Tide Softball Hosts Two Squads Tuesday in Tuscaloosa
4/2/2007 12:00:00 AM | Softball
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. ?? The Alabama softball team will host two teams for a doubleheader on Tuesday at the Alabama Softball Complex. They will play Northwestern State at 4 p.m. and Florida Atlantic at 6 p.m. The Tide are coming off a series win over No. 22 Georiga and a 4-1 week in which they scored 47 runs. The Demons won two of three against Nicholls State over the weekend and scored 20 runs in the three games. The Owls swept a doubleheader with South Alabama on Saturday.
Scouting the Opponents
Northwestern State: The Demons enter Tuesday with a record of 19-20 on the season. They have played a grueling schedule with the likes of Arizona State, Oklahoma and Louisiana Lafayette. Amanda Glenn is the leading player on the squad. She is batting .287 with 10 home runs and 35 RBI while also posting a 2.80 ERA and 11-9 record. Lyndsey Gorski is batting .347 to lead the team.
Florida Atlantic: The Owls are 22-14 and have a 4-0 victory over Texas A&M on their resume. The have won five of their last six games. Mandie Fishback leads the team in hitting with a .330 avg., three home runs and 21 RBI. Jen Musillo is 9-7 with a 1.14 ERA and 131 strikeouts on the the season.
Series History
Alabama leads the all-time series against both schools with a 2-0 mark against Northwestern State and a 4-1 record against Florida Atlantic. The Tide swept a doubleheader against the Demons in 2005, winning 2-1 and 7-2. Alabama beat Florida Atlantic 7-0 last year and 2-1 in 2005. The only loss to the Owls came in 2002 in the NCAA Regional at Tallahassee.
Last Meeting
The Crimson Tide swept a doubleheader in 2005 against Northwestern State. They managed only three hits in the first game but won 2-1. In the second contest, Alabama drew 11 walks with Jordan Praytor and Dani Woods each walking three times. Last season the Tide played at a tournament hosted by Florida Atlantic last season and won 7-0., Ashley Holcome went 2-for-3 with three RBI and a run scored to lead Bama. The Two teams also met in 2005 with the Tide winning 2-1. Chrissy Owens pitched three innings in relief and allowed just one hit with five strikeouts to pick up her fifth win of the season.
Last Time Out
Alabama won two of three contests to take the series with No. 22 Georgia last weekend in Tuscaloosa. After losing a tough first game, 2-1, in nine innings, the Tide bounced back with 19 runs in the final two games. They trailed 1-0 in the second game but poured on 10 runs in the second inning to blow the Bulldogs away, 10-2, in five innings. Charlotte Morgan hit a grand slam and Dani Woods a two-run home run in the inning. Georgia hit a home run on the first pitch of the game, but Lauren Parker had a big day going 4-for-4 with two doubles, three runs scored and three RBI to lead Bama to a 9-2 victory.
UA on TV
The Crimson Tide have played several games on TV this season and will have all three games against Auburn televised this weekend. Friday's doubleheader will start at 5:30 p.m. with both games being aired locally on WVUA. Saturday's contest will also be shown on WVUA with a 2 p.m. start time. Crimson Tide Ranked No. 3 Alabama is ranked No. 3 in the country in the USA Today/NFCA Top-25. They went 4-1 last week with two wins coming over No. 22 Georgia. The Tide swept a doubleheader with Louisiana Tech to begin the week. They are ranked fourth in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Top-25.
Home Sweet Home
Alabama had its 30-game home winning streak snapped last weekend with an extra-inning loss to Georgia. The are now 24-1 at home this season. Now in the 11th year of the program, the Tide owns a career record of 214-38, a winning percentage of .849. Season ticket sales are at an all-time high with over 1,100 sold for the first time in program history. Last season Alabama went an incredible 30-4 at home with an undefeated 5-0 during the NCAA Tournament.
On Fire
Sophomore second baseman Lauren Parker (Port Neches, Texas) has been on fire in the last two weeks. In nine games she is batting .643 (18-of-28) with two home runs, nine RBI, nine runs scored and three doubles. She has started eight of those nine games and recorded two or more hits seven times. She had two-run home runs in the first inning of both contests against Arkansas, a three-hit game at LSU and a 4-for-4 day with three runs and three RBI Sunday versus Georgia.
Lighting Up the SEC
Lauren Parker was dominant in non-conference games but has maintained her high level of play during the SEC season. In 16 league games, she leads the conference with a .480 batting average and .518 on-base percentage. She is 24-of-50 with three home runs and 13 RBI. She leads the team in SEC play with 13 runs scored and four doubles. She has also walked three times and been hit by a pitch twice.
What a Difference a Year Makes
Last season Lauren Parker played in 30 games at Baylor and hit .266 with 10 RBI but this season she has been on a tear, leading the team in several categories and ranking among the SEC leaders. She leads the team and the SEC with a .490 batting avg. to go with 47 hits, 34 runs, seven doubles, two triples, eight home runs and 35 RBI. She has recorded an .854 slugging pct. in 34 starts and a .536 on-base percentage. She has also been effective on the basepaths with 11 stolen bases. Morgan a
Menace at the Plate
Freshman Charlotte Morgan (Moreno Valley, Calif.) lost her 11-game hitting streak on Sunday but has recorded a hit in 13 of the 16 conference games. In her last 18 games she is batting .392 (20-of-51) with 16 runs, 19 RBI, six home runs and six walks. After 16 SEC games she is batting .340 and leads the team with five home runs and 16 RBI to go along with 12 runs scored. She has hit home runs against six of the Tide's last seven opponents and has one in five of Bama's six SEC series. She has raised her season avg. to .367 (33-of-90) with seven home runs and 27 RBI to go along with 21 runs, five doubles and 16 walks.
Grand Slam
Alabama players have hit 18 grand slams in the program's 11-year history. Two of the 18 have been hit in 2007 with both coming in the last week for the Tide. Kellie Eubanks (Prairieville, La.) hit her first carere grand slam against Louisiana Tech to give the Tide a 15-0 victory. On Saturday freshman Charlotte Morgan rounded the bases after her first career grand slam that was part of a 10-run inning in Alabama's 10-2 victory over Georgia.
Undefeated
Senior starting pitcher Blair Potter has a distinction not many collegiate players have. She is undefeated in her Division I career with a 14-0 record at Alabama. Since transferring from Wallace-Dothan Community College, Potter has gone through the ranks without a loss. She has a career 1.75 ERA after posting a 1.37 ERA this season. In 2007 she has recorded one shutout in her 11 starts and has won nine games. She has allowed only 13 earned runs in 66 1/3 innings with 45 hits allowed, 11 walks and 58 strikeouts. Right-handed batters are hitting just .155 against the Tide's first ever left-handed hurler.
Hitting Streaks
A pair of sophomores, Brittany Rogers and Lauren Parker, have each recorded eight-game hitting streaks in SEC play to lead the team. They both hit in all three games against Georgia this past weekend to give them eight straight conference games with a hit. Jordan Praytor has the longest current hitting streak on the team at five, including four straight in SEC competition.
Walk This Way
Sophomore Kellie Eubanks has been patient at the plate this season and leads the team with 20 walks. She currently ranks fifth in the SEC in walks. She has drawn three walks on two occasions this year, most recently against Georgia on Saturday. She has five games this season with two or more walks. Despite her .214 batting average, Eubanks still has a .389 on-base percentage due to the walks.
Patience is a Virtue
The Crimson Tide team has drawn 124 walks on the season and has five players with double-digit walk totals. They have steadily been drawing more and more walks and are now third in the SEC. They lead the conference with 45 walks in league play. Kellie Eubanks leads the team with 20 walks while Mandy Burford has recorded 17 on the season. Charlotte Morgan is next with 16 walks. Jordan Praytor and Kelley Montalvo have 13 walks apiece.
Monty Rounds Out Tide Batting Order
Sophomore third baseman Kelley Montalvo (Miami, Fla.) has batted ninth in the Tide batting order in 26 games this season and is producing like a 3-4-5 hitter. She is batting .333 (30-of-90) with six home runs and 20 RBI. She has scored 25 runs and has six doubles. She has also walked 13 times and has a .419 on-base percentage. In her last 11 games she is batting .429 (12-of-28) with four home runs, nine RBI and seven runs scored. The sophomore has already eclipsed her career highs for runs, doubles, home runs and RBI.
Power Hour
In the first 39 games of the 2007 season, Alabama has hit 50 home runs with 12 of the Tide's 16 batters recording a home run and 10 players hitting two or more. The Tide has hit 22 home runs in the last 14 games. Mandy Burford leads the team with nine home runs. Lauren Parker has eight on the season after not hitting a single home run as a freshman. Charlotte Morgan has hit a home run against six of the last seven opponents and in five of the six SEC series. She has seven on the year while Kelley Montalvo has six with four in the last 11 games. Brittany Rogers hit two inside-the-park home runs, with one coming from the right side and the other from the left. Seven players have hit their first collegiate home run this season including Eubanks, Parker, Rogers, Morgan, Michelle Menningmann, Katie Johnson and most recently Jessica Smith against Seton Hall.
Put the Bat on the Ball
In a total of 1,120 plate appearances this season, Alabama hitters have only struck out 127 times. Only one out of every nine plate appearances has resulted in a strikeout. There have five players who have started over 30 games and have 10 or fewer strikeouts. Lauren Parker has only struck out four times in 108 plate appearances while Charlotte Morgan has gone 107 plate appearances with only four strikeouts. Brittany Rogers has gone down nine times in 131 plate appearances and Kelley Montalvo has nine strikeouts in 104 plate appearances. Ashley Holcombe has struck out 10 times in 89 plate appearances.
Big Innings
One of the big reasons that Alabama is 35-4 this season is the fact that they have scored three or more runs in an inning 36 times. They have had an inning with at least three runs in 24 of the 39 contests. They have two games this season with a 10-run inning with both coming in the second frame. They accomplished the feat against Winthrop and most recently Georgia on Saturday. The 10 runs tied for the second highest run total in a single inning in school history. Alabama has also recorded nine and seven-run innings this season. They have scored six runs five times, five runs five times, four runs eight times and three runs 14 times. They have outscored their opponents 58-6 in the second inning.
SEC Leaders
The Crimson Tide leads the SEC in nine team categories, including batting (.332), runs (277), RBI (232), home runs (50), total bases (533), slugging pct. (.548), OBP (.417), fewest strikeouts (127), stolen bases (109) and pickoffs (4). Ashley Holcombe leads the SEC with four pickoffs, Lauren Parker leads the league with a .490 batting avg. and .536 OBP. Eight other players rank among the top-10 in offensive and pitching categories. In SEC games, Alabama leads the conference in 12 different team categories. Lauren Parker leads the conference in nine different categories in league games, including avg. (.480), slugging pct. (.740), OBP (.518), runs (13), hits (24), total bases (37) and sacrifice flies (1). Charlotte Morgan leads the conference with five home runs and 16 RBI. Five other players are first or tied for the lead in individual categories.
Offensive Firepower
Alabama is batting .332 as a team this season. Seven players are hitting .300 or better. Lauren Parker leads the team and the SEC in both batting avg. (.490) and on-base percentage (.536). Brittany Rogers is batting at a clip of .397 (50-of-126) to lead the team in hits. Jordan Praytor is batting .372 (42-of-113) while Charlotte Morgan is hitting .367 (33-of-90) and has a .459 OBP while . The Tide has outscored its opponents 277-55 on the season, a margin of 5.7 runs per game.
Three Runs or Less Equals Success
The Crimson Tide pitching staff has made a living this season by keeping the opposing team off the scoreboard. They have tallied 15 shutouts in 39 games and have allowed one run or less in 24 contests. Opponents have only scored two runs seven times and three runs five times. Only three times has Alabama allowed more than three runs, two of which resulted in losses with an 8-4 setback at Florida and a 5-4 loss in eight innings at LSU.
Manufacturing Runs
Alabama is scoring 7.1 runs per game to lead the SEC. The 277 runs scored is 34 more than LSU. Alabama has scored three or more runs in all but three games this season. They won 1-0 at South Carolina and lost 3-0 at LSU and 2-1 to Georgia. The Tide has made it common practice to light up the scoreboard, scoring 10 or more runs 10 times and five or more runs in 29 of the 39 games. The Tide have run-ruled its opponent 15 times.
Who's on First
Alabama has received production throughout the lineup with each player in the 1-9 slots contributing game-in and game-out. Six different players have recorded at least a .400 on base percentage for the season. Lauren Parker has the highest OBP at .536 with 47 hits, seven walks and five HBP. Charlotte Morgan has found her way on with 33 hits, 16 walks and one HBP for a .459 OBP. Jordan Praytor has posted 42 hits to go along with 13 walks and three hit-by-pitch for a .450 OBP. Mandy Burford has 31 hits, 17 walks and four HBP for a .441 OBP.
Fast Out of the Gate
The Tide has scored in the first inning in 17 of their last 31 games. They have outscored their opponents 42-6 in the opening frame this season. They have only allowed a run in the first inning five times this season. UTSA, Mississippi State, Florida and Georgia have all scored to open the game against the Tide with Georgia scoring in two of the three games. The Tide has not allowed a run in the first inning in 32 of the last 36 games and are 26-3 on the season when scoring first.
Two-Out RBI
With two outs you can't count the Tide batters out. They have produced 74 runs this season with two outs. Lauren Parker leads the team with 15 two-out RBI while Jordan Praytor has driven in 10 runs. Parker is batting .452 (14-of-31) with two outs. Brittany Rogers is also hitting .452 (14-of-31) with two outs and has seven RBI. Ashley Holcombe has also added seven RBI with two outs. Mandy Burford has 33 RBI on the year, seven of which have come with two outs.
100 Stolen Bases and Counting
The Crimson Tide have blazed their way to a SEC-leading 109 stolen bases in 39 games this season, an average of 2.79 stolen bases per game. They have only been caught stealing 20 times on the year for a success rate of 84.5-percent. They have five more stolen bases than any other SEC school. Brittany Rogers leads the team with 29 stolen bases and has only been caught stealing twice. Jordan Praytor sits at 19 on the year while Mandy Burford has 17 stolen bases. Lauren Parker is 11-of-14 and Mallory Benak has nine stolen bases. The Tide has stolen 92 more bases than their opponents.
D-Fence
With a defense the caliber of this year's Crimson Tide unit, Alabama's pitchers have been able to relax and put the ball in play knowing the defense will come through and make the play. UA ranks second in the SEC with a .976 fielding pct. and have only committed 26 errors in 1,092 total chances. They have 19 games with no errors and have only committed multiple errors in four games this season with two against Texas-San Antonio in the third game of the year, two against Arkansas and three against both Louisiana Tech and Georgia. Nine players have a 1.000 fielding pct.
No Free Passes
Once the conference season started senior Blair Potter (Columbus, Ga.) buckled down and has only walked four batters in 39 innings. The lack of walks has helped her give up only 10 earned runs on 28 hits to go 5-0. She also has 35 strikeouts in league games. She went a stretch of 20 2/3 innings without a walk before walking a batter at LSU. She recorded 22 strikeouts during that time. On the season she has only walked 11 batters in 66 1/3 innings with 58 strikeouts.
Powerful Pitching
Chrissy Owens (Miami, Fla.) started the season 16-0 before dropping her last two starts to #8 LSU and #22 Georgia. Before the loss she had been nearly unhittable in the previous six games, allowing just one run in 23 2/3 innings. On the year she has a 0.82 ERA with 13 earned runs allowed in 110 2/3 innings. She has 89 strikeouts compared to 28 walks. She has pitched eight complete game shutouts and combined for three others. She has allowed one run or less in 15 of her 18 starts. Her best inning is the second where she has not allowed a run in 18 innings and has 21 K's.
Crimson Tide vs. Ranked Teams
Alabama has played 15 games against teams ranked in the Top-25 this season and own an 11-4 record. The Tide shutout No. 22 N.C. State twice in the Hampton Inn Crimson Classic. The following weekend Alabama downed No. 11 Louisiana-Lafayette two times with a 6-0 victory in the first game and a walkoff three-run home run in the eighth inning by Mandy Burford in the second. The Tide split with No. 22 Florida and followed by sweeping 24th-ranked South Carolina on the road. The Tide lost 2-of-3 at No. 8 LSU but bounced back by winning two of the three games at home against Georgia. Alabama's next scheduled game against a team ranked in this week's polls is at Tennessee May 5-6.
Multi-Hit Games
The Crimson Tide players have tallied 79 multiple-hit games this season. So far 13 different players have posted a game with two or more hits. Brittany Rogers and Lauren Parker lead the way with 16 multi-hit games. Rogers has 13 contests with two hits and three with three hits. Parker has tallied two or more hits in seven of her last eight starts to give her 13 games with two hits, two with three hits and one with four hits. Jordan Praytor has nine on the year.
Multi-RBI Games
Part of the reason why the Crimson Tide are averaging over seven runs per game is the number of times they have had a player with two or more RBI in a game. Lauren Parker leads the way with 11 multi-RBI games while Jordan Praytor has eight multi-RBI games and three others have six multi-RBI games.
Career Highs
Lauren Parker recorded career highs of four hits and three runs scored on Sunday vs. Georgia. In the second game on Saturday, Charlotte Morgan matched a career high with four RBI on her first career grand slam.
Milestone Watch
Several Alabama players are close to setting personal milestones or moving up in the Crimson Tide record book. Jordan Praytor continues to etch her place in the record books. She needs six hits to move into 12th on the career list. Dani Woods needs six RBI to move in to 11th all-time. Mandy Burford needs two runs for 100 in her career while Brittany Rogers is also two runs shy of the century mark and 4 SB shy of second on the career list.
Crimson Tide on WVUA
WVUA will be carrying the Crimson Tide on 90.7 FM for home and away games throughout the 2007 season. This will be the 7th season WVUA has covered Alabama Softball. Award-winning sportscaster Nic Hoch will call the action along with others from the WVUA sports team. All games can also be heard on the internet at http://broadcastmonsters.com/Alabama/alabama.asx.
