in college softball on the line.
No. 3 FSU meets No. 6 Oklahoma State Thursday at 7 p.m. on ESPN.
"As a coaching staff, at the beginning of the year, you set out a master plan for how we want to improve as a team," FSU coach Lonni Alameda said. "Mentally, was the biggest thing we hit from the end of our last games against Mississippi State. Sitting here is surreal, but it's cool cause we're proud of the work we've put in."
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On the biggest stage in college softball
While the stakes are even higher going deeper into the NCAA Tournament, the environment is a different factor. OGE Energy Field at the USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium holds around 13,000 fans.
Last season, when Oklahoma defeated Texas in the national championship game, the attendance of 8,930 set a venue record. That figure alone is nearly triple the size of the crowds at JoAnne Graf Field, adding in the fans in the parking garage and on the sidewalk.
"It's really loud and there's a lot of noise," Alameda said.
"Play here at Florida State is loud, so there's a difference. We'll have our fans, like our 200 people, but when you talk about the whole stadium it's just a lot of people who love softball. We've just got to communicate and be good on that side of it.
One of the biggest differences Alameda said was that the Seminoles will be "on" all the time.
In addition to playing games and practicing, players are viewed as celebrities around Oklahoma City, due to the high presence of softball fans.
"You go to a coffee shop and people are wanting pictures and autographs," Alameda said. "Downtime is super important and we tie some of that in there. We also just see it as another tournament. It's just a softball tournament."
"There's nothing different than what we've been doing all season long, so if we can just stay grounded, that comes with the trust you build with your teammates."
A true road game
Two teams at the WCWS will get the benefit of playing close to home: No. 1 Oklahoma and No. 6 Oklahoma State.
Oklahoma State's campus is only 54 minutes from OGE Energy Field; Oklahoma 33 minutes.
Both teams played at OGE Energy Field this season in the Big 12 Tournament. Oklahoma also played the Omni Hall of Fame Classic and a game against Texas there.
"The familiarity for Oklahoma and Oklahoma State is they've played at that venue quite a bit," Alameda said. "They play the Big 12 Tournament there and the regular season, so it'll be really comfortable for them. It may take a while to feel out the fences and feel out things, because it's a different environment."
FSU has also faced both teams this season in Oklahoma in early March.
It dropped its series to the Cowgirls, 2-1, and fell to the Sooners in one game, 5-4. However, Alameda said that both teams are different from the last time they played. And so are the Seminoles. FSU is only one of six teams to lose to the Sooners by a run this season.
Oklahoma have lost just once this season and is riding an NCAA-record 48-game winning streak.
"It's very beneficial to have faced teams already and to have played in the state of Oklahoma, but were a different team from when we played them and so are they. I think that the fact that we've gone through this gauntlet of a season, we're now prepared for anyone at this point."
Thursday's Game 1 schedule
No. 4 Tennessee vs. No. 5 Alabama, noon, ESPN
No. 1 Oklahoma vs. No. 9 Stanford, 2:30 p.m., ESPN
No. 3 FSU vs. No. 6 Oklahoma State, 7 p.m., ESPN
No. 7 Washington vs. No. 15 Utah, 9:30 p.m., ESPN
Jack Williams covers Florida State athletics for Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at jwilliams@tallahassee.com or on Twitter @jackgwilliams.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Florida State softball heads off to Oklahoma City for 12th appearance in WCWS
