Friday, April 14
Starkville, Miss.
4 p.m. CT
Alabama
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Mississippi State
Softball Begins Second Half of SEC Play this Weekend in Starkville
4/13/2023 9:58:00 AM | Softball
Game Notes (PDF)Live Audio (97.5 FM)Friday Live StatsFriday Live Video (SECN+)Saturday Live StatsSaturday Live Video (SECN+)Sunday Live StatsSunday Live Video (SEC Network)
Sunday’s series finale will air live on the SEC Network
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama (29-12, 6-6 SEC) begins the second half of its SEC schedule this weekend with a three-game road series at Mississippi State (23-16, 3-8 SEC) beginning Friday, April 14 at 4 p.m. CT.
This Weekend: #16/14 Alabama at Mississippi State
- Starkville, Miss. – Nusz Park
- Friday/Saturday Video: SEC Network+ (Streaming)
- Sunday Video: SEC Network
- Radio: The Crimson Tide Sports Network at 97.5 FM in Tuscaloosa | nick975.com | Varsity App
- Friday, April 14 – 4 p.m. CT
- Saturday, April 15 – 1:30 p.m. CT
- Sunday, April 16 – 1 p.m. CT
Scouting Alabama
- Alabama heads to Starkville, Miss., this weekend for a three-game series against Mississippi State starting Friday, April 14 at 4 p.m. CT
- Sunday's series finale between the Crimson Tide and Bulldogs will be live on the SEC Network at 1 p.m. CT
- This is Alabama's first road trip to Mississippi State since 2017, with its scheduled meeting in 2020 canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic
- The Tide is coming off a series win vs. South Carolina last weekend in Tuscaloosa and a Tuesday road win over Samford, 6-2
- For the second-straight week and the third time this season, Montana Fouts was named the NFCA and SEC Pitcher of the Week, becoming the first D1 pitcher since 2015 to earn the weekly national honor three times in a season
- Kenleigh Cahalan and Ally Shipman lead the team with 42 and 38 hits, respectively, including a combined 26 doubles (13 each)
- Ashley Prange is third on the team with 37 hits while leading the squad with 12 home runs and 34 RBIs
- The Alabama pitching staff has a 1.97 ERA with 277.1 innings pitched, led by Montana Fouts at 15-6 with a 1.45 ERA and NCAA-leading 223 strikeouts in 139.2 innings pitched
- Murphy is in his 25th season as head coach at Alabama with a 1,222-345 (.780) record
- Alabama returns 11 players from last year's team, including All-SEC honorees Montana Fouts, Ashley Prange, Ally Shipman and Bailey Dowling, while also welcoming five freshmen and three transfers
Inside the Series
- Overall vs. Mississippi State: 66-11
- In Tuscaloosa: 34-3 | In Starkville: 26-7 | At Neutral Sites: 6-1
- Current Streak: Alabama +4
- Last Meeting: Saturday, April 16, 2022 - Tuscaloosa, Ala. - W, 4-0
- Last Meeting in Starkville: March 19, 2017 - W, 3-0
Last Time Out: vs. Samford
- Alabama made the quick trip west to Birmingham Tuesday night, defeating Samford 6-2
- The win was the 1,300th in Alabama program history, now owning a 1,300-392 all-time record since its inaugural 1997 season
- The Crimson Tide improves to 23-6 in non-conference play this season
- Alabama is now 22-6 when scoring first and 12-3 when scoring in the first inning
- Bailey Dowling's 2-for-4 day marked her ninth multi-hit game of the year, which is tied for the team lead
- Kenleigh Cahalan was 1-for-3 with a run scored and a hit-by-pitch in the leadoff spot, improving her current reached-base streak to 11 games
Fouts Earns National and Conference Recognition
- For the second-straight week and the third time this season, Montana Fouts is both the Wilson/NFCA D1 Pitcher of the Week and the SEC Pitcher of the Week
- The weekly recognition by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association is the third this season for Fouts, making her the only Division-I pitcher to win the weekly award three times in a season since the NFCA split its weekly accolades into separate player and pitcher awards in 2017
- The last D1 pitcher to win the award three times was UCF's Shelby Turnier in 2015
- The conference award is Fouts' third this season and the 16th weekly award of her career, including four Freshman of the Week honors in 2019 and 11 previous Pitcher of the Week awards
- Alabama pitchers have now won a combined 53 SEC Pitcher of the Week awards all-time
Alabama in the SEC Rankings (Top 10)
Overall
- Batters Struck Out - Montana Fouts - 1st - 223
- Doubles - Ally Shipman - T2nd - 13
- Doubles - Kenleigh Cahalan - T2nd - 13
- Wins - Montana Fouts - T2nd - 15
- Opposing Batting Avg. - Jaala Torrence - 5th - .133
- Home Runs - Ashley Prange - 6th - 12
- Opposing Batting Avg. - Montana Fouts - 8th - .154
- Total Bases - Ashley Prange - 8th - 77
- Runs Scored - Ashley Prange - 9th - 33
- Hits - Kenleigh Cahalan - T9th - 42
- Walks - Kenleigh Cahalan - T9th - 26
- Earned Run Avg. - Montana Fouts - 10th - 1.45
SEC Only
- Batters Struck Out - Montana Fouts - 1st - 80
- Opposing Batting Avg. - Jaala Torrence - 2nd - .094
- ERA - Montana Fouts - 3rd - 1.09
- Walks - Bailey Dowling - T9th - 6
- Opposing Batting Average - Montana Fouts - 5th - .149
- Slugging Pct. - Ashley Prange - 9th - .647
Fouts Throws Fourth Career No-Hitter
- Fouts' no-hitter on April 8 vs. South Carolina was the fourth of her career, making her the fifth UA pitcher to throw four or more no-hitters, either solo or combined
- Kelsi Dunne holds the UA record with 10 no-hitters (nine solo, one combined), followed by Alexis Osorio with seven (four solo, three combined), Stephanie VanBrakle with five (all solo) and Fouts (three solo, one combined) tied with Madi Moore (all combined) with four
- It was the 13th seven-inning no hitter in program history and the 13th in conference play
- Fouts is one of just four UA pitchers to throw multiple solo no-hitters in a season, with Sydney Littlejohn doing so in 2015, Stephanie VanBrakle in 2006 and 2004 and Kelsi Dunne in 2008, 2009 and 2011
Multiple Solo No-Hitters in the Same Season
- Stephanie VanBrakle - 3 - 2006
- Kelsi Dunne - 3 - 2009
- Kelsi Dunne - 3 - 2011
- Stephanie VanBrakle - 2 - 2004
- Kelsi Dunne - 2 - 2008
- Sydney Littlejohn - 2 - 2015
- Montana Fouts - 2 - 2023
Extra Innings
- The game one win over South Carolina was Alabama's fifth extra-inning game this season, holding a 4-1 record in those contests
- The four extra-inning wins are tied for the second-most in a season in program history, only trailing a staggering 14-0 extra inning record in 2000
- The four extra-inning wins are the most since 2017, with the last time before that as 2009
- Overall, the Tide is 70-41 (.631) in extra-inning games
Most Extra-Inning Games in a Season (Record)
- 14 - 2000 (14-0)
- 9 - 1999 (3-6)
- 7 - 2001 (4-3)
- 6 - 2017 (4-2)
- 5 - 2023 (4-1), 2019 (3-2), 2009 (4-1), 2007 (3-2), 2006 (3-2), 2004 (3-2)
Moving Up the Career Shutout Rankings
- Montana Fouts' no-hitter last weekend against South Carolina was her 31st career shutout, moving her within seven of second place Kelsi Dunne and eight of Shelly Laird's career record
Alabama Career Shutout Leaders
- 39 - Shelley Laird (1999-02)
- 38 - Kelsi Dunne (2008-11)
- 31 - Montana Fouts (2019-pres.)
- 28 - Alexis Osorio (2015-18)
Fouts Surpasses the 1000 Strikeout Mark
- With two strikeouts in the March 14 win over North Alabama, Montana Fouts became the fifth player in program history to reach 1,000 career strikeouts
- She is now just 32 shy of second place Stephanie VanBrakle (2003-06)
Alabama Career Strikeout Leaders
- 1,219 - Kelsi Dunne (2008-11)
- 1,113 - Stephanie VanBrakle (2003-06)
- 1,081 - Montana Fouts (2019-pres.)
- 1,063 - Alexis Osorio (2015-18)
- 1,045 - Shelley Laird (1999-2002)
Fouts Career Record Watch
- With 90 career wins, Montana Fouts is fifth all-time at Alabama, with Stephanie VanBrakle (2003-06) as the next milestone in fourth place with 97 wins
- Fouts also has 109 career starts, passing Alexis Osorio (2015-18) with 108 with fourth place VanBrakle as the next-highest on the list with 125
- Fouts has three saves this season, giving her 14 for her career which is two shy of tying Shelley Laird (1999-2002) and Osorio for second all-time at Alabama
Up Next: vs. Liberty/Marshall (Huntington, W. Va.)
- Tuesday, April 18 vs. Liberty - 12 p.m. CT
- Tuesday, April 18 at Marshall - 2:30 p.m. CT
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Players Mentioned
IF
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IF
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RHP
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IF
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C
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RHP
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