Alabama
Ole Miss
Alabama Softball Hosts Ole Miss for SEC Home Opener
3/22/2018 10:29:00 AM | Softball
THIS WEEK: ALABAMA (20-7, 1-2 SEC) vs. OLE MISS (15-10, 1-5 SEC)
Tuscaloosa, Ala. – Rhoads Stadium
- Friday, March 23 – 6:30 p.m. CT
- Saturday, March 24 – 2 p.m. CT
- Sunday, March 25 – 1:30 p.m. CT
WEEKEND PROMOTIONS
Friday, March 23:
- Greek Night
- Crimson Chaos Night
- Student giveaways: Foam yellow hammers, Whataburger breakfast coupon and chicken finger giveaway
Saturday, March 24:
- Demi Turner Senior Day
- Bama Salute: Free admission for military members, $3 for family members
Sunday, March 25:
- Big Al's Kids Club Day: $1 admission for Big Al's Kids Club members
- Capes and black bag giveaways (first 50 Big Al's Kids Club members)
SCOUTING ALABAMA
- Alabama is 20-7 heading into this weekend after a 10-5 win over UAB Wednesday night in Tuscaloosa.
- The Tide is ranked No. 15 in this week's USA Today/NFCA poll, No. 16 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll and No. 25 in the NCAA RPI. All 13 SEC teams are ranked or receiving votes in at least one national poll and all 13 are in the top 35 in the RPI.
- The Tide defense boasts a .978 fielding percentage, which trails only Florida's .982 in the SEC. The .978 clip would be tied for the best fielding percentage in program history, matching last season's mark.
- The offense is led by freshman Kaylee Tow, who is 25-for-71 (.352) at the plate, including twelve extra-base hits. Sophomore Bailey Hemphill leads the team with six home runs and has reached base safely in 18 of her last 19 games, drawing a team-leading 17 walks while hitting 23-for-69 (.333) with a team-leading 25 RBIs. Sophomore Elissa Brown is 18-for-18 in stolen bases, which ranks fifth in the SEC, and is batting 19-for-56 (.339) with 15 runs scored.
- Senior Alexis Osorio has thrown 61.0 of the team's 173.1 innings in the circle, fanning 101 batters over that stretch, an average of 1.67 per inning, along with a team-leading 1.61 ERA. Junior Courtney Gettins leads the staff with eight wins along with a 1.67 ERA over 58.2 innings pitched.
LAST TIME OUT: ALABAMA BATTLES FOR 10-5 WIN OVER UAB
After falling behind twice in the first two innings, a four-run third inning put Alabama softball ahead for good in the eventual 10-5 win over UAB Wednesday night at Rhoads Stadium.
Alabama tallied 11 hits in the win over UAB, including 2-for-3 days from freshman Elissa Brown, sophomore Gabby Callaway and seniors Sydney Booker and Demi Turner. Both of Booker's hits were triples, marking the fourth two-triple game in program history and the first since Jordan Praytor on April 17, 2005. Sophomore Bailey Hemphill's lone hit of the day was a three-run home run, pushing her season total to a team-leading six. Freshman starter Madison Preston exited after just 1.1 innings pitched while junior Courtney Gettins earned the win in relief, allowing just two runs, one earned, on two hits over 5.2 innings.
BOOKER TIES SCHOOL RECORD WITH TWO TRIPLES
Both of senior Sydney Booker's hits in Wednesday's win over UAB were triples, tying the single-game school record at Alabama. It was the first time since 2005 and the fourth time in program history a player hit two triples in a game.
Two-Triple Games at Alabama
- Sydney Booker vs. UAB - March 20, 2018
- Jordan Praytor at South Carolina - April 1, 2005
- Ashley Courtney at Penn State - Feb. 18, 2005
- Kelly Kretschman vs. Wisconsin - March 1, 1998
HOME SWEET HOME
Alabama returns to Rhoads Stadium this week, the home of the Crimson Tide since 2000. It has proven a sizeable home field advantage for Alabama over the years, as the Tide is 516-83 (.861) all-time at Rhoads Stadium, including an 8-1 mark this year. Alabama has hosted 15 NCAA Regional rounds at the park, including a streak of 13-straight Regional titles in Tuscaloosa, along with series wins in eight of the nine Super Regional rounds it has hosted.
ALABAMA IN SEC PLAY
The Tide is 423-156 (.731) all-time in SEC play, including a 388-135 (.742) mark under head coach Patrick Murphy. Alabama has won five SEC regular season titles, last doing so in 2014.
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 .352 batting average, 25 hits and 19 runs scored. Twelve of her 25 hits have been for extra bases, including five home runs, five doubles and two triples for a .690 slugging percentage. She has also drawn 16 walks, boasting a .471 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 RANKED NO. 15 AND 16 IN WEEKLY NATIONAL POLLS
Alabama softball enters week seven of the season ranked No. 15 in the USA Today/NFCA poll and No. 16 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll.
Alabama dropped three spots in the NFCA poll and one in the USA Softball poll after splitting four games last week, defeating Georgia Tech in Atlanta on Wednesday and Auburn in game one of the weekend series Friday before dropping the remaining two games to the Tigers. The Tide is 19-7 overall and 1-2 in SEC play.
All 13 SEC teams are either ranked in the top 25 or are receiving votes this week. Ranked SEC teams include Tennessee (2/2), Florida (6/6), Georgia (7/7), Texas A&M (8/8), LSU (10/11), Auburn (11/13), Alabama (15/16), South Carolina (16/15), Kentucky (19/18) and Mississippi State (23/21). Ole Miss, Arkansas and Missouri are receiving votes outside the top 25 in at least one poll.
UP NEXT
Alabama hits the road for a three-game series at No. 19/18 Kentucky, starting Friday, March 30 at 5 p.m. CT. Saturday's contest, set for a 4 p.m. CT start, will air live on ESPN2. The weekend concludes with a Noon CT first pitch on Sunday, April 1.
