Northwestern softball rallies past Arizona State for its 1st Women’s College World Series berth since 2007

Northwestern rallied from a five-run deficit to beat Arizona State 8-6 on Sunday night and earn the final berth in the Women’s College World Series.

It’s the sixth WCWS appearance for the NU softball program and the first since 2007. The eight-team, double-elimination tournament begins Thursday in Oklahoma City, with the best-of-three championship series starting June 8.

The Wildcats will face top seed and defending champion Oklahoma in the tournament’s opening game (1:30 p.m., ESPN). The Sooners have won four of the last eight national titles, and slugger Jocelyn Alo is the reigning USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year and the Division I career home run leader.

After trailing 5-0 through three innings, the Wildcats scored four runs in the fourth and one each in the fifth and sixth to take the lead in Game 3 of the NCAA super regional in Tempe, Ariz.

A pair of insurance runs in the seventh provided enough cushion for pitcher Danielle Williams, who allowed six hits, walked five and struck out seven. The Sun Devils scored one in the seventh and brought the winning run to the plate before Williams got out of the jam.

Catcher Jordyn Rudd led the NU offense, going 4-for-5 with three RBIs, while shortstop Maeve Nelson had three hits and third baseman Hannah Cady hit her 10th home run of the season.

The rest of the WCWS field has UCLA, Texas, Florida, Oregon State, Oklahoma State and Arizona.