Alabama
Georgia Tech
Alabama Softball Travels to Atlanta for Wednesday Night Game at Georgia Tech
3/13/2018 2:57:00 PM | Softball
THIS WEEK: #12/15 ALABAMA (17-5) AT GEORGIA TECH (14-7)
Wednesday, March 14 – 5 p.m. CT
Atlanta, Ga. – Mewborn Field
SCOUTING ALABAMA
- Alabama is 17-5 heading into week six after a 5-0 weekend at the Easton Crimson Classic in Tuscaloosa.
- Alabama is ranked No. 12 in the USA Today/NFCA poll and No. 15 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll this week. Alabama has played six games against ranked opponents so far this season.
- The Crimson Tide defense boasts a .982 fielding percentage, which ranks second in the SEC trailing only Florida at .986. The .982 clip would be the best fielding percentage in program history, surpassing last year's record percentage of .978.
- The offense is led by freshman Kaylee Tow, who is 23-for-57 (.404) at the plate. Twelve of her 23 hits have gone for extra bases, including a team-leading five home runs. Sophomore Bailey Hemphill has reached base safely in 13 of her last 14 games, drawing a team-leading 14 walks while hitting 19-for-54 (.352) with a team-leading 20 RBIs. Sophomore Elissa Brown is 15-for-15 in stolen bases, batting 14-for-42 (.333) with 14 runs scored.
- Senior Alexis Osorio has thrown 53.0 of the team's 139.2 innings in the circle, fanning 93 batters over that stretch, an average of 1.75 per inning. Freshman Madison Preston leads the staff with a 1.48 ERA, allowing just nine earned runs over 42.2 innings, while junior Courtney Gettins boasts a team-leading seven wins along with a 1.59 ERA over 44.0 innings.
LAST TIME OUT: EASTON CRIMSON CLASSIC
- Alabama went 5-0 at last weekend's Easton Crimson Classic, posting a pair of wins against both Boston College and Fordham before wrapping up the weekend with a win Sunday against Samford.
- Senior Alexis Osorio was named the Easton Crimson Classic MVP, along with All-Tournament honorees freshman Kaylee Tow and sophomores Elissa Brown and Bailey Hemphill.
- On Friday, Alabama opened with a 5-0 shutout over Boston College before defeating Fordham, 4-3, in the nightcap. The win over the Eagles was the 35th no-hitter in program history, including the seventh for Osorio, and also marked head coach Patrick Murphy's 1,000th win at the helm of the Crimson Tide.
- Saturday play began with a 6-3 victory over Boston College before Osorio made history in the 7-2 win over Fordham, fanning 21 batters over 7.0 innings to tie the NCAA record for strikeouts in a seven-inning game.
- The Tide closed its weekend on Sunday with a 1-0 win over Samford. Celebrating her senior day, Carrigan Fain came through with the go-ahead RBI single in the sixth inning to break a scoreless tie and help secure the victory.
HISTORIC WEEK IN THE CIRCLE EARNS OSORIO TRIO OF AWARDS
Senior pitcher Alexis Osorio's historic weekend in the circle at the Easton Crimson Classic has earned recognition at both the conference and national level. She is this week's Southeastern Conference Pitcher of the Week, USA Softball Player of the Week and the Louisville Slugger/NFCA Pitcher of the Week.
This is Osorio's second career award from the NFCA and USA Softball, after earning the weekly accolades on March 14 last season. It is the seventh NFCA weekly award in program history and 10th from USA Softball, but just the sixth time a UA player has won both awards in the same week. The conference accolade is the second this season for Osorio and the sixth of her career. Overall, Alabama has earned SEC Pitcher of the Week 38 times in program history.
MURPHY EARNS 1,000TH WIN AT ALABAMA
Head Coach Patrick Murphy, currently in his 20th season at the helm of the Crimson Tide, earned his 1,000th win as Alabama's head coach last Friday against Boston College. A handful of SEC coaches, including Murphy, already had 1,000 career wins between multiple head coaching stops but no coach had earned 1,000 wins entirely at an SEC institution. Last season, Murphy earned his 1,000th career victory as a head coach, including his time at Alabama and Northwest Missouri State, to become the 23rd coach in NCAA Division-I softball history to reach 1,000 wins. He now owns a 1,032-298 (.776) career record and 1,004-278 (.783) record at Alabama.
ALABAMA IN SEC PLAY
Alabama opens SEC play this weekend with a three-game series at Auburn. The Tide is 422-154 (.733) all-time in SEC play, including a 387-133 (.744) mark under head coach Patrick Murphy. Alabama has won five SEC regular season titles, last doing so in 2014.
OSORIO APPROACHING 1,000 CAREER STRIKEOUTS
Senior Alexis Osorio is approaching a rare milestone at Alabama, as she is just 73 strikeouts away from the 1,000th of her career. She would be just the fourth player in program history to hit the 1,000 strikeout mark and the first since Kelsi Dunne (2008-11). Currently she sits fifth all-time at Alabama, just 50 away from passing Jaclyn Traina (2011-14).
Alabama Career Strikeout Leaders
- Kelsi Dunne (2008-11): 1,219
- Stephanie VanBrakle (2003-06): 1,113
- Shelley Laird (1999-2002): 1,045
- Jaclyn Traina (2011-14): 976
- Alexis Osorio (2015-pres.): 927
HOT START FOR FRESHMAN Kaylee Tow
Alabama freshman Kaylee Tow is off to a hot start in her freshman campaign, leading the team with a .404 batting average, 23 hits and 16 runs scored. Twelve of her 23 hits have been for extra bases, including a team-leading five home runs, pushing her slugging percentage to .825. She has also drawn 12 walks, boasting a .507 on-base percentage.
Her batting average, slugging percentage and on-base percentage all lead the team. The last player to finish the season leading the team in all three categories was Haylie McCleney in 2014, marking the 11th time it had happened in program history. The only freshmen to complete the sweep were Kelly Kretschman (1998) and Christy Kyle (1997).
TIDE ENTERS SEC PLAY RANKED NO. 12 IN NFCA POLL
Alabama softball heads into week six and the start of conference play ranked No. 12 in the USA Today/NFCA poll and No. 15 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll.
Alabama moved up one spot in the NFCA poll but fell two spots in the USA Softball poll after a 5-0 week at the Easton Crimson Classic in Tuscaloosa. Alabama posted two victories over both Boston College and Fordham before wrapping up the weekend with a win over Samford. Overall, Alabama is 17-5 through five weeks of play.
ALABAMA SLATED TO APPEAR IN 13 NATIONALLY TELEVISED GAMES
Alabama softball is slated to appear 13 times across ESPN's family of networks during the regular season, playing in at least one televised contest in seven of its eight conference series.
All Crimson Tide home games and select road contests will also be available to stream online via the SEC Network+ digital platform. Links to watch online will be posted on the softball schedule page at RollTide.com and on Alabama Softball social media platforms.
Alabama Softball 2018 Television Schedule
- Saturday, March 17 at Auburn – 7 p.m. CT – ESPNU
- Sunday, March 18 at Auburn – 5 p.m. CT – SEC Network
- Saturday, March 31 at Kentucky – 4 p.m. CT – ESPN2
- Saturday, April 7 vs. Florida – Noon CT – ESPN2
- Sunday, April 8 vs. Florida – 2 p.m. CT – ESPN2
- Monday, April 9 vs. Florida – 6 p.m. CT – SEC Network
- Saturday, April 14 at Arkansas – 11 a.m. CT – ESPNU
- Wednesday, April 18 vs. Southern Miss – 6 p.m. CT – SEC Network
- Sunday, April 22 vs. Tennessee – 2 p.m. CT – ESPN2
- Monday, April 23 vs. Tennessee – 6 p.m. CT – SEC Network
- Saturday, April 28 at Georgia – 5 p.m. CT – SEC Network
- Friday, May 4 vs. Texas A&M – 7 p.m. CT – SEC Network
- Saturday, May 5 vs. Texas A&M – Noon CT – SEC Network
UP NEXT
Alabama opens Southeastern Conference play this weekend with a three-game series at 14th-ranked Auburn, beginning Friday, March 16 at 6 p.m. CT. Saturday's contest will air live on ESPNU at 7 p.m. CT and Sunday's on SEC Network at 5 p.m. CT.
