Does anyone else feel recently women have been making constant historic strides in the world of sports? It seems every week there is something new happening that has never been done before in women’s sports and we are here for it!

The latest historic stride was the Women’s College World Series airing on ABC for the first time ever. The segment aired No. 1 Oklahoma against Texas, with the Sooners beating the Longhorns 7-2. ESPN has been dedicating time and investments toward women’s softball to extend coverage over the past few years. Sure enough, the games were aired and people watched! The first day of the Women’s College World Series averaged 813,000 viewers, which made it the most viewed opening day of the tournament since 2008. The Florida versus Oregon State game brought in 901,000 viewers. It’s almost as if, as long as women’s sports are aired, people will watch. What a concept! This has been proven over and over again through women’s softball, soccer, basketball, etc. Finally, platforms like ABC and ESPN are recognizing this.

“To think that we are in a game on ABC is just a wow factor for me personally. For our sport, for women’s athletics, it’s just off the charts. I am really anxious to see what kind of viewership there was because it’s just going to continue to help this whole sport just continue to grow.”

– Oklahoma Head Coach Patty Gaso

It has come down to Oklahoma and Texas in the Women’s World Series Finals. The schedule is below. Be sure to tune in on ESPN and ESPN2 to watch these athletes continue to pave the way for softball and all women’s sports.

WCWS Finals: Oklahoma vs. Texas
Game 1: 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 8 on ESPN
Game 2: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, June 9 on ESPN2
Game 3 (if necessary): 8:30 p.m. Friday, June 10 on ESPN