Who are best 24 NCAA softball players at WCWS this century? Meet Jocelyn Alo & Co.

We're counting down the days until we've once again reached the mecca of college softball.

The Women's College World Series returns to Devon Park in Oklahoma City on May 30. The chase for the NCAA title will once again command the spotlight.

With stars such as Arizona's Jennie Finch and OU's Jocelyn Alo, the sport has undergone a transformation this century. New facilities and stadium expansions dot the landscape, thanks in part to those household names.

“She's just really raw with excitement and love for the game,” OU coach Patty Gasso told The Oklahoman in 2022, “and her exuberance just is fun to watch. … I think Jocelyn Alo is a big reason why this sport has gone to another level. People come here to watch her like she's Babe Ruth.”

Here's a look at the top 24 players at the WCWS this century:

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Monica Abbott, Tennessee (2005-07)

The Tennessee ace is among the best players in WCWS history to miss out on winning the NCAA title. Abbott — who led the Vols to a runner-up finish in 2007 — was a three-time, All-Tournament team selection. She had 10 wins over three seasons in the WCWS with eight shutouts and one no-hitter (in 2007 vs. Texas A&M). Abbott went 10-6 at the WCWS with 118 careers innings pitched and 160 strikeouts.

Jocelyn Alo, OU (2018-19, 2021-22)

Alo holds WCWS records for career hits (32), home runs (12) and total bases (74). No one else has more than eight career WCWS home runs. Alo’s best performance came as a senior in 2022 when she was 12 of 18 (.667) with five home runs, 12 runs and 13 RBIs.

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Jordy Bahl, OU (2022-23)

During her Sooners career, Bahl was 5-0 with a 0.83 ERA in 33⅔ innings in the WCWS. Bahl wasn’t at 100% for the 2022 WCWS but made the start in the WCWS-clinching win over Texas. In 2023, Bahl turned in one of the most dominating performances in WCWS history, going 4-0 with a 0.00 ERA, 33 strikeouts and just three strikeouts in 24⅔ innings.

Rylie Boone, OU (2021-23)

Boone’s .515 career batting average is the second-highest in WCWS career history. She scored eight runs in the 2022 WCWS, and has 14 in her career, tied for seventh. In 2022, Boone was 8 of 16. Last year, she was 7 of 14 with two doubles, three runs and two RBIs, leading the WCWS in total bases with 11.

Lauren Chamberlain, OU (2012-14)

Chamberlain hit a then-WCWS record six home runs and had 42 career total bases in the event, tied for third all-time. Only Jocelyn Alo and Tiare Jennings have more in either category. Chamberlain's 22 total bases in 2013 are sixth-most all-time, and her .933 slugging percentage is behind only Alo.

Stacie Chambers, Arizona (2008-10)

The power-hitting Arizona catcher had one of the best Women's College World Series runs ever in 2010, blasting four home runs — including a pair of two-run homers in the final against UCLA. She drove in 10 runs that WCWS, leading the Wildcats to a runner-up appearance.

Jennie Finch, Arizona (1999-2002)

Finch, the Arizona ace and one of the faces of the sport, won the NCAA Tournament's Most Outstanding Player award as a senior in 2001. She made the WCWS four times with the Wildcats from 1999-2002. Finch closed out the Wildcats' 2001 season with a 1-0 shutout of UCLA in the final, capping her perfect 32-0 season with an 0.54 ERA.

Samantha Findlay, Michigan (2005)

Findlay had a freshman campaign for the ages, as the first baseman led the Wolverines past UCLA for the WCWS title in 2005. She hit .409 with a home run and eight RBIs in seven games in OKC. Her 11 total bases against UCLA tied a WCWS single-game record.

Rachel Garcia, UCLA (2017-19, 2021)

The Bruin ace was the Most Outstanding Player in 2019 — the last non-COVID year that OU didn't win the title. Garcia is tied for third place all-time with games pitched in the WCWS, posting a 9-5 record. She had 112 strikeouts in 97 innings.

Keira Goerl, UCLA (2001-04)

Goerl's 11 wins only trail fellow UCLA legend Debbie Doom (12) all-time in WCWS history. In leading the Bruins to back-to-back national titles in 2003-04, Goerl posted a 9-1 record with only eight earned runs allowed in 80 innings pitched.

Lauren Haeger, Florida (2013-15)

A two-way star on the Gators' back-to-back championship teams in 2014-15, Haeger earned Most Outstanding Player honors with an epic run in 2015. She went 4-1 with a 1.17 ERA while also hitting .571 with three home runs and seven RBIs.

Alicia Hollowell, Arizona (2003, 2005-06)

Hollowell had one of the most absurd stat lines you will ever see in 2005, going 1-2 with a 0.24 ERA in 28⅔ innings pitched. A year later, she went 5-1 with a 0.33 ERA and 64 strikeouts in 43 innings en route to Most Outstanding Player honors at the WCWS.

Tiare Jennings, OU (2021-23)

Jennings had a WCWS-record 15 RBIs in the 2022 event and has 24 career WCWS hits, tied for seventh all time. Her eight career WCWS home runs are second all-time behind only former teammate Jocelyn Alo. Jennings tied Alo’s WCWS record for total bases in a game with 11 in 2022 and Alo’s record for home runs in one WCWS with five.

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Shay Knighten, OU (2016-19)

Knighten earned 2017 WCWS Most Outstanding Player honors, and turned in one of the most memorable performances in WCWS history in the first game of the championship series. In that game against Florida, Knighten belted a go-ahead three-run homer in the 17th inning to help lift the Sooners to the win and then she hit a go-ahead three-run double in the second game to help the Sooners win the title.

Kelly Kretschman, Alabama (2000)

Now an assistant coach at Texas State, Kretschman hit a school-record 25 home runs in 2000 to lead the Crimson Tide to its first WCWS appearance in school history. She was the first All-American in school history and remains atop the Tide's leaderboard in numerous offensive categories.

Megan Langenfeld, UCLA

Langenfeld was an on-base machine for the Bruins, hitting a stunning .706 (12 for 17) with four homers, eight runs scored and nine RBIs in the 2010 WCWS. She added three wins in the circle en route to Most Outstanding Player honors for the champion Bruins.

Danielle Lawrie, Washington (2007, 2009-10)

Lawrie led the Huskies past Florida in the 2009 finals, earning MOP honors along the way. She went 5-1 with a 1.88 ERA and 49 strikeouts in 44⅔ innings pitched in the WCWS. Her 11 complete games and 101 strikeouts are among the top 10 in each category in WCWS history.

Caitlin Lowe, Arizona (2005-07)

Lowe helped lead the Wildcats to back-to-back NCAA championships in 2006-07 and remains in the top 10 in all-time hits (21) at the WCWS. She is one of only five players to have a four-hit game at the WCWS, doing so against Tennessee in 2007.

Michelle Moultrie, Florida (2009-11)

Moultrie hit .432 (16 for 37) in her three WCWS appearances, eighth-best all-time among players with at least 30 at-bats. Her .811 slugging percentage is also the fifth-highest among qualifying players. In 2011, Moultrie hit .542 with seven RBIs, nine runs and four home runs, also stealing three bases, to share Most Outstanding Player honors.

Taryne Mowatt, Arizona (2006-08)

Mowatt’s earned a WCWS-record six wins during her 2007 Most Outstanding Player-winning performance, throwing eight complete games and striking out a record 76 batters and recording a 0.47 ERA. In the 2006 WCWS Championship Series, she went 5 for 7 at the plate, with her .714 average still tied for third all-time for the championship.

Stacey Nuveman, UCLA (1997, 1999, 2001-02)

Nuveman was one of the sport’s first superstars of the century, returning to UCLA after helping Team USA win gold in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. Nuveman’s numbers aren’t overwhelming by today’s standards, and she only hit one career WCWS home run, but Nuveman still was a force for the Bruins during her appearances. In 2001, Nuveman drew a then-WCWS record nine walks.

Cat Osterman, Texas (2003, 2005-06)

One of the top pitchers this century, Osterman's 140 strikeouts are third-most in WCWS history. She has two of the most dominant performances in the circle at the WCWS — striking out 19 Arizona batters (in 11 innings) in a single game in 2005 and 18 Arizona State batters in one game a year later.

Keilani Ricketts, OU (2011-13)

Ricketts earned 2013 WCWS Most Outstanding Player honors, going 4-0 with a 1.35 ERA while also hitting .412 with two home runs, six RBIs and five runs. She threw a no-hitter against Michigan and later threw 12 innings against Tennessee in the championship series. Her 112 career WCWS strikeouts are tied for sixth all-time.

Natasha Watley, UCLA (2000-03)

Watley had a then-WCWS record 11 hits in 2003 and remains tied for fourth in WCWS career hits with 24. In 2003, she was 6 for 13 (.462), by far top hitter in the event. The next season, she was 11 for 25 (.440).

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: NCAA softball tournament: Who are top WCWS players in the 2000s?