Alabama Softball Sweeps Saturday Opponents in South Carolina

Saturday, February 11

Conway, S.C.

9 A.M. CT

Alabama

3-0

Towson

1-2

Alabama

Towson

Alabama Softball Sweeps Saturday Opponents in South Carolina

2/11/2017 1:55:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

CONWAY, S.C. – After earning two wins on opening day, Alabama softball added another pair on day two of the Kickin' Chicken Classic, coming back to defeat Towson, 4-2, before shutting out Youngstown State, 7-0, Saturday.

Alabama (4-0) trailed early against Towson (1-2) but managed to score three unanswered runs down the stretch to ultimately win, 4-2. Alabama pitcher Sydney Littlejohn took a no-hitter into the fifth inning against Youngstown State (0-3), ultimately striking out 10 with just one hit allowed in the complete-game shutout.

Offensively, junior Peyton Grantham continued her hot weekend with a 4-7 day at the plate between both games while Merris Schroder and Elissa Brown scored three hits each, including a team-leading three RBIs for Schroder. All three Tide pitchers saw time in the circle on Saturday, combining to allow just two runs and four walks in 14.0 innings with 17 strikeouts.

GAME ONE: ALABAMA 4, TOWSON 2
After shutting out the Tigers 17-0 on Friday, the Tide found itself in a much tougher game against Towson on Saturday, falling behind 2-1 in the third inning before coming back to eventually win 4-2. Brown and Grantham each had two hits with Brown scoring two of the teams four runs. Madi Moore went 2.1 innings in the start before Alexis Osorio (2-0) entered in relief, ultimately earning the win with 4.2 perfect innings. So far this season, Osorio has not allowed a baserunner over 11.2 innings pitched and has 25 strikeouts.

Alabama tallied the first run of the day in the top of the first on a double steal, with Brown charging home from third to make it 1-0. Towson tied it up at 1-1 in the bottom of the second with a solo home run by Brook Miko and then took a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the third on an RBI single by Madison Wilson. With two on and one out following the RBI single, Osorio entered in relief for the Tide and got out of the jam with a strikeout and popup to end the inning trailing 2-1.

The Tide looked to threaten in the top of the fifth, loading the bases with two out. Sydney Booker was hit by a pitch to bring the tying run home and Schroder roped an RBI single to center field on the first pitch of her at-bat to give Alabama a 3-2 lead. The trailing runner was tagged out on the play to end the half-inning, but the Tide was now back in front.

Grantham extended the Tide's lead with an RBI single in the sixth to make it 4-2 and Osorio and the Alabama defense kept the Tigers off the base paths for the remainder of the game, clinching the 4-2 comeback victory for Alabama.

GAME TWO: ALABAMA 7, YOUNGSTOWN STATE 0
Littlejohn (2-0) earned the win in the circle in the Tide's second game on Saturday, going the distance with the complete-game shutout, striking out 10 batters while allowing just one hit. She took a no-hitter into the fifth inning when the Penguins broke it up with a two-out bunt single. At the plate, Grantham, Schroder and Claire Jenkins each had a pair of hits with the latter two accounting for four of the team's six RBIs.

With a runner on first and two out in the bottom of the first, Marisa Runyon dropped a single into shallow left field before an errant throw allowed her to advance to third base and allowed Grantham to score all the way from first to give the Tide a 1-0 lead on the unearned run. Jenkins doubled the Tide's lead in the second with an RBI single, her first career hit, to make it 2-0.

Alabama did the majority of its damage in the bottom of the third, scoring four runs. An RBI double by Bailey Hemphill scored one and put two in scoring position before Schroder brought them home with a two-run triple to the wall in right field, making it 5-0. Jenkins drove in her second RBI of the day on an infield single that allowed Schroder to score and make it 6-0.

The Tide added a seventh run in the fourth inning on an RBI groundout by Grantham but could not reach the eight-run lead that would set them up for a potential run-rule victory. Littlejohn surrendered her first hit of the day with two out in the top of the fifth on a bunt single, but only allowed one more baserunner down the stretch as the Tide held on to win, 7-0.

Alabama concludes its weekend at the Kickin' Chicken Classic on Sunday, Feb. 12 facing tournament host Coastal Carolina (1-1) at 11:30 a.m. CT.

For the latest information on Alabama softball, follow the team on Twitter (@AlabamaSB) and Instagram (BamaSB) or like us on Facebook at Alabama Softball.