{"id":7228,"date":"2023-06-09T16:30:00","date_gmt":"2023-06-09T21:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/?p=7228"},"modified":"2023-06-09T16:30:00","modified_gmt":"2023-06-09T21:30:00","slug":"grace-lyons-finishes-oklahoma-career-on-top-hitting-go-ahead-home-run","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/grace-lyons-finishes-oklahoma-career-on-top-hitting-go-ahead-home-run\/","title":{"rendered":"Grace Lyons finishes Oklahoma career on top, hitting go-ahead home run"},"content":{"rendered":"

OKLAHOMA CITY<\/strong> \u2013 No one was more ready to be the hero for Oklahoma Thursday night than shortstop Grace Lyons.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

The fifth-year senior has been here before \u2013 five times to be exact. She\u2019s played on the biggest stage, having won two national titles before Thursday. So when she stepped to the plate in the top of the fifth inning with a chance to help her team win a third straight national championship, she was unfazed by the moment.\u00a0<\/p>\n

And at that moment, she left her final legacy as a Sooner, hitting the go-ahead home run to help Oklahoma beat Florida State in the Women\u2019s College World Series and win the program\u2019s seventh national title.<\/p>\n

\u201cI mean, the home run was awesome, but just the feelings of coming home to my team and just the joy that a home run can\u2019t bring,\u201d Lyons said. \u201cIt\u2019s all from the Lord. I think it was just a genuine joy as I rounded just knowing that it was a total team effort, and that team is something special.\u201d<\/p>\n

A team captain, Lyons has been the heartbeat of the Oklahoma softball program during the three-peat. She\u2019s one of the best shortstops in recent softball history, winning the 2023 Golden Glove. And was one of OU\u2019s most reliable hitters, posting a .353 career batting average and hitting 58 home runs.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But most of all, Lyons has been the perfect leader for Oklahoma.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI was screaming my head off for her just to be present in that moment, taking it all in, knowing that this could be my last game with Grace Lyons,\u201d junior Tiare Jennings<\/a><\/strong> said. \u201cJust being on the field, I smiled and looked at her because there\u2019s nobody better than Grace Lyons. Just her personality, who she is, how she carries herself. She\u2019s taught me everything in life. But she\u2019s been my go-to and my rock here. To see her do that, it was the best thing ever.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coach Patty Gasso<\/a> has said having Lyons on her team is like having another coach. She demands excellence from her teammates and instills a purpose in them to be great. And she\u2019s unafraid to share her faith, which has become a rallying point for the Sooners.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI think Grace Lyons came to college softball wanting to leave a more different impact than what players usually want to leave on their programs,\u201d sophomore Jordy Bahl<\/a><\/strong> said. \u201cShe\u2019s done just that.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Lyons wasn\u2019t emotional postgame, despite the several questions about this being her last game in the crimson and cream. Instead, she was joyful, focused, and grateful. She\u2019s thankful for the ride and the memories, like Thursday, that\u2019ll last a lifetime.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s surreal,\u201d Lyons said. \u201cToday I definitely was thinking of the possibility that it was my last game, playing in this uniform. Just the emotions that come with that. It\u2019s so cool to know that these players saw that my legacy, my intention, and my legacy was going to be different. That means so much to me, more than any softball hit, home run, play, like that speaks volumes.\u201d<\/p>\n

While her time at Oklahoma may be over, her purpose beyond the softball field is just beginning. And if it\u2019s anything like her softball career, it\u2019s sure to be special.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI know Grace Lyons,\u201d Gasso said, \u201cyou have not heard the last of her.\u201d<\/p>\n

The post Grace Lyons finishes Oklahoma career on top, hitting go-ahead home run<\/a> appeared first on On3<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

OKLAHOMA CITY \u2013 No one was more ready to be the hero for Oklahoma Thursday…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7228","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7228","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7228"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7228\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7228"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7228"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/demo.wztzfm.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7228"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}