Jun. 6—OKLAHOMA CITY — Through eight games of NCAA Tournament play, and 49 innings of softball, not a single team has tried to steal a base on No. 1-seed Oklahoma.

It’s not hard to see why. The Sooners’ defense fights relentlessly for every out and turns highlight-reel plays into more momentum for their high-powered offense.

They have a fielding percentage of .989 and have committed 16 errors on the season, both of which would go down as NCAA Division I records if they hold up.

It’s no surprise teams have been reluctant to be aggressive against this Sooner defense. But as No. 3-seed Florida State prepares to face the Sooners for the Women’s College World Series Final on Wednesday at 7 p.m., head coach Lonni Alameda plans to do just that.

The Seminoles enter the three-game series ranked ninth in the country in stolen bases with 133.

“We’ve got to do what we do,” Alameda said. “We like to run the bases, and we need to get on the bases, and we want to push some situations. So if we can push the defense, that can put us in a really good situation to be able to extend some innings and get after some things.”

The Seminoles turned to small ball with a narrow 2-1 lead over Washington in their second game of the World Series. Mack Leonard laid down a bunt with a runner on second base, and a Washington error allowed the Seminoles to extend their lead late.

Florida State stole four bases on five attempts in a 5-1 win over Tennessee to advance to the WCWS Final. Devyn Flaherty has stolen 31 bases this season, which ranks 22nd in the country and has only been caught twice.

“It’s one thing to tip your hat to what they have, it’s another to really get after what we do,” Alameda said. “And I think that’s what we’re going to be about.”

For the Sooners, everything starts with the pitching staff.

Through 53 innings pitched in the NCAA Tournament, Oklahoma’s four pitchers have combined to allow just 37 hits and have walked just nine batters with 55 strikeouts. Opponents are batting .151 against the Sooners this postseason with an on-base percentage of .242.

That doesn’t leave many opportunities for mistakes, but even when a ball is put in play the Sooners have talented athletes at positions across the field. They don’t have a single player on their roster with more than three errors on the year.

“One thing about this season that I’ve really noticed is how much joy we have as a team,” Third baseman Alyssa Brito said. “ ... this is honestly the most fun I’ve ever had.”

The last time the two teams met, a 5-4 Oklahoma win in Norman, it was the long ball that kept Florida State in the game. Katie Deck and Jahni Kerr each homered on OU’s Alex Storako, but the Seminoles were outhit 13-6 and didn’t attempt a steal. The Sooners took an early 3-1 lead, but the Seminoles answered in the top of the next inning on Kerr’s threerun homer.

Haley Lee and Tiare Jennings each drove in runs to take the lead back in the fifth inning and Jordy Bahl allowed just one hit over the final three innings.

Still, OU head coach Patty Gasso doesn’t expect to see too many similarities between the WCWS Final and a one-off game played in mid-March.

“Am I surprised that we’re both here? No,” Gasso said. “(Florida State is) very similar. But we’re a different team than we were in March, as are they. So we’re familiar with names and their style, but we’ve got to go back to the drawing board like we haven’t seen them before.”

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