NiJaree Canady owns up to mistake in Texas Tech softball loss, ready to pitch WCWS Game 2

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As ironic as it sounds, NiJaree Canady's biggest mistake of this Women's College World Series was throwing a pitch too close to the strike zone.
Texas Tech's superstar pitcher was told to intentionally walk Texas' Reese Atwood to load the bases with two outs in the bottom of the sixth inning in Game 1 of the WCWS championship series.
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But what was supposed to be the fourth ball floated over the middle of the plate, and Atwood pulled a ground ball into left field, scoring the Longhorns' only runs in a 2-1 win to strike the first blow in the best-of-three series Wednesday night at Devon Park.
'I made that mistake,' Canady said, matter-of-factly. 'I think that loss is on me, and I apologize to my team.'
This was the first intentional walk Canady was asked to execute this season, but after Tech's first loss at the WCWS, she was in no mood to dismiss her mistake for any reason.
'I'm a college pitcher, I'm a junior now, so I should be able to do that,' she said. 'That's no excuse.'
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Texas Tech pitcher NiJaree Canady (24) looks up after giving up two runs in the seventh inning Game 1 of the Women's College World Series championship series between the Texas Longhorns at Texas Tech Red Raiders at Devon Park in Oklahoma City, Wednesday, June 4, 2025. Texas won 2-1.
Atwood, an All-American catcher, had been hitless in her previous 10 at-bats, but Texas Tech coach Gerry Glasco still felt more comfortable putting her on base and taking his chances against Joley Mitchell.
But when Canady's first pitchout came in high but over the plate, Atwood took notice.
'The first pitch, I think she kind of left a little,' Atwood said. 'After that, I was looking for something just a little bit. The game's really tight, and I knew I was going to have to take a risk to try and do something for my team.
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'I saw my opportunity, and I took it.'
Now, 12th-seeded Texas Tech has its back against the wall in the championship series, with sixth-seeded Texas a win away from its first NCAA softball championship.
Glasco wouldn't tip his hand as to whether Canady, the game's most dominant pitcher, would be his choice to pitch Game 2, set for 7 p.m. Thursday. But Texas coach Mike White certainly knows what he expects.
'One hundred percent, without a doubt, he's going to throw her,' White said. 'He's already said he's not going to lose with his ace on the bench, and I trust Gerry.'
Canady has thrown every pitch for the Red Raiders at the WCWS — in fact she's thrown every pitch for her team at the WCWS dating back to an elimination game at the 2023 tournament when she was a freshman at Stanford.
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That includes all four games at Stanford last season, bringing her grand total to 859 consecutive pitches for her team.
However, Texas Tech hasn't played on back-to-back days at this WCWS, so Thursday could pose a different challenge.
Canady has battled injuries at times this season, and she's thrown 388 pitches in the last seven days, but she plans to be in the circle Thursday.
'I'm fine,' she said. 'I have all summer to rest. I'm ready to play softball.'
Glasco wouldn't go that far, though it seems unlikely he'd take a chance in an elimination game with anyone other than the star who carried the Red Raiders this far.
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'We'll see how she feels tomorrow. She's got a lot left in her career,' he said. 'She's gonna want the ball. If you know NiJa, she's not going to complain. I want to win, but also I want to be sure we leave this season healthy for the future.
'If you've got to pick a pitcher in America to come back and win two games in a row with, I'll take NiJa.'
Scott Wright covers Oklahoma State athletics for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Scott? He can be reached at [e-mail] or on Twitter at @ScottWrightOK. Sign up for the Oklahoma State Cowboys newsletter to access more OSU coverage. Support Scott's work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com or by using the link at the top of this page.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Texas Tech's NiJaree Canady owns up to mistake, ready for WCWS Game 2