Softball
Published 5:00 am Thursday, June 7, 2012
• Alabama wins NCAA title: Jackie Traina threw a five-hitter and delivered a key RBI single, and Alabama became the first Southeastern Conference team to win an NCAA softball title, beating Oklahoma 5-4 in the final game of a best-of-three series that ended early today in Oklahoma City. Traina gave up three home runs — two to Lauren Chamberlain, including one in the seventh inning — but fanned her Oklahoma counterpart, Keilani Ricketts, to end the game. Alabama (60-8) took advantage of Ricketts’ wildness to score four runs in the fourth inning. The Crimson Tide overcame an early 3-0 deficit in a game delayed almost three hours at the start due to steady rain on Wednesday night. Oklahoma (54-10) had won 12 straight games, including the opening game of the championship series, before losing two in a row.