No. 6 Softball Welcomes Arkansas for Home SEC Series
4/17/2009 12:00:00 AM | Softball
April 17, 2009
ALABAMA 35-8 (13-6 SEC)
TV: Fox Sports (Sunday)
Radio: 90.7 (Zach Folk and James Hardy)
Internet Radio: thecapstone.ua.edu/youcastr.com
Live Stats: rolltide.com
Video Streaming: Tide TV
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - The No. 6 ranked Alabama softball team (35-8, 13-6 SEC) welcomes Arkansas (25-17, 10-8 SEC) for a three-game series this weekend at the UA Softball Complex. Saturday will feature a doubleheader beginning at 2:00 p.m. with game three slated to start at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday. The weekend will showcase numerous events and promotions at the friendly confines. Saturday will be Kelley Montalvo Day and will feature the Strikeout Breast Cancer promotion. After the second game on Saturday the Alabama alumni will take the field for Alumni Day.
Last Time Out
The Crimson Tide played host to Kentucky for a doubleheader on Tuesday and defeated the Wildcats in both contests. In game one sophomore hurler Kelsi Dunne pitched the third no-hitter of her career to lead Alabama to the narrow 2-1 victory. In seven innings Dunne allowed only one run, walked three and struck out three batters to improve her record to 18-2 on the season. Cassandra Reilly-Boccia hit 2-for-3 with one RBI and Lauren Parker added a 2-for-3 performance as well with one run scored. Cat Dozier scored the go-ahead run in the bottom of the sixth on a slow-hit ground ball by Jazlyn Lunceford that Kentucky shortstop Molly Johnson was unable to field cleanly, giving the Tide the 2-1 lead and the win. The Wildcats began game two with a two-run first inning but Alabama responded by scoring one run in each of the first five innings to secure the 5-3 victory. Whitney Larsen hit 2-for-3 with one run scored and one RBI, coming off her team-leading eighth home run of the season. Charlotte Morgan pitched seven innings and gave up nine hits, three runs and struck out four batters to improve to 10-6 on the year. Morgan helped her cause at the plate by hitting 2-for-3 and driving in one run.
Who to Watch
Alabama returned home in impressive fashion after dropping two-out-three games at South Carolina by sweeping Kentucky in two games on Tuesday due in large part to solid hitting by slugger Charlotte Morgan and freshman Cassandra Reilly-Boccia. Dating back to the April 1 meeting against instate rival Troy, Reilly-Boccia has driven in 11 runs off 12 hits in 28 at-bats. Seven of those 12 hits have been good for doubles and Reilly-Boccia has scored seven runs in addition to a .429 batting average and a .786 slugging percentage. In the two series against the Gamecocks and the Wildcats Morgan has gone 7-for-15 with six RBI. The California native also boasts a .467 average in that span and a .533 slugging percentage.
Scouting the Competition
Arkansas: The Razorbacks traveled to Sherwood, Ark. to play Centenary in a neutral-site matchup on Wednesday and defeated the Ladies 6-2 to improve to 25-17 on the year. Senior infielder Kayla Johnson hit 3-for-3 with two RBI and scored two runs en route to becoming Arkansas' all-time leader in runs scored. As a team the Razorbacks are batting .268 on the year and holding the opposition to a .278 average. Arkansas' pitchers combine for a 3.63 ERA while their opponents hold a 4.41 ERA. At the plate the Razorbacks are led Whitney Cloer and Jessica Bachkora. In 131 at-bats Cloer has collected a team-high 46 hits for an average of .351, also a team best. Cloer's 33 RBI are tied for first on the team and her eight home runs are second best. Bachkora has driven in 26 runs off 42 hits and sports a .500 slugging percentage to accompany her five home runs. In 17 attempts Bachkora has stolen 15 bases. Miranda Dixon and Kim Jones lead the Razorbacks in the circle. Dixon has made 30 appearances and 21 starts on the year for a 16-6 record. In 147 innings pitched Dixon has given up 85 runs and struck out 114 batters for a 3.19 ERA. Jones brings in a 7-8 record in 22 appearances. In 108 innings pitched she has stuck out 73 batters and given up 69 runs for a 3.44 ERA. Arkansas returns 20 letterwinners to a team that went 37-29 in 2008 with an 8-20 mark in SEC play.
Series History
Alabama holds an impressive 34-7 all-time record over Arkansas in 41 meetings between the SEC Western Division rivals. The Razorbacks last victory over the Tide was a 2-0 win on March 16, 2002 in Fayetteville, Ark. In two meetings last year Alabama won both contests with shutout wins in a doubleheader played on April 17 at Arkansas by scores of 3-0 and 4-0. Kellie Eubanks went deep and drove in three runs in the first game of the doubleheader.
Last Five Games
Alabama is 3-2 in its last five games and has won two straight, sweeping a doubleheader against Kentucky on Tuesday. The Crimson Tide is batting .289 and pitching at a 2.02 clip over that span. Opponents are hitting .203 and sport a 3.33 ERA. Charlotte Morgan has led the Tide over the past five games with a .467 (7-for-15) batting average, adding a team leading six RBI. Kelsi Dunne has earned two wins, one by the way of a no-hitter while Morgan is 1-1 with a 2.05 ERA.
Home Cooking
Alabama has historically been dominate in front of the home fans and this season is no different. The Crimson Tide sports a 20-1 record at the UA Softball Complex and has out-scored its opponents 138-28 in games played in Tuscaloosa. Alabama is batting .343 and sports a 1.16 ERA. Opponents are batting .212 and post a 6.94 ERA. Freshman Jennifer Fenton is batting .475 (19-for-40) and junior Charlotte Morgan follows at a .458 (22-for-48) clip. Amanda Locke leads the Tide at home with five home runs while Whitney Larsen has smacked four. Freshman Cassandra Reilly-Boccia leads the team with 18 home RBI. In the circle sophomore Kelsi Dunne is a perfect 10-0 with 0.11 ERA. Dunne has added 68 strikeouts in 63 1/3 innings pitched.
Strikeout Breast Cancer
In partnership with DCH Foundation, Inc., Alabama Softball Proudly presents Strikeout Breast Cancer, April 18, 2009. During the doubleheader against the Arkansas Razorbacks, the Alabama Crimson Tide Softball team is working to raise awareness about breast cancer and has partnered with the DCH Foundation, Inc. to rally its fan base around the fight against breast cancer and finding a cure. By "thinking pink" and encouraging fans to support this worthy cause the Alabama Softball family is doing its part to help fight the disease and help fund breast cancer research in the Tuscaloosa area.
Alumni Day
The Alabama alumni will return to Tuscaloosa for Alumni Day. The former players will take to the field approximately 30 minutes after the conclusion of game two. Returning to the Alabama Softball Complex is Carrie Moreman-Ashley, Alabama's first All-American in 1999. Joining Moreman-Ashley is Kelly Kretschman, a four-time All-American, two-time Olympian and Shelley Laird, who won over 100 games and struck out over 1,000 batters in her career. Also in attendance will be JC Chapman-Hammer, played on the first two teams, winning the SEC tournament championship in 1998 and Christy Kyle-Bush, who played on the first four teams and led the team to its first WCWS appearance in 2000. Other former greats are slated to appear as well.
Dunne Throws a No-No
Alabama sophomore pitcher Kelsi Dunne threw her third no-hitter of her career on Tuesday, April 14 in game one of a doubleheader against Kentucky. The righthander struck out three and allowed an unearned run to earn the complete game win. Dunne also tossed no-hitters against vs. Illinois (2/22/08) and Ole Miss (3/30/08).
SEC Stats
As a team, in SEC play the Tide rank first in hit by pitch (24), stolen base attempts (46) and stolen bases (38) and rank second in runs scored (95), RBI (86), doubles (28), ERA (2.58), strike outs (126), wins (13) and doubles allowed (12). Alabama checks in at third with 55 runs allowed in conference play. Individually in league play Kelley Montavlo paces the league in doubles (7) and ranks third in runs scored (17), walks (17) and slugging percentage (.714). Charlotte Morgan leads the league with 25 RBI and Brittany Rogers' 16 stolen bases paces the conference as well. Sophomore Hurler Kelsi Dunne's 13 starts leads the SEC and she ranks second in wins (10) and strike outs looking (27). Dunne checks in at third in strike outs (80) and innings pitched (77.2). Amanda Locke and Kellie Eubanks are both tied for third in fielding double plays with five.
NCAA Stats
Among all NCAA Division I teams Alabama ranks second in stolen bases per game (2.88), tenth in runs per game (6.27), eleventh in win/loss percentage (.805), twelfth in batting average (.320), fourteenth in fielding percentage (.974), and twenty-second in slugging percentage (.488). Individually, Brittany Rogers ranks second nationally in stolen bases with 35 and twenty-fifth in batting average (.432). Kelley Montalvo checks in at fourth in the nation in walks (39) and fifteenth in on-base percentage (.542). Kelsi Dunne is tied for thirteenth in the nation with eight shutouts and her 17 wins are tied for twenty-fourth. Charlotte Morgan is tied for fourth with four sacrifice flies and Jennifer Fenton checks in at twenty-third with 23 stolen bases.
Tide in the RPI
The NCAA released its RPI rankings through games of April 5. Alabama checks in at No. 3 while Florida ranks No. 1 and Washington checks in at No. 2. The SEC has four schools in the top 10 and seven in the top 25. Alabama is two spots ahead of Georgia and Tennessee closely follows at No. 6. LSU ranks 13th overall and Kentucky follows at No. 16. Auburn rounds out the top 25 teams at No. 22.
Three Named USA Softball POY Finalists
The Amateur Softball Association of America (ASA), the National Governing Body of Softball in the United States, has selected its 25 Finalists for the 8th Annual USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Award. Alabama is represented by three players, senior Brittany Rogers, junior Charlotte Morgan and sophomore Kelsi Dunne. Rogers and Morgan were on the final list of 25 last season. This award, which is considered the most prestigious honors in Division I women's collegiate softball, is designed to recognize outstanding athletic achievement by female collegiate softball players across the country.
Rogers 300-200-100
Alabama senior Brittany Rogers is only the second player in school history to bang out 300 hits, score 200 runs and swipe 100 bases. The All-American joins former Tide standout Kelly Kretschman to do so. Rogers sports 323 hits, 241 runs and 182 stolen bases. If Rogers is able to reach 200 stolen bases she would be the first 300-200-200 player in school history. Kretschman paces the Alabama record books with 368 hits and 288 runs scored. Rogers is the all-time leader in stolen bases. With the feat Rogers is one of only four players in the modern era to do so in SEC history.
Rogers Named Lowe's Finalist
Alabama senior outfielder Brittany Rogers was named a finalist for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. Rogers is one of 10 senior student-athletes that have been selected as a finalist for the 2009 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award in the Softball division. Nationwide balloting begins immediately to determine the third annual winner, who will receive the award during the NCAA Women's College World Series in Oklahoma City, Okla. The finalists were chosen from a list of 30 candidates based on personal qualities that define a complete student-athlete. It is the second straight season that Alabama has had a finalist for the award. Jordan Praytor was part of the final 10 last season.
Next Time Out
Alabama will hit the road for its final midweek games of the season. The Crimson Tide will head to Atlanta to face Georgia Tech in a midweek doubleheader. The two teams will meet on Wednesday, April 22 with first pitch of game one slated for 4:00 p.m. ET.
