In spite of loss, Riley Taylor fulfilled a lifelong dream

recalled countless “what-if” conversations with them about the possibility of walking on to the baseball team, in spite of holding offers from smaller schools.

He walked-on in 2019 and waited five seasons for an opportunity to make his first collegiate mound appearance.

present, but for more than they initially anticipated.

TCU made early work of OSU, attaining a 4-0 advantage through two innings before extending it to a 10-5 lead through seven.

As Taylor took the mound in the top of the eighth, he captured every moment in his mind in case it was the only opportunity he’d get in an OSU uniform.

Holliday said. “A kid who doesn’t complain, does what he’s told and gets an opportunity and makes the most of it. You can’t ask for it any better.”

ARLINGTON, Texas --

When Riley Taylor first set foot in the home dugout of Globe Life Field on Sunday evening, he didn’t anticipate anything unordinary.

Taylor, a redshirt junior pitcher, served in the same role during every game over the past five years: cheering on his teammates and staying prepared. He didn’t expect that to change, especially in the Big 12 Championship game against TCU – an eventual 12-5 loss for OSU.

His parents were graduates of OSU, and Taylor

Every year, there was a slight dose of cautious optimism mixed with the reality that his live-game reps would be minimal -- if that.

That longing for his moment ended at a big-league ballpark, in front of his hometown.

“I’d been dreaming of the moment since 2019, five seasons,” Taylor said. “I really didn’t foresee any of this coming.”

A native of Haslet, Texas, Taylor had company for OSU’s game against the Horned Frogs. His parents and friends were

The Cowboys had utilized nine arms in six games over a five-day span in the conference tournament. The bullpen thinned as the innings went on, and coach Josh Holliday’s reach for arms got further.

Before the sixth inning, Taylor was told to warm up.

“I blacked out,” he said. “I didn’t know how to react.”

Scrambling for answers in his head with emotions frantically fluctuating, he did as he was instructed.

Ace pitcher Juaron WattsBrown, initially supposed to throw one inning, was kept in for another in the seventh. Then, Taylor’s moment finally came.

His first two batters didn’t go as planned. TCU freshman catcher Karson Bowen singled, which was followed by a towering home run to right field by Brayden Taylor.

“He gave up a home run to (Brayden) Taylor, but so have a lot of people over their career,” Holliday said. “He still went out there, competed and gave it his all.”

Riley answered, retiring six of his next eight batters with two strikeouts to conclude what he considered a dream outing.

As he exited the mound, teammate Ben Abram embraced him with a hug. Others followed with high-fives and pats on the back.

“That’s a great story,”

Jokingly, Riley noted his fastball and cutter were working, allowing him to attain a lead in the pitch count with Horned Frog batters. In retrospect, Riley didn’t entirely care how it went.

A half-decade itch had finally been scratched.

“Striking out six would have been a lot cooler,” Riley said. “But I’m honestly just grateful for the opportunity and that (Holliday) let me go out there and compete.

“I finally got the chance to compete for the school I’d already dreamed of playing for, and I really didn’t feel a worry in the world.” sports.ed@ocolly.com

No. 4 Tennessee

The Lady Volunteers have been to the WCWS on seven occasions.

There are not deep roots when it comes to OSU and Tennessee softball matchups. Tennessee (49-8) is one of two teams in the WCWS that the Cowgirls didn’t face this season.

The last time OSU played Tennessee was in Clearwater, Florida, in 2018. The Cowgirls lost the game 5-1. The two have only played five times, and Tennessee leads 3-2.

No. 5 Alabama

This year marks the 14th appearance in the WCWS for the Crimson Tide after missing out on a trip to Oklahoma City last season.

Alabama’s SEC-leading 14 WCWS appearances have come in just 27 seasons, which means the Crimson Tide has qualified for the WCWS more times than it has not. Alabama (45-20) won the National Championship in 2012.

Alabama is the other team to not have played OSU this season, with the most recent matchup coming in February 2020 in Clearwater, Florida.

The Cowgirls beat the Crimson Tide 4-1 in that game; however, Alabama leads the all-time series against OSU, 4-1. The two teams have never met in the WCWS.

The Crimson Tide begins tournament play against Tennessee at noon on Thursday.

No. 7 Washington

The WCWS is nothing new for Washington.

The Huskies have ventured to the world series on 14 occasions. UW has only been crowned National Champion once, in 2009, but has been in the finals three more times.

OSU faced the Huskies earlier this season in Clearwater -- a 7-6 loss for the Cowgirls. OSU has only one win in seven tries against Washington.

Washington starts its WCWS against Utah on Thursday at 9:30 p.m.

No. 9 Stanford

This is Stanford’s third time making it to the WCWS. The last two appearances were in 2004 and 2001.

Stanford (45-13) recorded its most wins in a season since 2009. This is its first season with 40 wins or more since 2012. Stanford has 14 wins this season against top-25 opponents.

The Cowgirls played Stanford in Stillwater twice in March. OSU won the first game 6-1 but lost the second game 5-1. No. 15 Utah is 3-0 in matchups against Utah.

The Utah Utes will be returning to the WCWS for the fifth time in program history.

This is the first WCWS for the Utes since 1994. The Utes begin tournament play against another PAC 12 team, the Washington Huskies. This is the fifth game between the teams this season.

OSU and Utah have only ever played three times. The Cowgirls played the Utes in February and defeated Utah 4-3.

NCAA...

Continued from page 1

Now the Cowboys have another shot with their two midweek foes. This time with the aid of their weekend starting arms.

“Regional baseball is a lot different than Tuesday night baseball,” Holliday said. “I think you can take away what you’ve learned across the field, but at the same time, the slate is clean.”

Watts-Brown still holds starting role

OSU’s pitching plan for the Big 12 Tournament was, unorthodox, Holliday said. Given the circumstances of the excess of unrested arms, it was necessary.

Ben Abram made his third start in nine days against TCU in the Big 12 Championship game. Freshman southpaw Brennan Phillips, usually a backend bullpen option for OSU, threw a career outing in a semifinal game against Texas Tech. Even usual Game 1 starting pitcher Juaron Watts-Brown was utilized twice in a bullpen role.