University of Texas Athletics

By Ray Hamill — Hailey Dolcini has described the support she has received from fans back home as “the best feeling in the world.”

The Ferndale native will lead Texas into the championship series at the Women’s College World Series on Wednesday evening, the first time an unseeded team has made it this far in the NCAA tournament and the first time a player from Humboldt County has made it this far.

The Longhorns will play the No. 1 team in the nation and the defending national champion, Oklahoma, in the best-of-three series, with game one set for 5:30 p.m.

And Dolcini has expressed her gratitude to the fans on the North Coast who have been following her historic journey.

“The support from back home has been amazing,” she told Humboldt Sports from Oklahoma City this week. “Every time we finish a game I have 100 text messages and multiple Facebook shoutouts from everyone back home. It’s the best feeling in the world.”

Dolcini has posted six playoff victories over the past three weeks, including an impressive five wins over top-11 teams in the nation.

She is 3-1 at the WCWS over the past week.

The championship series will be televised live on ESPN.