
Alabama Softball to Play Six Games at Rainbow Wahine Classic in Hawaii
3/12/2019 2:14:00 PM | Softball
THIS WEEK: RAINBOW WAHINE CLASSIC
Honolulu, Hawai'i – Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium
- Wednesday, March 13 vs. SIUE – 6 p.m. CT
- Thursday, March 14 vs. Niagara – 6 p.m. CT
- Thursday, March 14 vs. SIUE – 8:30 p.m. CT
- Friday, March 15 vs. Niagara – 8:30 p.m. CT
- Friday, March 15 at Hawaii – 11 p.m. CT
- Saturday, March 16 at Hawaii – 7 p.m. CT
SCOUTING ALABAMA
- Alabama is undefeated at 25-0 to start the 2019 season and is the last remaining undefeated team in college softball
- The 25-0 start is the third-best in program history, previously going 26-0 in 2012 and 27-0 in 2001
- Last weekend, the Crimson Tide swept its SEC opening series at home against Missouri, including the largest comeback in program history in the series-clinching game Friday
- The game one win over Missouri marked Alabama head coach Patrick Murphy's 400th SEC win, making him the first league coach to reach the milestone
- Alabama moved up to No. 4 in both of this week's national polls
- Freshman pitcher Montana Fouts was named the SEC Freshman of the Week for the third time this season, joining Kayla Braud (2013) and Charlotte Morgan (2007) as the only three-time winners in program history
- Seven of the Tide's nine regular starters are hitting above .300, led by sophomore Kaylee Tow at .393. Junior Bailey Hemphill is hitting .342 with a team-leading 11 home runs and 34 RBIs
- Alabama is second in the SEC and seventh nationally with 55 stolen bases. Individually, junior Elissa Brown and sophomore KB Sides rank second and fourth in the SEC with 19 and 12, respectively
- Fouts is third in the SEC with a 0.74 ERA and fourth with 83 strikeouts. She is one of four pitchers to rank in the top 10 in both strikeouts and innings pitched (5th - 66.0)
- Junior Sarah Cornell ranks 7th in the SEC with a 1.13 ERA, making Alabama and Mississippi State the only schools with two players ranked in the top 10
LAST TIME OUT: ALBAMA SWEEPS MISSOURI TO OPEN SEC PLAY
- Alabama 3, Missouri 1: Three runs proved enough for Alabama in a low-scoring contest against Missouri, as the Tide won its SEC opener, 3-1. Alabama scored in the first and second innings courtesy of an RBI single from freshman Skylar Wallace and a solo home run from junior Claire Jenkins to take the early 2-0 lead. A solo home run in the top of the fourth cut the lead in half but an insurance run on a sac fly RBI in the sixth scratched the final tally across. Sophomore KB Sides went 2-for-3 with a run scored while Jenkins drove in two of the team's three RBIs. Freshman Montana Fouts went the distance in the circle, allowing one run on two hits with seven strikeouts.
- Alabama 14, Missouri 8: Alabama faced an early 7-0 deficit in the second inning, but chipped away to draw within five, down 8-3 through three innings. After holding Missouri scoreless in the top of the fourth, the Tide offense exploded to the tune of five runs in the fourth and three in both the fifth and sixth innings, rallying to win, 14-8. Sophomore Kaylee Tow went 3-for-4 with three RBIs from the leadoff spot, including a game-tying two run home run in the fourth. Junior Sarah Cornell earned the win in relief, throwing 6.1 strong innings and shutting out the Tigers after the third inning.
- Alabama 11, Missouri 5: Alabama fell behind in the top of the first after Missouri scored two runs but immediately responded in the bottom half and never trailed from that point on. The Crimson Tide hit five home runs, including three in the first inning from sophomore Kaylee Tow, junior Bailey Hemphill and sophomore Maddie Morgan. Senior Reagan Dykes blasted a second-inning grand slam and junior Claire Jenkins smacked her third long ball of the weekend with a fourth-inning solo shot
MURPHY HITS SEC WIN MILESTONE
Alabama's win in game one of the series against Missouri marked the 400th SEC win of head coach Patrick Murphy's career. He is the only head coach in league history to reach 400 conference wins, with no current or former coach having reached 300.
CAREER SEC WINS
- Patrick Murphy (Alabama 1999-pres.) - 402
- Lu Harris Champer (Georgia 2000-pres.) - 294
- Ralph and Karen Weekly (Tennessee 2002-pres.) - 287
- Tim Walton (Florida 2006-pres.) - 261
- Yvette Girouard (LSU 2001-11) - 220
BEST STARTS IN PROGRAM HISTORY
At 25-0, Alabama is off to one of its best starts in program history, just two away from the program record
Best Starts in Alabama Softball History
- 27-0 (2001)
- 26-0 (2012)
- 25-0 (2019)
- 25-0 (2007)
- 22-0 (2013)
ALABAMA MOVES UP TO NO. 4 IN NATIONAL RANKINGS
- A 3-0 start to Southeastern Conference play pushed Alabama softball's record to 25-0, boosting the Crimson Tide to No. 4 in this week's USA Today/NFCA poll and ESPN.com/USA Softball poll
- The No. 4 ranking is Alabama's highest in the NFCA poll since week 13 of the 2016 season and in the USA Softball poll since week one of the 2017 season
- Alabama is the highest-ranked SEC team in the polls, joined in the top 10 by Tennessee (6/5), Florida (7/7), Georgia (8/9) and LSU (9/8)
MONTANA FOUTS NAMED SEC FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK
- Montana Fouts earned her third SEC Freshman of the Year award this week after earning two wins in the circle and a save in three appearances
- With this week's SEC Freshman of the Week award, Fouts joins Kayla Braud (2013) and Charlotte Morgan (2007) as the only three-time winners in program history
- Alabama has now earned 22 Freshman of the Week accolades since the award's introduction in 2007
- Fouts threw 2.0 shutout innings on Tuesday against South Alabama for her first career save, striking out four while allowing just one hit
- On Friday, she went the distance in her SEC debut against Missouri, striking out seven while holding the Tigers to one run on two hits
- Fouts claimed her second win of the weekend in Sunday's series finale, throwing 4.0 innings with two earned runs on three hits
TIDE MAKES HISTORIC COMEBACK IN GAME TWO WIN
Facing a seven-run deficit in game two, Alabama's comeback victory over Missouri is the biggest in program history
Biggest Comebacks in Alabama Softball History
- March 8, 2019 vs. Missouri - Trailed by 7, won 14-8
- May 7, 2016 vs. Georgia - Trailed by 6, won 9-7
- March 9, 2010 vs. Liberty - Trailed by 6, won 10-7
- Feb. 19, 2011 vs. Louisville - Trailed by 5, won 9-8
- April 3, 2007 vs. Northwest Louisiana - Trailed by 5, won 13-7
REAGAN DYKES THREE AWAY FROM CAUGHT STEALING RECORD
- With five runners caught stealing this season, senior Reagan Dykes is second all-time at UA with 41 career runners caught stealing
- She is three shy of Kendall Dawson's (2009-12) record total of 44
- Dykes' 16 runners caught stealing last year was one off the single-season school record of 17 set by Dawson in 2011
- Dykes, Dawson and Lacy Prejean (2000-03) are the only three catchers in school history with at least 16 runners caught stealing in a season
UP NEXT
Alabama returns to SEC play with a three-game road series at Texas A&M starting Friday, March 22 at 6 p.m. CT