Softball

WCWS MOP Jordy Bahl finds boldness in Christ as she transfers from Oklahoma

By Joshua Doering Jun 12, 2023
Oklahoma pitcher Jordy Bahl, right, celebrates with teammates, June 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

All-American pitcher Jordy Bahl didn’t arrive at Oklahoma in 2022 thinking about how many national championships she was going to win. She said on the Sports Spectrum Podcast before the 2023 season that she picked the Sooners in large part because of the program’s authenticity and family feel.

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A fiery competitor, Bahl also wanted a chance to test herself against some of the nation’s top hitters when she went to practice every day.

“I knew that at Oklahoma I was going to be challenged day in and day out,” Bahl said last week after OU won another national title. “There were going to be amazing players around you, pushing you every single day. And iron sharpens iron. I was going to have the opportunity to throw to the best lineup in the country at practice every day and as a pitcher, that made me really excited.”

Two years into her college career, she is a two-time national champion having won 120 of her 124 games in an Oklahoma uniform. However, she announced Monday that she has “decided to return home” to Nebraska. The Papillion, Nebraska, native was originally committed to the University of Nebraska before ultimately switching to OU.

“I have decided to return home and play the game I love, close to the things that have made me who I am and that have always been more important to me than this game,” she wrote on social media. “The most important thing in my life after my faith, is my family.”

Bahl scored a run and pitched the final nine outs of Thursday’s 3-1 victory over Florida State that capped off a 61-1 season and extended the Sooners’ record winning streak to 53 games. Bahl, who also threw a complete-game shutout in the opening game of the championship series on Wednesday, was named Most Outstanding Player of the Women’s College World Series.

On Saturday, Bahl took some time to reflect on the season, in which she allowed one earned run in 33 innings during the postseason, finishing the season with a 0.90 ERA and a 22-1 record. She gave glory to God and included lyrics from Casting Crowns’ song “Nobody” in an Instagram post.

“Lord may we forever be unapologetic of the Spirit and the boldness you fill us with. May we take up our cross everyday and live for you,” she wrote.

 

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A post shared by Jordyn Bahl (@jordybahl)

Growing up in a Christian family, Bahl knew about God but did not understand what it meant to have a personal relationship with Him until high school. The strong culture of faith within the Oklahoma program has helped her grow even closer to the Lord.

“The bond developed with these girls can never, and will never be broken. My sisters in Christ,” she wrote Monday. “My respect for this program and how they do things the right way, and play the game with an unapologetic passion are all things I have learned and will take with me. My heart is full of gratitude and love for the girls, coaches and people at the University of Oklahoma.”

In Thursday’s postgame press conference, Bahl praised her teammates for remaining unified and remaining grounded in their faith as the pressure mounted.

“I’m just proud of how we’ve stuck together through pressure, adversity, and just have ultimately been one strong, cohesive unit that has — at the end of the day — taken that pressure and given the glory to the Lord and been able to still play free and play together and find joy in things outside of the playing field,” she said.

For Bahl, she now aims to bring some of that culture to Nebraska.

“I am excited to return home and be Jordy Bahl the softball player, but more importantly the person. I am excited thinking about growing the game that has provided me so many opportunities for growth, in the home state, a current overlooked state for girls in softball at all ages, and I am excited to finish the softball journey right were it began,” she wrote.

Bahl was a two-time Gatorade Nebraska Player of the Year (2019-20 and 2020-21) while playing for Papillion-LaVista High School. She was also the 2020-21 Gatorade National Softball Player of the Year and the consensus No. 1 prospect in the class of 2021.

Bahl’s 22-1 record in the 2023 season matched her pitching record in 2022 as a freshman, when she was a first-team All-American and the National Freshman of the Year. For 2023, Bahl was one of five Sooners to be named to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association’s All-American first team.

RELATED STORIES: 
– SS PODCAST: Oklahoma pitcher Jordy Bahl, coach JT Gasso on softball, faith, success
– Oklahoma softball led by freshman ace Jordy Bahl, who plays for ‘audience of One’
– Oklahoma softball completes historic 3-peat with eyes on Christ
– Oklahoma softball earns Division-I record 48th straight win: ‘All the glory to God’
– Led by faith, Oklahoma softball caps dominant season with second straight national title

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