Clemson Tigers Continue to Chase History

Clemson Softball heads to Stillwater, two wins from WCWS

Photo/Clemson Athletic Communications

CLEMSON, S.C. — Clemson Softball has already made some huge strides in its three short years of existence.

After the pandemic cut their inaugural season short, the Tigers won an ACC Regular Season Championship, advanced to the ACC Tournament Championship Game and to a regional championship in their first full season.

This season, its second full year, Clemson did even better. They again advanced to the ACC Tournament Championship Game, hosted its first NCAA Regional, won it and will play in its first Super Regional series later this week.

“We just have a lot more excitement, I think, just knowing this a place not a lot of programs get to be in, in their third year.” graduate senior Cammy Pereira said Tuesday just before the team boarded a bus for the airport.

Clemson (42-15) will play No. 7 overall seed Oklahoma State in the best of three series beginning Thursday night in Stillwater, Okla.

“One of our main objectives this year was to go farther than last year, and we accomplished that this past weekend. But we never put a cap on how far we can go,” Clemson head coach John Rittman said. “It is always great when you achieve a goal. Obviously, to be able to celebrate on our home field and in front of our fans was fantastic.”

The Tigers, the No. 10 overall seed, are just two wins away from earning a trip to the Women’s College World Series next week in Oklahoma City.

“None of us have ever been to a Super Regional, so I think maybe our naïve nature may help us a little bit and not let us get too hyped up or too nervous,” Pereira said.

This is not the first time Rittman has coached a team to a Super Regional. He led Stanford to five Super Regional appearances between 1997-2014. Two of his teams advanced to the WCWS.

“It is softball at the end of the day,” he said. “I think this team has done an outstanding job of eliminating the noise outside of the program. It has been a long season and a lot of coverage on our team, which is huge for our sport.

“The exposure we are getting is wonderful. You just hope it does not become a distraction. We have a number of great leaders in our program. Upper classmen that are a little bit more mature and able to handle and balance things a little bit better.”

It helps the Tigers are only focused on softball. School is over, so they are paying more attention to getting their sleep, eating right, staying hydrated and doing what needs to be done in order to be ready to play.

“I am just looking forward to being in the moment,” centerfielder McKenzie Clark said. “We have never been there. I have never experienced (a Super Regional). I just can’t wait for all the excitement of playing in one.”

Though this is Clemson’s first Super Regional, they are playing an Oklahoma State team that is appearing in its third consecutive Super Regional. The Cowgirls (44-12) have advanced to the WCWS in each of the last two NCAA Tournaments.

The Tigers are one of three ACC teams playing in the Super Regional Round, a first for the conference. They are joined by Virginia Tech and Duke. The Hokies are hosting Florida this weekend, while Duke travels to UCLA.

“This Super Regional (round) is pretty different than what we have seen in the past,” Pereira said. “We are starting to experience some really good east coast softball, some mid-major softball. I think it is time that those little divisions don’t come as predictive as what we are going to see in the postseason.

“So, I think this is a cool time for us to kind of join some of those teams that maybe do not have the history of playing this late in the season. I think that is really cool just to be up there with the teams that we are normally watching on TV.”

Stillwater (Okla.) Super Regional (Best two out of three)

Game 1

Thursday, 9:30 p.m.

No. 10 Clemson vs. No. 7 Oklahoma State, ESPN2

Friday, 9 p.m.

No. 7 Oklahoma State vs. No. 10 Clemson, ESPN 2

Saturday, TBD (if necessary)

No. 10 Clemson vs. No. 7 Oklahoma State, TBD