OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — NiJaree Canady smiled broadly as she held up a gaudy championship belt with the Big 12 logo in the center.

Texas Tech’s star pitcher had dominated the conference tournament, throwing 16 2/3 shutout innings in three games to claim the Most Outstanding Player award.

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Her smile was as much from relief as joy. Moments before that, she had described the challenges she has faced since her decision to transfer from Stanford shifted the college softball landscape.

Canady led an upstart Stanford squad to the Women’s College World Series semifinals her freshman and sophomore years. After last season, when she was named the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year, she entered the transfer portal.

She shunned the traditional powers and signed a $1 million NIL deal to head to Texas Tech — a massive sum for a softball player that drew some unwanted attention.

“So, I definitely feel like there were a lot of things said about the whole entire thing and of course, like media and stuff,” she said. “I feel like that added just — a weight to the situation.”

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Her father, Bruce Canady, said things got crazy.

“A whole lot of pressure was put on her,” he said. “It got to the point where we thought we had had a stalker. Just a lot was going on. But, you know, Tech’s a good place. It’s a good place. They’ve got her in a good environment.”

Canady said her father and her faith were among the key aspects that helped her deal with the challenges.

“I got through it,” she said. “And there were days where it honestly was very hard, just looking back.”

She’ll take another step when the 12th-seeded Red Raiders (45-12) host Brown (33-15) on Friday in the Lubbock Regional.

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That Canady was even in the portal was a bit of a shocker. She had been successful and had built deep friendships at Stanford.

“Extremely hard,” Bruce Canady said. “I mean, we’re the type of parents that push education. But then you get a lifetime opportunity … then you just have to go with it.”

Gerry Glasco took the head coaching job at Texas Tech last summer. After he started talking to Canady, he got busy.

“I realize we have to put together a team that can compete on a national level and give her a realistic chance to come to Tech or there’s no way we can recruit her,” he said.

Glasco came through, and Canady did the same. Canady has a 26-5 record with a nation-leading 0.81 ERA and has 263 strikeouts in 181 innings.

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Canady also has been able to hit — something she didn’t do at Stanford. She is batting .309 with eight home runs and 30 RBIs.

The ups and downs of the journey were part of why the winning of the Big 12 regular-season and tournament titles — the first ever for the school — were so satisfying for Canady. She loved her teammates at Stanford, but Tech is home for her now.

“I feel like it was all worth it, and there’s no place I’d rather be right now than with Texas Tech,” she said. “Being able to win the regular season and the the conference tournaments means everything.”

Even Glasco was surprised by how well Canady pitched in the conference tournament. She’s been dealing with a nagging injury and hasn’t been practicing.

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“To get to see her dominate in the circle the way she dominated this week was really eye opening to me as a coach,” he said. “And we know her greatness. But like, it was very visible, very evident.”

Canady allowed two hits and struck out eight in seven innings in the Big 12 title game, a 4-0 win over Arizona.

“I think she’s a competitor, first and foremost,” Arizona coach Caitlin Lowe said. “She obviously has elite stuff and she competes her tail off, and she has a lot of tools, right? So the moment you get on time, then there comes the change up. And being able to lay off the rise that’s out of the zone to get to the rise that’s in the zone and then being on time for that when it’s your time. It’s a cat and mouse game.”

Canady felt comfortable at Devon Park in Oklahoma City — the site of her Women’s College World Series wins — during the conference tournament. She hopes to lead her teammates back in a few weeks so they can have the World Series experience.

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“This, especially being in Oklahoma City, is just a dream come true to be able to hold the (conference tournament) trophy,” she said. “We still have one big goal we want to accomplish. We’ve knocked out two of the three.”

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Jackson Cantwell and his parents once drove 1,200 miles through the heart of SEC Country to visit LSU, Georgia and Alabama.

“We had a pretty cool setup,” the Missouri native who is ranked as the No. 1 recruit in the 247Sports Composite said in December before the Under Armour All-American game. “We put a bed in the back of the car, laid it out and it made it a lot better.”

Cantwell, an offensive lineman whose parents were Olympic shot putters, might have been on a road directly to an SEC or Big Ten school in years past. That’s where the majority of five-star recruits have ended up.

But he is headed to the ACC instead. Miami won the battle for his services Tuesday, outdueling big boys Georgia, Oregon and Ohio State.

Cantwell’s decision probably will not resonate with college football fans beyond the sickos who love recruiting. Not in the age of NIL and the transfer portal. But it’s still a big deal. It’s a sign that the expansion of the College Football Playoff has opened doors for others — those who are also willing to match or exceed NIL offers from perennial contenders.

Cantwell talked about it in December.

“Originally, Georgia, Bama, Ohio State and Clemson, those were kind of four schools that, like most blue-chip guys, would end up going to,” he said. “But now everything’s so spread out, the resources are spread out, you’re not just vying for those same four jobs. There’s a lot of great jobs. There’s a lot of great situations in other places. You can be successful anywhere.”

Much will be made of the lucrative NIL deal — $2.5 million per year, according to On3 — the Hurricanes will pay Cantwell to become their future left tackle. But he was going to get paid wherever he went. This was as much about his respect for head coach Mario Cristobal and position coach Alex Mirabal as it was the paycheck.

Cristobal and Mirabal have a track record of putting linemen into the NFL, including three-time Pro Bowl selection Penei Sewell of the Detroit Lions. Miami right tackle Francis Maugioa will likely be the duo’s next elite offensive tackle headed toward a big NFL payday. Cantwell called Mirabal the best offensive line coach in the country long before he committed to Miami.

Cristobal reacting to Jackson Cantwell picking Miami @On3Recruits pic.twitter.com/e7ozFM46Wm

— Aslan Hajivandi (@AslanHodges) May 13, 2025

The Hurricanes featured one of the best offenses in college football last season with No. 1 overall NFL Draft pick Cam Ward, a Heisman finalist, leading them to a 10-3 record. It represented progress in Cristobal’s third season in charge, but was still short of the leap forward Miami fans want to see. The Hurricanes, who won five national championships from 1981 to 2001, have been in the ACC since 2004 and have made only one appearance in the league championship game. Cristobal just completed the program’s second 10-win season since 2003.

Miami signed back-to-back top-seven recruiting classes in Cristobal’s first two full recruiting cycles, but the Canes’ 2025 class was ranked No. 13 and included only one top-100 prospect.

Cristobal lost some juice on the trail late in the process when blue-chip safety Drake Stubbs flipped to Florida and linebacker Gavin Nix dropped the Hurricanes for Oregon. Nix said seeing Miami’s defense struggle late in the season is what ultimately led him to change his mind despite a bigger NIL offer from the Hurricanes.

“No diss to Miami, but I had a chance to pursue my dreams with coach (Dan) Lanning and the staff,” Nix said in December at the Under Armour All-American game.

Cristobal revamped Miami’s defensive staff following the season

Winning still matters to most high-end recruits. If you make the NIL playing field relatively equal, they’ll typically pick the program with the chance to win big over the one taking small steps forward.

Miami’s robust NIL spending at least gives the Hurricanes a fighting chance to land difference-makers such as Cantwell.

It’s also good for college football to have programs outside the SEC and Big Ten winning some of these battles.

In the 2025 recruiting class, only 15 of the top 100 prospects did not sign with an SEC or Big Ten school, and just two of the 32 five-stars — defensive lineman Amare Adams (Clemson) and offensive tackle Will Black (Notre Dame) — picked programs outside of the Big 2.

In the recent NFL Draft, the SEC (15) and Big Ten (11) owned 26 of the 32 first-round selections.

There’s no guarantee Cantwell will end up as a first-round pick or that he’ll help Miami finally get over the hump and win an ACC title. But it’s noteworthy that a program that hasn’t won on the field in a long time won a big recruiting battle.

It’s a sign that all roads don’t just automatically lead to the SEC and Big Ten.

(Photo of Mario Cristobal: Andy Lyons / Getty Images)

TEMPE – Sun Devil Softball makes its 34th appearance in the NCAA Softball Championship when it faces San Diego State on Friday at 7 p.m. AZT on ESPN2 in the first round of the Los Angeles Regional. Arizona State is the No. 2 seed at the regional, while San Diego State is the No. 3 seed.

UCLA is the host and No. 1 seed of the Los Angeles Regional. They will face No. 4 seed UC Santa Barbara in the first game at 4:30 p.m. AZT on Friday. The double-elimination bracket at Easton Stadium will feature three games on Saturday, leaving two teams to play in the Region Final on Sunday.

How to Follow

All NCAA Tournament games will be available for viewing on the ESPN Family of Networks. Courtney Lyle (PBP) and Danielle Lawrie (analyst) will call the action in Los Angeles. 

Live scoring will be available during each game. Links for all of the live features are available on the softball schedule page at TheSunDevils.com.

Updates will also be provided on social media via X/Twitter (@asusoftball) and Instagram (@sundevilsb).

Sun Devil Notes

The Sun Devils are 35-19 this season and have earned a regional bid for the first time since 2022. They finished fifth in the Big 12 regular season standings at 14-10 and advanced to the semifinals of the Big 12 Championship.

ASU enters the Regional fourth in the Big 12 with a .303 batting average and a .843 OPS. They average 4.78 runs per game and place third in the conference with 420 hits, fourth with 50 home runs and 51 stolen bases.

Arizona State pitchers hold a 3.40 ERA and 1.38 WHIP entering Friday. The staff leads the conference – and ranks eighth in the NCAA – with an average of 7.73 strikeouts per seven innings while adding a 3.12 strikeout-to-walk ratio.

About the Los Angeles Regional

UCLA earned the No. 9 national seed with a 49-10 overall record and a runner-up finish in the Big Ten by going 17-5. Megan Grant (23) and Jordan Woolery (20) have combined to hit 43 home runs while Savannah Pola is batting .439.

San Diego State earned an automatic bid to the tournament after winning its third straight Mountain West tournament with a 37-17 record. Bella Espinoza leads SDSU with 62 hits, while Shannon Cunningham has eight home runs and 35 RBIs.

UC Santa Barbara won six straight elimination games to capture the inaugural Big West Championship with a 34-24 record. Giselle Mejia leads the Gauchos with a .391 average while Bella Fuentes has 11 home runs and 60 RBIs.

Postseason History

ASU will be making its 34th appearance in the NCAA Softball Tournament. The Sundevils have an 85-52 record in the Regional round, and the Sun Devils have advanced to the Super Regionals, which began during the 2005 season, 10 times in program history, with the last coming in 2022. The team has reached the Women’s College World Series 19 times overall, including 12 times since softball became an NCAA sport in 1982, with four National Championships. 

NCAA Tournament Experience

Only two players on this year’s ASU squad – AJ Murphy and Nehanda Lewis – have played in an NCAA Regional. Murphy has played in 12 NCAA postseason games with San Diego State over three seasons. Murphy went 11-for-38 (.289) in those outings with three doubles, two home runs, and eight RBIs.

Lewis made one appearance as a pinch runner for UCF during the 2023 Tallahassee Regional. Kelsey Hall was on the 2021 Fresno State team that played in the Los Angeles Regional, but she was out with an injury.

Strike First, Finish Strong

The Sun Devils have habitually scored early in games, outscoring their opponents 89-46 in the first two innings this season. ASU has crossed the plate 52 times in the first inning, more than in any other. Those early runs contribute to a 24-3 record when the Sun Devils score first, including a 16-2 mark when scoring in the first inning.

ASU has also put teams away by scoring late in games. They have an 81-57 edge in scoring in the fifth and sixth innings, with 47 runs scored in the fifth alone. The Sun Devils are 23-1 when leading after five and 27-0 when leading after six.

Three is Key

Scoring at least three runs in a game has been crucial to a positive result for the Sun Devils this season. ASU has gone 33-6 when they put three-plus runs on the board, including an 18-0 record when they score at least six runs.

In contrast, the team is just 13-19 when the opposition scores at least three runs and 22-0 when they hold the opposition to two or fewer.

Brown is Back

After sitting out last season with an injury, Kenzie Brown has returned as one of the top pitchers in the country. Entering the weekend, Brown is third in the NCAA with 265 strikeouts and second at 11.77 strikeouts per seven innings. Her strikeout total is the highest of any pitcher in a Power 4 conference.

Brown had 18 strikeouts against BYU on March 6 to tie the ASU record for strikeouts in a 7-inning game. She ranks in the Big 12 top five in 11 statistical categories, including second by allowing 4.13 hits per seven innings, third with a 1.29 ERA, and fourth with 19 wins. Brown’s strikeout total is the 10th-most for a season in ASU history, and she has double-digit strikeouts in a game 11 times.

Hall Pass

Kelsey Hall opened the season in the starting lineup 277 days after tearing her ACL. Having started all 54 games, Hall is batting .325 with a .929 OPS. She leads the team with 47 RBIs, posting 53 hits with six doubles and 10 home runs.

In her sixth season of collegiate softball, Hall ranks 28th among players with 159 RBIs and 30th with 364 total bases. She is also 33rd with 152 runs scored and 39th with 40 home runs.

Tanya Time

Tanya Windle leads the team with 60 hits and a .368 batting average. She also has 13 doubles and three triples, ranking third in the Big 12 in doubles and seventh in hits. Windle has 17 multi-hit games and four games with three-plus hits.

Windle ranks 17th among active NCAA players with 12 triples in her career. Her .392 career batting average is 13th among active players with at least 475 career at-bats.

Freshman Gem Part 1

Tiare Ho-Ching is batting .344 with 56 hits and 24 RBIs. The freshman has one of the two 4-hit games by a Sun Devil this season while adding eight multi-RBI outings. Ho-Ching has a hit in 10 of the last 14 games, with four multi-hit games during the run.

Ho-Ching has settled in as the team’s leadoff hitter. ASU has gone 25-11 when she bats in the No. 1 spot in the lineup, and she reaches 45 percent of the time when leading off an inning.

Freshman Gem Part 2

Ashleigh Mejia leads the club with 13 home runs and is second with 44 RBIs. Seven of the freshman’s homers have tied the game or given ASU the lead. She had four multi-hit games during April, with 11 multi-RBI games during the season.

Her 13 home runs are the second-most by a Freshman in the Big 12 this season and fifth-most by a freshman in ASU history. Mejia batted .310 and was third in the Big 12 with nine home runs and second with 26 RBIs in conference games. 

Around the Horn

Samantha Swan has been behind the plate at some point in every game this season while starting at catcher 53 times. She is batting .313 with 46 hits and 13 doubles. Her four games with at least three hits are tied for the most on the team.

AJ Murphy capped the regular season with a .365 average and five home runs. She homered twice in the final four games of the regular season and tallied seven multi-hit games.

Meika Lauppe enters the Regional as the No. 2 pitcher on the staff with a 9-8 record, three saves, and a 3.13 ERA. Her 77 strikeouts are second on the team, and she limits the opposition to a .285 batting average.

 

The Missouri Tiger athletic department was prepared for change.

Athletic Director Laird Veatch had the Tigers’ ready for the implementation of revenue sharing and roster limits, prepared to take advantage of new rules and opportunities as soon as they arose.

But then, the House settlement wasn’t passed immediately, and now the Tigers are stuck in a holding pattern, waiting to find out if they cut all their walk-ons and prepared for revenue sharing for nothing.

“You’re kind of building the plane as you fly, so to speak,” Veatch said. “… There’s a lot of challenges, a lot of unknown, but we get enough information where we’re able to make some of the key decisions. And, you know, we’re now right at a point with the settlement, where we’re waiting to hear, what’s that kind of final piece with the roster limits and how does this work out? So, we made a lot of decisions up to this point and we continue to adjust and work through that as it finalizes.”

The delay has directly affected the Tigers’ ability to build rosters moving forward.

From the football team having December discussions to the basketball team working in the portal.

“I spent a ton of time trying to figure out the new revenue sharing system and how do you, how are you going to divide the money and the cap,” Missouri football coach Eliah Drinkwitz said. “And what are we going to do with NIL and how do we get to 105, then … the judge says we may grandfather in roster limits. I don’t know what the crap is going on.

“We wasted a lot of mental energy and I’ve heard from a lot of players, we told all our guys in Decemver, you know, ‘This is what we think the new framework is going to be,’ and now, if they go back to grandfathering it in, it’s just frustrating.”

That frustration isn’t new for Drinkwitz. Every year he has been at Missouri, there has been some type of major change to how college football, and sometimes college sports in general, operates. From NIL and the transfer portal to the college football playoff expanding to the still likely implementation of revenue sharing.

And while the Tigers have grown into one of the most successful programs in the sport these past couple of years, that frustration continues to build for the coach.

“Let the practitioners have a say in what we’re doing,” Drinkwitz said. “… We’ll adapt, we’ll adapt to whatever they say, we’ll find a way, we’ll figure it out. But I hope, my hope, is that we understand this is an unbelievable game. College athletics is a worthwhile fabric of the culture of the United States of America, not just football, not just basketball, not just revenue-generating sports, but also the olympic sports, they all matter. We need to have some sort of governing structure that doesn’t have a lawsuit every single day.”

But even if the House settlement passes soon, that wish for a more centralized governing body would still take time to develop and more major changes would have to be implemented almost immediately for a semblance of stability. The clearest example, Veatch noted, is the timing of the sports calendar, largely shown through the football and basketball transfer portals, which occur during the heart of the sports’ postseasons.

“This is one of the many reasons why we need the House settlement to go through and get approved,” Veatch said. “So that we can then move on to all the other things, right? And that is one of the many things we need to really work through is our calendar and how we manage, you know, transfer portals and not only for football, for all of our sports. That there needs to be adjustments that will continue to take place after, after that, after that is settled, then we move on to the next thing.”

The Missouri Tigers have succeeded in recent years because they have been adaptable and willing to change with the times. Taking advantage of NIL early on, building through the transfer portal where possible, investing in the future and making plans for what is to come.

But now the Tigers have spent so much time planning for what was expected to be the next step, they just have to sit and wait for it to happen.