Wednesday, February 24
Tuscaloosa, Ala.
6 p.m. CT
Alabama
vs
UAB
Photo by: Crimson Tide Photos / UA Athletics
Alabama Softball Continues Home Stand Hosting UAB Wednesday
2/23/2021 3:05:00 PM | Softball
The Crimson Tide and Blazers face off at 6 p.m. CT at Rhoads Stadium
THIS WEEK: ALABAMA (8-0) VS. UAB (4-4)
- Wednesday, Feb. 24 - 6 p.m. CT
- Tuscaloosa, Ala. – Rhoads Stadium
SCOUTING ALABAMA
- Third-ranked Alabama heads into week three with an 8-0 record, earning two wins last weekend against Liberty and another pair against then-No. 8 LSU
- Alabama outscored its opponents 32-11 last weekend, including a lopsided 13-5 victory in the finale over the Tigers, matching the most runs by the Tide against LSU in program history
- Alabama continues to move up the national rankings, coming in as high as No. 3 across this week's Top 25
- Kaylee Tow was named the NFCA and SEC Player of the Week after hitting a scorching .786 over the weekend with a team-leading 11 hits, seven runs scored and nine RBIs
- Alabama returns 17 players from last season, including all seven 2020 seniors, while adding five freshmen
INSIDE THE SERIES
- Overall: Alabama leads 25-0
- In Tuscaloosa: 13-0 | In Birmingham: 11-0 | At Neutral Sites: 1-0
- Current Streak: Alabama +25
- Last Meeting: April 3, 2019 - Tuscaloosa, Ala. - W, 17-1 (5)
LAST TIME OUT: EASTON BAMA BASH
- Alabama went 4-0 at last weekend's Easton Bama Bash in Tuscaloosa, defeating Liberty twice before earning a pair of wins over eighth-ranked LSU
- The Crimson Tide outscored its opponents 32-11 and was especially strong with two outs, with 20 of the weekend's 26 RBIs coming in two-out situations
- The weekend concluded with a 13-5 run-rule win vs. LSU, matching the highest run total in program history against the Tigers
KAYLEE TOW NAMED NFCA AND SEC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
- A stellar weekend at the plate earned Kaylee Tow national and league recognition, as she was named the Louisville Slugger/NFCA Player of the Week and the Southeastern Conference Player of the Week
- Tow paced the Alabama offense in an undefeated weekend at the Easton Bama Bash, going 11-for-14 (.786) at the plate with a team-leading seven runs scored and nine RBIs
- She had four multi-hit performances, including a season-best three hits on Friday against Liberty and in back-to-back games against eighth-ranked LSU
- In the weekend finale against the Tigers, she scored three times and drove in a career-best five RBIs to help the Tide score 13 runs, its highest total in program history against LSU
- She is the eighth NFCA Player of the Week in program history and just the third position player, joining Kelley Montalvo (March 11, 2008) and Charlotte Morgan (April 8, 2008)
- The weekly conference award is the second of Tow's career, previously winning on Feb. 11, 2019, and marks the 48th SEC Player of the Week honor in program history
STARTING EARLY
- Alabama has hit the ground running so far this year, scoring 19 of its 61 runs in the first inning, the most of any inning
- The Tide is outscoring its opponents 19-1 in the first inning and 25-3 across the first two frames
- Alabama has scored in the first inning in six of its eight games played, scoring multiple runs in five of those games
- Tide batters have reached base safely in 21 out of 45 chances (.467) when leading off an inning, while opponents have only reached eight times in 50 opportunities (.160)
- KB Sides has seen the most opportunities to lead off an inning, batting 5-for-11 (.455)
TWO OUTS, SO WHAT?
- The Tide offense has been a tough third to say the least, hitting 26-for-69 (.377) with two outs
- 30 of the team's 50 RBIs this season have come with two out
- Bailey Dowling has seen the most at-bats with two out this season, going 7-for-12 (.583) with nine RBIs, three doubles and two home runs
- Kaylee Tow is close behind with a 5-for-10 (.500) two-out clip with six RBIs
ALABAMA MOVES UP IN NATIONAL RANKINGS
- Alabama moved up in all four national rankings this week, coming in at No. 3 in the USA Softball and D1 Softball polls and No. 4 in the NFCA and Softball America rankings
- This marks the team's highest ranking since being at No. 1 or 2 in every preseason poll last season
SHUTOUT STREAK
- A one-out solo home run in the top of the third from Liberty on Feb. 19 went as the first run allowed this season for Alabama, ending the shutout streak at 26.1 innings
- It was the second-longest shutout streak to start a season in program history, only trailing the 29.2 innings to start the 2011 campaign
Most Alabama Shutout Innings to Start a Season
- 29.2 (2011)
- 26.1 (2021)
- 23.0 (2018)
- 18.1 (2005)
- 13.1 (2017)
HEMPHILL CLOSING IN ON UA CAREER HOME RUN AND WALKS RECORDS, 200 RBIS
- Senior Bailey Hemphill's 50 career home runs ranks fifth all-time and sits 10 behind Kelly Kretschman's (1998-2001) career record of 60
- She is the fifth player in program history to reach the 50 home run mark, the first since Kaila Hunt (2011-14)
- Hemphill hit nine home runs her freshman season, improved to 13 as a sophomore and tied the UA single-season record in 2019 with 26
- Her power potential also leads to a lot of teams pitching carefully to the slugger, as she has drawn 184 career walks, which is 15 away from Haylie McCleney's (2013-16) record total of 199
- Hemphill also owns 189 career RBIs, putting her within striking distance of becoming the third Alabama player with 200 RBIs
- Charlotte Morgan (2007-10) owns the UA record with 264 career RBIs and Kaila Hunt (2011-14) is the only other player to surpass 200, finishing with 215
ELISSA RUNNING UP STOLEN BASE RANKINGS
- With 120 career stolen bases, Elissa Brown passed Haylie McCleney (2013-16) to move into the UA top five
- Above her, Kelly Kretschman and Jennifer Fenton are tied at third with 133, Kayla Braud sits in second with 182 and Brittany Rogers holds the record with 198
- Brown is also sixth in career stolen base percentage at .896
HOME SWEET HOME
- Alabama sports a 626-115 (.845) all-time record at home, including a 590-99 (.856) mark under head coach Patrick Murphy and a 571-95 (.857) record at Rhoads Stadium, the Tide's home field since 2000
- Since Rhoads Stadium opened in 2000, Alabama has won at least 25 home games in 17 of its 20 years there
UP NEXT - EASTON CRIMSON CLASSIC (TUSCALOOSA, ALA.)
- Friday, Feb. 26 vs. Memphis (DH) - 4 p.m. CT
- Saturday, Feb. 27 vs. UNC (DH) - 11 a.m. CT
- Sunday, Feb. 28 vs. Troy - 1 p.m. CT
Players Mentioned
OF
/ Softball
IF
/ Softball
UTIL
/ Softball
IF
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