'Dream come true': Alex Storako ends OU softball journey with start, elusive WCWS title
Alex Storako patiently waited for her moment throughout the Women’s College World Series.
And it finally came on Thursday.
OU outlasted Florida State for a 3-1 win in Game 2 of the WCWS finals to secure its third straight national championship thanks in part to Storako. Despite only throwing for two-thirds of an inning all tournament, the redshirt senior got the starting nod and gave up just one run in four innings pitched.
“I’m so proud of her,” OU head coach Patty Gasso said of Storako. “She’s worked hard. She’s come through a lot.”
Gasso says she went with Storako due in part to OU’s regular-season matchup against Florida State on March 14.
More: Tramel: Jordy Bahl pitches like it's 1993, and OU softball is WCWS champion again
The Sooners earned a 5-4 win in a game where Storako got the start inside the circle. She allowed four runs but recorded six strikeouts in four innings pitched.
“Alex was kind of the right matchup,” Gasso said. “We played them before. Alex had pretty good success.”
Storako enjoyed even more success on Thursday as she held an elite Florida State offense to just one run.
It was a stellar performance by the Michigan transfer, who held a much larger role on her previous team.
Storako pitched 200 ⅓ innings last season with the Wolverines. And while that number dropped to 103 ⅔ innings this season with the Sooners, she got rewarded for her patience on Thursday with the biggest start of her five-year career.
"Dream come true," Storako wrote on Twitter.
It's a sentiment Gasso echoed.
“There are a lot of dreams that came true tonight,” Gasso said. “Alex Storako is definitely one of them.”
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Alex Storako ends OU softball career with WCWS start, first NCAA title
