OKLAHOMA CITY — Wednesday began with yet another congressional hearing about college athletics, this one to discuss the newly introduced Protect College Sports Act in the Senate.“We agree today that college athletics are in crisis,” said Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA), who co-sponsored the bill with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), “and we agree that the system is broken and unsustainable.”Roughly 10 hours later, that same “broken” system produced an adorably wholesome moment here in Oklahoma City. Several hundred young girls stood in the front row of Devon Park, angling yellow softballs over the railing for the arriving Texas Longhorns to sign. Most of them obliged, even ace Teagan Kavan, who was only an hour away from starting Game 1 of the Women’s College World Series finals. She went on to pitch her second straight complete game as defending national champ Texas took Game 1 of the best-of-three series, 7-3.“A lot of people take a lot of time away and spend a lot of money to bring their kids here,” the standout junior pitcher said. “I was that little girl, too, that wanted to meet everybody and see everybody.”A crisis, you say?You’d never know it here, where 12,149 Texas and Texas Tech fans created a football-caliber atmosphere in this softball cathedral, with another 2 million-plus viewers expected to tune in from home. The 14 mostly heart-stopping games preceding the championship have already broken ESPN’s ratings records, even before this heated national championship rematch began.“I get texts (about the WCWS) from all over the world, not only just in this country,” Texas coach and native New Zealander Mike White said. “It’s amazing.”Broken, you say?Can’t say it felt that way at this timeless slice of Americana, where the grandmotherly ushers hand-deliver home run balls to players’ moms, kids do a pizza-box relay race on the field between innings, and a concession-stand hamburger costs $7.50.College softball is having a moment, White said, because fans appreciate how exciting the games are, from the hitters’ speed and power, to the star pitchers’ nasty rise balls, to the strategy behind pitching changes and pinch hitters. All of that is correct. But also, it’s college softball.Two familiar in-state rivals that can’t stand each other, playing for the highest stakes. Stars such as Kavan and Texas Tech’s NiJaree Canady, whom fans have been following since they were freshmen. Fans of other schools rooting against Texas Tech because it’s trying to “buy” a championship. Fans in other parts of the country rooting against Texas because they’re sick of the SEC.The sport has evolved tremendously over the years, but all its core charms remain the same. Just as in football, basketball and other collegiate sports.