Tennessee softball took down the defending national champions, Texas, in the opening day of the 2026 Women’s College World Series on Thursday afternoon. Now, it’s set to face last year’s runner-up, Texas Tech, in the 1-0 game.
The game isn’t just intriguing due to the impact winning has on the chances of advancing to the national championship series, too. It also means a matchup against Taylor Pannell, a former Lady Vol who controversially entered the transfer portal for the Red Raiders this past offseason.
Pannell spent three seasons with Tennessee, proving to be one of the team’s finest hitters during her final redshirt-sophomore season. In 2025, she posted a .398 batting average with 16 home runs on the WCWS squad.
Then, shortly after the conclusion of the season, she entered the transfer portal and promptly committed to Texas Tech. While UT head coach Karen Weekly didn’t specify it was about Pannell in the post, she took to her X account to give her thoughts on the state of softball after the announcement.
“I think we can all agree on 2 things:” Weekly wrote. “1) women making money in sports is awesome and long overdue; 2) contacting players (directly or indirectly) before their season ends and signing them to NIL deals before they enter the portal is wrong. Money isn’t the issue – tampering is!”
I think we can all agree on 2 things: 1) women making money in sports is awesome and long overdue; 2) contacting players (directly or indirectly) before their season ends and signing them to NIL deals before they enter the portal is wrong. Money isn’t the issue – tampering is!
Advertisement— Karen Weekly (@KarenWeekly) June 13, 2025
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This year, Pannell is hitting at a .354 clip in 65 appearances and starts. She has also belted 12 home runs to drive in 57 runs and score 59 herself.
As a team, Texas Tech finished 58-7 (21-3 Big 12) and earned the No. 11 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The Red Raiders survived a scare in the regionals before upsetting Florida in the Gainesville Super Regional and fending off Mississippi State, which upset Oklahoma in the supers, in the opening game of the WCWS.
“I mean, just a super talented team,” Weekly said about Texas Tech. “Again, a team that can go deep in pitching. Haven’t had to rely on one arm, just like we haven’t had to. A stacked lineup. Up and down all the way through, one through nine. Yeah, I mean, they’ve got everything you would want from a talent perspective.”
First pitch is scheduled for Saturday, May 30, at 3 p.m. ET on ABC.
