Softball to Open WCWS Play Thursday Against Michigan
5/27/2015 12:00:00 AM | Softball
THIS WEEK: WOMEN'S COLLEGE WORLD SERIES
May 28 - June 3 - Oklahoma City, Okla.
ASA Hall of Fame Stadium
Alabama vs. Michigan - May 28 - 6 p.m. CT (ESPN2)
THE TIDE ON THE AIR
TV
Thursday vs. Michigan: ESPN2 (6 p.m. CT)
PXP: Beth Mowins, Color: Jessica Mendoza / Michele Smith
RADIO
95.3 FM (953thebear.com)
*streaming audio also available on RadioPup app*
SCOUTING ALABAMA (47-13, 17-7 SEC)
- Alabama rallied from a game one loss to Oklahoma by winning games two and three to clinch the team's 10th trip to the Women's College World Series.
- This is Alabama's fourth trip to the WCWS in the last five years, including a national championship in 2012 and a runner-up finish in 2014.
- Trailing 3-1 in the sixth inning of game three vs. Oklahoma, Marisa Runyon stepped to the plate with the bases loaded. Hitless over previous 13 at-bats, she unloaded on the first pitch and launched a go-ahead grand slam into right field to put the Tide ahead 5-3, which proved final.
- In a pitcher's duel between two of the top three finalists for the NFCA Freshman of the Year, it was Alabama's Alexis Osorio that edged out Oklahoma's Paige Parker. Osorio ended the weekend with a 2.07 ERA and 17 strikeouts over 20.1 innings pitched against one of the nation's top offenses. So far in the NCAA Tournament, Osorio is 4-1 with a 1.30 ERA and 31 strikeouts in 32.1 innings.
- Junior Haylie McCleney has seen a power surge in the NCAA Tournament, as five of her six hits in the postseason have been home runs, with her other hit being a double. This gives her a postseason slugging percentage of 1.375 and comes after hitting just three home runs during the entire regular season. If it holds, her .596 on-base percentage this season would be a new school record.
- Freshman Demi Turner leads the team with eight hits so far in the NCAA Tournament, including two doubles, while senior Chaunsey Bell sports a team-leading .467 batting average (7-15) including a triple and a home run.
TUSCALOOSA SUPER REGIONAL ROUNDUP
- In the 88 Super Regional rounds since its creation in 2005, Alabama's comeback victory marks just the 14th time that a team has rallied from losing game one to win the series. Teams that win game one go on to win the series 84 percent of the time.
- Oklahoma was held hitless through the first five innings in both games one and two. No other team had held them hitless past the third inning in any game this season.
- The Sooners entered the weekend leading the nation in on-base percentage (.482), runs per game (8.71) and slugging percentage (.673). Oklahoma only scored eight runs over the entire weekend and were held to a .286 on-base percentage and .319 slugging percentage.
- The sellout crowd of 3,940 on Saturday marked the second sellout crowd of the season for Alabama, who closed out the home season with 90,021 fans over 32 games at Rhoads Stadium this year (2,813 per game).
ALABAMA IN THE NCAA TOURANMENT
- Alabama is making its 17th consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance, qualifying every year since 1999.
- Alabama is one of just eight teams that own an active NCAA Tournament appearance streak of at least 17 years:
- Arizona: 29
- Oklahoma, Washington: 22
- Michigan: 20
- Alabama, UCLA, Louisiana-Lafayette, Notre Dame: 17
- Alabama has hosted an NCAA Regional round 11 straight years (2005-15), winning all of them.
- Alabama is the only school in the country to play in every Super Regional round since the round was created in 2005.
- This year was the eighth Super Regional the Tide has hosted, winning seven of them.
- This is the 10th Women's College World Series appearance for Alabama, with four of those coming in the last five years including a national title in 2012 and a runner-up finish in 2014.
RUNYON TIES SINGLE SEASON RBI RECORD
With a scorching second half of the year, Alabama sophomore Marisa Runyon has put herself within reach of the single-season RBI record, originally set by Charlotte Morgan in 2008. Runyon tied the all-time record with her go-ahead grand slam in game three over Oklahoma. This season is just the fourth in which a player has driven in at least 70 runs:
Alabama Single Season RBI Record
79 - Charlotte Morgan (2008)
79 - Marisa Runyon (2015)
77 - Kaila Hunt (2012)
74 - Charlotte Morgan (2010)
LAST TIME OUT: NCAA SUPER REGIONAL
- GAME ONE: OKLAHOMA 5, ALABAMA 2 - Alabama held the early 2-0 lead over Oklahoma in Friday's opener at the NCAA Super Regional before the Sooners broke up a no-hit bid with a five-run sixth inning to earn a 5-2 comeback victory over the Crimson Tide. Alabama took the early two-run lead off a first-inning RBI single by Jadyn Spencer and a third inning solo homer by Haylie McCleney. After falling behind, the Tide would bring the potential game-winning run to the plate but a strikeout ended the potential walk-off rally. Alexis Osorio did her part in the circle for 5.0 innings, holding Oklahoma hitless until the Sooners finally broke through with a five-run sixth inning, helped by a pair of two-run homers by Lauren Chamberlain and Kady Self.
- GAME TWO: ALABAMA 2, OKLAHOMA 0 - Alabama scored just two runs for the second straight game, though it proved enough on Saturday as Alexis Osorio shut down the Oklahoma lineup, holding the nation's top hitting team scoreless on just one hit, their lowest total of the season. The Tide's two runs all came on one swing, a two-run homer by Jadyn Spencer in the third inning, making her the sixth Alabama player to hit a home run so far in the NCAA Tournament this season. Sooner starter Paige Parker took the complete game loss in the circle, turning in another quality performance with just two runs allowed on two hits.
- GAME THREE: ALABAMA 5, OKLAHOMA 3 - Marisa Runyon, who was hitless over her previous 13 at-bats, made her final one of the weekend count, blasting a go-ahead grand slam in the sixth inning that gave the Tide a 5-3 lead, which proved final. Alabama took the early 1-0 lead before a pair of home runs by Lauren Chamberlain quickly brought the Tide down to its final six outs, trailing 3-1. A single, walk and hit-by-pitch would load the bases for Runyon with two outs in the bottom of the sixth as her grand slam propelled the Tide to its 10th Women's College World Series.
