Teagan Kavan caps historic Women's College World Series run for Texas in sweep of Texas Tech

Kavan struck out five of the six batters she faced on her way to becoming the first back-to-back Most Outstanding Player of the WCWS finals in tournament history.

Kavan was simply sensational throughout the entirety of the WCWS, tossing 33.3 innings of work with 30 strikeouts. If you go back to February, Kavan has only allowed one run in 19 innings of relief.

"I'm so proud to be a Longhorn," Kavan told ESPN's Holly Rowe after the title-clinching win.

As dominant as Texas seemed, though, its WCWS run was far from straightforward. The Longhorns dropped their opener to Tennessee, 6-3, and immediately faced elimination. Despite the adversity, Texas showed its resolve with six consecutive victories, four of which came in elimination games.

The six total wins in elimination games in the NCAA Tournament tied a Division I record, while the Longhorns became the fifth different Division I softball program to go back-to-back in the WCWS, and the first since Oklahoma won its fourth straight in 2024.

It all came against a Texas Tech squad that spent a lot on its current roster. The Red Raiders reportedly have the most expensive roster in softball, led by pitcher NiJaree Canady, who makes over $1M in NIL money and just led Texas Tech to its first WCWS finals last season.

This is a Texas Tech squad that has brought a lot of viewership to the tournament and had eight new transfers on a team in which 15 of its 23 players began their collegiate careers elsewhere.

That did not deter Texas, which built off its Game 1 win and delivered more heartbreak to its in-state rival, scoring two earned runs and recording eight hits off Canady in the final game of her career.

It is easy to view this as a repeat of last season for the Longhorns and that there was no adversity along the way. That is far from the truth after nearly getting sent packing shortly after the WCWS began.

However, this team was just too talented to let that brief setback keep them down for long. From the program's single-season home run record holder Katie Stewart to Kavan's masterclass on the mound, this Texas team was loaded with talent, and it delivered a historic run to its second straight title.