Softball Looks to Continue SEC Streak at Arkansas
4/16/2008 12:00:00 AM | Softball
April 16, 2008
Complete Release in PDF Format 
#1 Alabama vs. Arkansas
Thursday, April 17, 2008 (6:30 p.m.)
Lady'Back Yard (2,500) • Fayetteville, Ark.
Radio: WVUA 90.7 FM • Internet: www.RollTide.com
Leading Off: No. 1/2 Alabama has reeled off 18-straight wins and 15 in a row in SEC play headed Thursday's conference doubleheader at Arkansas against a Razorbacks' team that has won nine of its last 10 games. The Crimson Tide (39-3, 18-2 SEC) are fresh off of a midweek exhibition game against Team USA. Alabama is armed with the SEC's best offensive unit with a SEC best .346-team batting average and 54 home runs.
Opponent Summary: Arkansas brings a powerful lineup into Thursday's doubleheader with a SEC-leading 59 home runs in 50 games, which ranks 10th nationally at 1.18 per contest. The Hogs are 32-18 on the season and 5-12 in SEC play. The Razorbacks have been hot of late with nine wins in their last 10 outings, including a three-game sweep at Kentucky and a win over then-No. 11 Oklahoma last week. Miranda Dixon is the Hogs' ace and is the reigning SEC Pitcher of the Week. She is 12-8 in the circle with a 1.54 ERA and 107 strikeouts in 113.1 innings. At the plate she is batting .333 with 10 home runs and 37 RBI. Sandra Smith leads the SEC in home runs with 14.
Series History: The Crimson Tide hold a decisive edge in the all-time series at 32-7. Alabama has won 17-straight games in the series, dating back to a March 16, 2002, when the Razorbacks took the first game of a three-game series in Fayetteville, 2-0. The Tide holds at 12-5 record at Lady'Back Yard in Fayetteville, including eight-consecutive wins.
On Deck: The Crimson Tide returns home for a three-game series with South Carolina at the Alabama Softball Complex, beginning with a doubleheader on Saturday, April 19, at 1 p.m. The series wraps up at 1:30 p.m. Sunday, April 20.
Tide Tabbed Nation's Top Team
Alabama moved to the top of the USA Today/NFCA poll on Tuesday after an Arizona State loss over the weekend. The Tide also moved up to No. 2 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball rankings, jumping ahead of UCLA, who held the top spot in the poll last week. It is the Tide's second stint atop the rankings this season and the third in the history of the program.
Alabama garnered 674 total votes in the NFCA poll, including six first-place votes to edge the Sun Devils by one vote (673). ASU was tabbed No. 1 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll, just ahead of the Crimson Tide.
On the Road Again
The Crimson Tide wraps up their seven-game road trip on Thursday at Arkansas. The road swing started last Thursday, April 10, at Troy with an 11-0 win and included a conference sweep of Auburn on the Plains . The Tide then squared off in an exhibition game against Team USA on Tuesday night in Vestavia Hills, Ala.
Rogers, Morgan Finalists for USA Softball POY
Brittany Rogers and Charlotte Morgan were among 25 finalists for the 2008 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Award presented by the Amateur Softball Association. A junior from Dacula, Ga., Rogers patrols center field for the Crimson Tide while leading the nation with 43 stolen bases and a .464 average. Morgan, a sophomore from Moreno Valley, Calif., is a dual threat for the Tide with a .415 batting average and a SEC-best 52 RBI that ranks third nationally. She also boasts an 11-0 record in the circle with a 1.11 ERA and a .192 opponent batting average. UA is one of six schools, and the only SEC program, to have multiple finalists.
Morgan Doing it All - Named National POW
Alabama sophomore 1B/P Charlotte Morgan added to her list of accolades last week when she was named both the Louisville Slugger/NFCA and the ASA/USA Softball National Player of the Week after an impressive weekend showing against then-No. 10 LSU. Morgan helped the Tide post their first sweep of LSU in Tuscaloosa by earning wins in the circle in the final two games. She also clinched the series opener at the plate with a three-run 10th-inning walk-off home run that erased a two-run deficit and gave Alabama a dramatic 9-8 win. Morgan allowed just one run in the circle (0.58 ERA) in two complete-game wins - one shutout - that spanned a total of 12 innings. At the plate, Morgan posted a .538 batting average for the week with two home runs, three doubles, three runs scored and six RBI.
Tide in the Rankings
Alabama's top-three ranking is backed up by its numbers in 2008. The Crimson Tide rank in the top five in seven categories in the NCAA's fourth rankings of the season that were released on April 15. The Tide lead the country in batting average (.346), scoring (7.52), slugging percentage (.590) and stolen bases (2.79 per game or 117 of 132). The Tide are second nationally in doubles per game with 2.10 per contest. Alabama ranks third in win/loss percentage at .929 (39-3) while ranking fifth in home runs per game with 1.29 (54).
Individually, Brittany Rogers is far-and-away the top base stealer in the country, averaging 1.02 per game (43 for 48). She also ranks seventh in batting average (.464) and second in runs per game (1.24) while placing 22nd in on-base percentage (.519). Charlotte Morgan ranks fourth in RBI (1.27 per game for a total of 52), 12th in doubles (.37) and 29th in home runs (.29). Chrissy Owens is tied for sixth nationally in saves with five while Dani Woods ranks sixth in walks per game with .87. Kelsi Dunne is 21st nationally in strikeouts per seven innings (9.6) while placing 34th in wins (16) and 50th in ERA (1.50).
Slick-Fielding Tide
Good defense is many times the key component to winning softball and the Crimson Tide are among the best defensive teams in the country in 2008. Alabama is currently ranked 11th nationally in team fielding with a .976 fielding percentage. UA is fresh off of a six-game-errorless streak and have not made an error in 23-of-42 games this season. The Tide's fielding numbers get even better in SEC play with a .985 fielding percentage over 20 games this season. UA has made just eight errors in 538 chances during conference action, including 13-error-free games.
Rogers Closing in on School Stolen Base Record
Brittany Rogers is closing in on an impressive school record just midway through her junior season at the Capstone. Rogers has 129 career stolen bases and is just four shy of tying and five shy of breaking Kelly Kretschman's school record of 133. Kretschman holds all of the Tides' career offensive records in a four-year career that spanned from 1998-2001.
Owens Just Misses Perfection
Alabama senior pitcher Chrissy Owens came up one strike shy of the second perfect game in school history on Wednesday, April 2, at Samford as the Tide captured a 4-0 win. Owens had retired the first 20 batters she faced with eight strikeouts before Aaren Fisher laced a double just out of the reach of a diving Brittany Rogers in left-center field with two strikes and two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning.
Team USA Recap
Alabama played an exhibition game with Team USA on Tuesday at Liberty Park in Vestavia Hills, Ala., with the National Team posting a 7-0 win. Team USA scored four runs in the first inning off Chrissy Owens and never looked back. Team USA threw its top three hurlers in Monica Abbott, Jennie Finch and Cat Osterman and held the Tide without a hit. Charlotte Morgan was strong in the circle, allowing just one run over three-impressive innings. Kelley Montalvo was robbed of a home run in the second inning off Abbott as USA center fielder Caitlin Lowe went over and through the left-center field wall to snag Montalvo's sure home run.
Auburn Recap
The Crimson Tide swept Auburn on the Plains last weekend for their 15-straight SEC win. Kelsi Dunne pitched the opening game of a doubleheader at Auburn and went the distance in a 5-4 extra-innings win over the Tigers. She pitched eight innings and struck out a career-high 15, which is the most for a UA pitcher since Stephanie VanBrakle fanned 15 vs. Ole Miss on April 8, 2006. Kellie Eubanks' two-out home run in the top of the eighth inning was the difference. Alabama crushed the Tigers in the second game of the doubleheader, 12-1, as Morgan earned the win on the mound, allowing one run on four hits in 5.2 innings of work Alabama again played long ball in the series finale at Auburn, scoring four runs on three home runs in a 4-2 win that completed the sweep. Woods was the hero with two home runs and three RBI, while Morgan connected for a solo home run - her second of the series. Morgan also earned her second-straight win of the series in the circle and Chrissy Owens made her third appearance of the week and earned her fifth save of the season.
Keys to Winning
The Crimson Tide have been clutch at the plate this season and no statistics better illustrates that point than their .352 average with runners in scoring position and their .344 average and 110 RBI with two outs.
Lauren Parker and Brittany Rogers are leading the Tide at the plate with runners in scoring position. Parker is hitting .500 (21 for 42) and Rogers is hitting .511 (24 for 47) while Charlotte Morgan (.450) and Dani Woods (.431) are close behind.
With two outs in an inning the Tide have produced 39.3 percent of their RBI this season (110 of 280). Morgan has paced the Tide with a .500 (23 for 46) average with 16 two-out RBI. Rogers is second with a .447 average and eight RBI, while Parker is hitting .444 (11 RBI) and Dani Woods is hitting .429 with 15 two-out RBI. Kellie Eubanks has the most two-out RBI with 19 and a .343 average.
Records Fall in Lexington
Alabama put on an offensive display in a doubleheader on March 22 at Kentucky by combining to plate 25 runs on the strength of 11 home runs to sweep the Wildcats. On top of the 34 runs that broke the old record of 28 runs in a three game series set last season against Ole Miss, the Tide also broke the single game home run record. After tying the mark in the first game of the doubleheader with five round-trippers, UA blasted six in the nightcap to set the mark.
UA Great Kretschman Named to USA Olympic Team
Alabama great Kelly Kretschman (1998-2001) was named to the 2008 USA Olympic Softball Team the Amateur Softball Association of America (ASA) announced on Friday, March 28. Kretschman was a four-time All-American for Tide and owns every career offensive record at Alabama. She helped Team USA capture the Gold Medal in dominating fashion in the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece, and was an alternate on the 2000 U.S. Olympic Team.
In The Rankings
The University of Alabama softball team remains in the top three of both national softball polls after the Crimson Tide swept Auburn on the road over the weekend. Alabama maintained its rankings from both polls. The Crimson Tide (39-3 overall, 18-2 in the SEC) is ranked No. 2 in the USA Today/NFCA top 25 poll and remains ranked third in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll.
SEC Chart Toppers
The University of Alabama has played outstanding softball thus far and it has shown in the SEC team statistics. The Tide pace the league in 12 offensive categories in conference games only, including; average (.338), slugging percentage (.631), on-base-percentage (.441), runs (142), hits (175), home runs (35), doubles (42), stolen bases (47), total bases (326), walks (80), hit by pitch (19), and RBI (131).
The Natural
Despite battling a slew of injuries in the second half of her sophomore season and the first month of her junior campaign, All-American Lauren Parker has still managed to have a significant impact on the Tide's offense. Despite missing seven of Alabama's 38 games this season, Parker is third on the team with seven home runs while ranking fourth on the team in batting average (.384) and third RBI (34). She also boasts a .709 slugging percentage, which ranks third on the squad.
Terror From the Leadoff Spot
Crimson Tide All-American Brittany Rogers has proven that she belongs in not only any discussion of the best leadoff hitters in the nation, but best players period. Rogers, a second-team All-American in 2007, is having one of the best season of any player across the country. Rogers is hitting .464 (64-of-138) through 42 games, leading the team and the SEC. She averages 1.52 hits per game and also leads the Tide with 52 runs scored and the country in stolen bases, with 43 steals in 48 attempts. Rogers earned SEC Player of the Week accolades and was named Hampton Inn Crimson Classic MVP after hitting .696 and stealing 10 bases.
Shutout Duo
Kelsi Dunne and Chrissy Owens have been shutting down opponents this season. In five of her last eight SEC starts, Dunne has held the opponent scoreless. That streak includes wins over No. 3 Tennessee. No. 4 Florida, No. 15 Mississippi State, Kentucky and Ole Miss. Owens came with a strike of recording the second perfect-game in school history on April 2 at Samford. The complete-game shutout was the 23rd of her career, which ranks third all-time at UA. The duo have combined for 10 shutouts this season. They also combined to shutout Troy on April 10 as Dunne allowed just one hit in four innings and Owens threw two-hitless innings to close out the win.
Two No-Nos for Rookie Dunne
It only took five starts, but Tide true freshman pitcher Kelsi Dunne etched her name in the UA record books with a breakout pitching performance against Illinois on Feb. 22. The Port Orange, Fla., native returned to her home state and threw the 12th no-hitter in Crimson Tide history in a 6-0 win over the Illini. The performance was truly dominating, as Dunne allowed only two base runners in the historic win. Both reached in the fourth, one on a fielding error and the other on Dunne's only walk of the game. It was the first no-hitter by a Tide pitcher since Blair Potter blanked Kentucky on April 29, 2007. It was the first seven-inning no-hitter for UA since Stephanie VanBrakle no-hit Missouri State on Feb. 19, 2006. She was named SEC Freshman of the Week for her efforts.
Dunne followed that up with her second no-hitter of the season in a five-inning effort against Ole Miss on March 30. She struck out 11 and allowed just two base runners on a walk and a hit by pitch.
K Machine
True freshman pitcher Kelsi Dunne has demonstrated her ability to baffle hitters in her first 19 career starts. Dunne leads the team with 172 strikeouts in 125.2 innings pitched, an average of 9.58 K's per seven innings. She struck out 11 in her collegiate debut and has seven shutouts and nine-complete games included in her 16-3 pitching record. Dunne owns an 1.50 ERA and has made 24 appearances this season. She fanned a season-high 15 in eight innings at Auburn on April 12.
Top of the Lineup
One of the keys to Alabama's explosive offense throughout the past two seasons has been the production at the top of the lineup. That trend has continued in the 2008 season. In the Tide's 42 games, the first five batters in the UA lineup have been nothing short of phenomenal. In that span, the top five hitters have gone 240-for-622 (.386), scored 197 of the team's 316 runs and have driven in 185.
Grand Slams
The Alabama offense has demonstrated its ability to put up runs in bunches thus far this season, and nothing puts runs on the board faster than a grand slam. So far this season, Tide hitters have blasted four home runs with the bases loaded. The school record for grand slams was set in 2006, when Alabama hit five as a team. Dani Woods, Charlotte Morgan, Kellie Eubanks and Whitney Larsen have each hit one grand slam in 2008. Morgan and Eubanks both hit theirs against McNeese State on February 13, becoming the first two players to hit a grand slam in the same game in UA history. Both have two grand slams in their careers, tying for second place all-time behind Christy Kyle (1997-2000), who hit four over her career with the Tide.
Run Production
Last year's Crimson Tide team was an offensive juggernaut, setting a variety of all-time Alabama and SEC offensive records. The 2008 team has been even more impressive through 42 games, lighting up scoreboards regularly. Alabama is averaging 7.52 runs per game in 2008 and has scored more than 10 runs in nine games. The Tide set the school and SEC record last season by averaging 7.12 runs per contest.
500 K's
Senior Chrissy Owens joined an elite club at Alabama when she recorded her 500th career strikeout in the win over New Mexico. Entering the game with 499 career punch outs, Owens wasted no time getting No. 500 out of the way. She struck out the first batter she faced, New Mexico's Samantha Hughes, to become the fourth UA pitcher in history to eclipse the 500 mark, joining Stephanie VanBrakle, Shelley Laird and Erin Wright as the only Tide pitchers to make up the exclusive 500 K club. Owens now has 565 career strikeouts in 523.2 innings over her four-year career.
Praytor is Lowe's Senior CLASS Finalist
Alabama's senior Jordan Praytor is one of 10 finalists for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. The award is given to the nation's best college softball player who also excels in the classroom and makes an impact in their community. The award, presented to NCAA Division I student-athletes each year in eight sports, focuses on the "Four C's" of classroom, character, community and competition.
Praytor Selected in NPF Draft
University of Alabama senior utility player Jordan Praytor was recently selected by the New England Riptide of the National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) Softball League in its annual Senior Draft. Praytor, a two-time All-Southeastern Conference selection (2006-07) and a 2008 Preseason All-American by ESPN.com, was taken with the 22nd selection overall in the fourth round of the draft.
Non-Conference Recap
Alabama wrapped up its non-conference play with a near-perfect record. The Tide came out of the gate with 17-straight victories. The lone blemish on the record came against No. 25 ranked Washington in the Husky Classic in Seattle, Wash. Alabama is a combined 57-3 in its last three seasons against its preseason opponents. Alabama went a perfect 21-0 last year before SEC play.
Sold Out
The success of the UA softball program under head coach Patrick Murphy can be seen by simply looking around the Alabama Softball Facility. As the wins have, the Crimson Tide fan base has grown steadily. From a handful of supporters in the early days of the Murphy era, Alabama has come to be among the nation's leaders in attendance on a perennial basis. On January 28, the UA ticket office sold its 1,595th and final season ticket for the 2008 season, giving the Tide an unprecedented season-long sellout in Tuscaloosa. It is unknown whether this feat has been equaled at any other softball program nationally.
In 2008, Alabama is once again setting attendance records. The Tide is average a school-record 2,047 per game and have sold 42,990 tickets this season. The Tide has seen 10 crowds of 2,000 or more in 2008 with a new school record of 2,461 coming in at doubleheader vs. LSU on April 5. In 2007, the Tide ranked third in the nation in average attendance, bringing in an average of 1,436 fans per game at home.
Strength of Schedule
After a disappointing seed in last year's NCAA Tournament, Murphy and his staff have assembled one of the most challenging schedules in Alabama softball history. The Tide will square off against no fewer than nine teams ranked in the two national softball preseason polls. Alabama faces Northwestern (7/6), DePaul (10/8), Washington (11/14) and Georgia Tech (17/18) in non-conference action. The Tide meets Tennessee (6/11), LSU (9/7) and Florida (13/13) in SEC action this season. Alabama went 11-9 against ranked teams in 2007.
All-Americans
Alongside the team accomplishments the Crimson Tide earned a season ago, three players added to the already long list of individual standouts in UA softball history. Lauren Parker, Brittany Rogers and Chrissy Owens each earned All-American distinction following the 2007 season, bringing the number of All-Americans in Alabama softball history to 44.
Parker earned first team honors from the NFCA and Easton All-American teams after one of the best offensive seasons in school history. Rogers earned NFCA second team accolades and Owens was a third team selection. In the 2008 preseason, three Tide players were selected by ESPN.com. Parker was a first team honoree, while Rogers and Jordan Praytor made second team.
