6/4/24 Hour 2 Segment 2: Craig plays a interview of Texas Women's Softball Head Coach Mike White

Episode Transcript

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We are back. It's The CraigWay Show with Hall of Fame broadcaster and
voice of the Texas Long Parts CraigTuesday afternoon here on the program and also
keeping you updated on what's going onthe Florida Gators Leady Oklahuma Shooters five to

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four Florida batting in the top ofthe sixth inning. This is the elimination
or bracket championship game. Bracket one, I guess it would be. You
know, it's a little bit interestingin some might even think a little bit
confusing the way that the brackets areexecuted at the Women's College World Series,
because basically what it is is,just like the men's College World Series in

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Omaha, you have two different bracketsthat are a double elimination brackets, and
the two teams that emerge from thosetwo brackets, Bracket one and Bracket two,
play for the national championship best twoout of three. It's double elimination
on each side of that. However, unlike the College World Series in Omaha,

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where you just play out the fourteams in your bracket into one team
emerges with only one loss or less, and same thing with the other bracket,
the Women's College World Series when theyget the first two winners of elimination
games, they flip the bracket towhere the teams that won their first elimination

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games go to the other bracket.They used to do this with a College
World Series for the men in forbaseball and Omaha, where it would kind
of flip the bracket upside down.The whole reasoning behind it is so teams
could have different matchups and I likeit. But like, for example,
Florida was on the Texas side ofthe bracket. Florida was able to win

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its College World Series game over OklahomaState on the first night on Thursday.
Texas of course beat Stanford, soTexas and Florida played on Saturday and Texas
won that game. Any other bracket, Ucla defeated Alabama, Oklahoma defeated Duke,
then Oklahoma beat Ucla just like Texasbeat Florida advanced the semifinals. So

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then UCLA was left to play Alabamain elimination game in Bracket one. Ucla
won that and Stanford was left toplay Oklahoma State in a bracket game.
Stanford won that that was on Fridaynight. Then they flipped the bracket.

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Stanford played Ucla, Florida played OklahomaState or Florida had already lost to Texas.
Stanford played Ucla then and the winnerof that game was Stamford, so
they played Texas and Oklahoma then playedFlorida, who had won an elimination game
against Oklahoma State. So Florida playedOklahoma in the semifinals. So they basically

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took the two teams that advanced throughelimination games and then flipped them to play
the two unbeaten teams. So that'show Florida, who has already played and
lost to Texas, winds up playingOklahoma even though they were in the other
bracket. And that's how Texas playedStamford twice because they had beaten Ucla in
an elimination game. If Ucla hadwon, they would have come out of

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Bracket one to play Texas. Lastnight in the semifinals. Didn't happen.
It was Stamford again. Texas wonthat they're onto the championship and they're waiting
on the winner of this game.With Florida batting in the top of the
sixth inning and holding a five fourlead on Oklahoma. Now it's a day
off for the Loghorns. And sothat gave our man, Andrew Haynes,
an opportunity to catch up with LongWorn players and head coach Mike White.

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Here on this off day there wasa press conference. I'm sure they did
an off site practice thing loose,but here's the conversation with our own Andrew
Haynes with the head coach of LongWorn Saftball, Mike White. Coach,
Man, what a game yesterday?One nothing win over Stanford Pittures duel throughout?
What was it like watching that thatold school, you know, back
and forth shut outs both sides fora while game. Yeah, definitely just

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had that feeling right from the stadt. Both pictures were in control. Nag
you had a little extra on itthat day and you know, made us
swinging some bad pitches and she wasusing to change up a lot more and
just kind of had that feeling itwas going to go dan to whoever made
the mistake? Did it? Didit feel like it was just, you
know, one run was all thatyou needed. Well about that, I'd
like more, And especially in thatinning when we scored the one and we

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had an opportunity to score a fewmore, I mean, we weren't able
to do it. But she justbuckled down and really took care of business
and just happy to come away withone run and more thanated. Was was
that the plan? You know,the bunt being laid down, it looked
like a safety squeeze. Was itexecuted? To your Like, what'd you
think of how that played out?Yeah? I mean you just net even
know how it's going to work out. I mean I didn't feel confident in

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a straight squeeze at that point,you know. So it was just basically
the third basement was down quite along way, and when you could take
a pretty good lead and just beable to see what happens and had worse,
we'd end up with second and thirdand one out, and hopefully what
would happen to the throw home?We wouldn't go home, and then they
would have loaded bases, you know, with the top our order back up.
But fortunately, you know, Alyssagot into a rundown something we practiced

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a lot, and she's going tomake a really good slide at home plate.
Did she intentionally get into that runoutbecause it looked like she could get
back to third base safely without athrow, and then she just turned around
and busted for the plate. Yeah, that was kind of her call on
that one. You know what shewas going to do. I thought she
could have got back to third safe, but you know, she decided to
go the other way, and youknow, hey, who knows it worked

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out. So man teaking Cavan afreshman, two one hit shutouts of the
World Series. What have you seenfrom her, you know, overall stepping
upper game? Yeah, just theability to use her change up in big
moment, some big situations. Ithink both pitches really showed that even though
they've got really good rise balls,they're able to use their other pitches when
needed and that kind of keeps thosehitters guessing. And that's what she's been

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able to do. Right now.And your team's going into the Championship Series
with a day off. The othertwo teams, because of that weather yesterday,
have to play today, Oklahoma andFlorida. How much of a benefit
do you think it is to getthat day off and have them play and
probably use their aces ahead of facingyou tomorrow. Well, we certainly have
a fresh pitching staff right now.I mean, even teaguing with another day
off, She's only pitched twice inthe whole week, and of course mac

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morgan just the one time one timeand said a lot of good tarians,
so it should be fresh as well. So we'll have three pitches to choose
from for the rest of the series. And everyone's in healthy, good shape,
and obviously the mental part of therisk as big as well. Your
team two years ago made that unseededrun of the Champs Series. No one
really expected them to be here,this team, number one national seed.

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What's it been like, you know, handling the expectations and you know,
keeping them on level ground and justplaying their game. I know, from
my point of view, it seemslike we've been here forever and just played
three games. But you know,that's a good luxury of being the winness
bracket and be able to go allthe way through. So we'll see what
happens. We've got some practice scheduletomorrow early, hit around and then get

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our minds back into it tonight.What have a team meeting, talk about
who we're going to face, becausewe'll know then and get ourselves by pied.
Yeah. So there it is thethoughts Mike White getting his team ready
for this matchup tomorrow night. AndI don't know who it's going to be
yet, I'm just looking at athing on the screen. So the last

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time Oklahoma lost back to back NCAATournament games just twenty nineteen. The last
time they were not at least inthe championship round of the Women's College World
Series was six years ago. Youthink about that, twenty eighteen was the
last time Oklahoma was not in thechamp Now, of course, there wasn't
a Women's College World Series in twentytwenty. It was a pandemic. Everybody

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went through all of that. ButBill nineteen, twenty one, twenty two,
and twenty three. So they've beenin four consecutive and four consecutive National
Championship Series. If they win thisgame today, it'll be five straight years
in the National Championship Round. Butthey've also never lost consecutive games at the

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Women's College World Series ever, sothat would be shocky. After losing to
Florida yesterday, well right now,Florida's up five to four as Oklahoma is
leading off in the bottom of thesixth inning. Sydney Sanders, who had
the two run homer to pull theSooners closer when they were down five to
two to five to four at theplate, leading it off so we'll keep
you posting because the winner of thatis going to take on Texas for the

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National Championship Series. All right,so you mentioned Cole about being a Giants
fan as well. What do youmake of this San Francisco team this year?
Now, I have no comment.I think we're even trying to be
facetious on that. I think AaronJudge is part owner now. Just based

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off that last series they had withthis Yankees and yeah, it's I mean
looking at it now with Juan Soto, Aaron Judge and they say it's not
a hitter's ballpark. I was like, you see, that's the thing going
forward with free agents and everyone.They said, oh, well, you
know, I think it's Oracle Parknow now or yeah, it's not a

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hitter's ballpark. No, I don'tbelieve that one bit. Just look at
the last series the Giants played againstthe Yankees. It's it's a hitter's ballpark.
Yeah, exactly, but it's ait's a dumpster fire. I'll say
that. Blake was Blake Snow yeahback again. So he hasn't gotten past

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what five innings or four and athird? Uh, so you know it's
it's one of those I buried myhead in the sand. I keep myself
busy and uh, every I'll getupdates here and there, but I just
I tend to not look kind oflike a car crash. Yeah, but
sometimes you can't help, but lookat it, right, at a car
crash. You can't do that.Yeah, you can't help, but do

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that. Okay, So let meask you this then, because since I've
been in Texas obviously, like Isaid, I'm a very much an avowed
and loyal Dodger fan, have beensince I was nine years old, and
have been to two World Series games. One they lost. That was the
final game in twenty nineteen when theRed Sox beat them, or twenty eighteen

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when the Red Sox beat them MookieBets Mookie Bets with the Red Sox then
back at that time, and thenin twenty twenty Game one during the pandemic
are coming well during the pandemic really, but in Arlington, I had good
tickets for Game one when Kershaw andthe Dodgers beat the Raising Game one,
so that was really cool on that. But having said all that, I

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do kind of root for the Rangeras an alternate team, partly because when
I worked up in the Metroplex forall the years that I did. One
of my assignments at the news radiostation up there was to be out at
the ballpark at the old Arlington Stadiumand then the Rangers Ballpark. I actually
even hosted the Rangers TV show innineteen ninety seven. I did that as

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well, So I, you know, I've had this connection with them and
got to know a lot of thefront office people, so I do root
for them. You know, it'skind of a safe routing. They're over
in the American League and they areplaying the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium this year.
They did play them in Arlington.Linda and I went up for a
game last year and saw the Dodgersbeat them in a game last year.
But they're kind of a safe rootinginterest because they're over in the other LAG

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and they got Corey Seeger who wasstarted off with a Dodger. So I
root for them as they're my backuprooting interest. I guess it's the best
way to describe it. So doyou have you adopted any backup rooting interest
from the state of Texas for anyof the other teams and Rangers, are
there because of Bruce Bochie that connection. Oh yeah there, Yeah, it's

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rooting for them. And then Itook two or three online classes at UT,
so I root for ut Okay,I'll go for that. Okay,
but yeah, the A's too.But it's it's so hard with the A's.
I want to love them, Ido. I want to I want
to support them. But yeah,that's just a safe rooting interesting for each
when they do the bay Bridge series. Yeah, the bird Bridge series.
That's that's always fun, but it'sjust so hard, especially with with what's

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going on now and then probably moving. The safer bet for me is the
Rangers. Okay, all right,have you ever been to a game at
Globe Life. No, you shouldgo. You'd be you'd actually be surprised
at how you'd kind of enjoy theexperience. It's it looks like a big
barbecue grill from outside. I getit, you know, it's uh,
I understand that it doesn't look thatattract on the outside. It's very fan

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friendly and comfortable and inside. Now, I will tell you this as a
broadcaster way up high to call abig twelve tournament up there, you get
used to it, but you're ataltitude up there. But it's it's good
and obviously lots of great ballpark cuisineand all that other kind of stuff as
well. So yeah, you know, I went to a Giants game.
I was back home for a wedding. Went to a Giants game before I

(13:11):
flew out. My only issue,and I get it, but I don't
like it. The pricing is whatever. But it's cashless. Yeah everything.
I don't like that, yeah,one bit. So if I know go,
if I'm going to go to agame, I got to figure out.
If it's cash, make sure youget your card loaded up. Yeah,
exactly. But prid what they haveat Arlington they have machines and you've

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seen these. I've seen these whereyou load cash into a machine. Moody.
You have to do it at Moody. Yeah, load cash in a
machine and it loads it onto yourcard, right, or it gives you
a card or whatever it is thatdoes that. Linda got me away from
cash during the pandemic. I wascash. I was cash money all the
time. I was. I boughta car with cash once, so did

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I my car. Now I boughtwith the household furniture with cash. What
back in the day, I didthat when she she's like, can I
bring you into the twenty first century, I'm like, okay, all right.
And since then I've gotten quite usedto it, you know, but
still, you know, every nowand then cash comes in handing cash is
king when you're when you're getting yourcar brought up from a valet. Nice

(14:18):
to be able to tip somebody todo that. I'm a guy. I
believe in the service industry. Ibrother and sister in law who worked at
Casino in Las Vegas for for manymany years, and so I believe in
the service industry. I know.So it's good to have it. Do
you tip your Brisa, I say, I see you got Starbucks this morning?
I do. I do everything onthe app, okay, but do
you tip? Do you tip thebris though? Oh yeah, yeah I

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do. Sometimes I regret it ifI get there and it's not ready and
it's something really simple. But Iusually do at least at least a small
percentage on that. All right,Yeah, I always do that. It's
it's a service industry world, youknow. I know they're just doing their
job, YadA YadA. Yeah,I know, but you know, especially
if it's a Starbucks that I goto regularly and I know who they get

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they are, so yeah, Itry to do that, all right.
It is still five four Oklahoma,excuse me, five for Florida. Five
for Florida. Oklahoma batting two outs, bottom of the sixth inning, they
have the tying run at second base. We'll keep you update as we continue
on sports Radio AM thirteen under thezone of the iHeartRadio app.