If you’re wondering what Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was doing on Monday night, it’s not hard to find the answer. Just head to his X account, where he was firing off tweets about his alma mater’s softball team.
Seeded 12th in the NCAA Tournament, Texas Tech is still alive in its first ever Women’s College World Series and punched its ticket to the championship stage by beating Oklahoma in walk-off fashion, ending the Sooners’ pursuit of a fifth consecutive national championship and bringing the greatest dynasty in the sport to a thundering halt.
The Sooners finally scored off Texas Tech ace NiJaree Canady in the top of the seventh inning when Abigale Dayton connected on an inside offering and sent it clear over the right field fence for a two-run homer. That tied the game up and set the stage for the Red Raiders to grab victory in a dramatic way.
Mihyia Davis got on base with a single to shallow center field, then moved over to third after her teammate Hailey Toney doubled to deep left center. Lauren Allred then hit a ball that lofted just deep enough into the outfield that gave Davis time to beat a throw and get home safely for the game-winning run.
And so, Texas Tech’s season of firsts continues. They won their first Big 12 title, reached the Super Regionals for the first time, appeared in the World Series for the first time, and now are on the cusp of their first national championship after defeating second-seeded Oklahoma, 3-2.
Patty Gasso’s Sooners had won four straight World Series titles, an accomplishment unmatched by any other program in Division I. A fifth consecutive title would have been otherworldly and incredibly impressive, but the Red Raiders extinguished any flicker of hope of that happening.
Mahomes was easily among the most excited Texas Tech fans. Here’s one of the several celebratory tweets he posted:
While Canady gave up that two-run homer in the top of the seventh — just the 11th she’s allowed this season in 226 innings of work — she’s a big reason why Texas Tech finds itself two wins away from a national championship. Her stellar play continued on Monday night, as she walked just one Sooner and gave up only five hits in seven innings of work while striking out eight batters.
On the season, Canady entered this matchup leading all of Division I softball in victories (32), ERA (0.86) and hits allowed per seven innings (3.61). She’s also seventh in strikeouts per seven innings (9.5), seventh in shutouts (7), and fourth in strikeout-to-walk ratio (6.88). She’s been an asset at the plate this season too with 11 home runs, 34 RBI and a .306 batting average.
Mahomes was a key part of her recruitment to Lubbock when Canady was in the transfer portal last offseason out of Stanford. The former Texas Tech quarterback — now with three Super Bowl trophies and two NFL MVP awards to his name — interrupted his vacation in Italy last summer to call Canady in an attempt to woo her to Texas Tech.
“Patrick Mahomes, I have his number, I can reach out to him,” Canady told ESPN. “So, I think that’s cool. Last July, we were eating lunch and had a beautiful view of the whole football stadium. Someone told me, just send a picture to Patrick to see if he responds. He’s preparing for the season and then I think within 10 minutes he got back to me.”
Of course, a $1,050,024 NIL deal from Texas Tech’s collective was likely a big selling point in getting Canady to join the Red Raiders, but having one of the greatest quarterbacks of all-time on speed dial is a nice perk too.
Canady has now taken victories in 11 straight appearances, not suffering a loss since May 2. Texas Tech’s investment in her continues to pay off in a big way.
On Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET, the Red Raiders will face former Big 12 rival Texas in the championship series. It marks the first time in 21 years that there has been an intrastate matchup at this stage of the tournament — not since Cal and UCLA met in 2003. Mahomes is among the many who will be rooting for Canady and the Red Raiders to come out on top in Oklahoma City.
