Alabama
18-1
South Alabama
12-6
Alabama Splits Saturday Games at T-Mobile Crimson Classic, Earns Second Win over No. 19 Arizona
3/2/2024 6:17:00 PM | Softball
The Crimson Tide shut out the Wildcats for its second ranked win in as many games
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama softball split a pair of close contests Saturday at the T-Mobile Crimson Classic, taking its first loss of the season to South Alabama, 2-0, before bouncing back with a 1-0 shutout over 19th-ranked Arizona.
Alabama (19-1) could not get the bats going in a 2-0 loss to South Alabama (12-5) but a solo home run from Marlie Giles proved enough against Arizona (16-3), as the pitching and defense held the Wildcats at bay for the Crimson Tide's second win over the ranked Pac-12 foe this weekend. Jaala Torrence (7-1) was the pitcher of record in both games, while Kayla Beaver secured the final two outs of the game against Arizona to earn her third save of the season.
From Head Coach Patrick Murphy
"There was some good pitching today by us and both of our opponents. I have to give all the credit in the world to [South Alabama pitcher] Olivia Lackey. She's one of the few pitchers that has come in here and beat us twice, so I tip my cap to her. We just didn't make enough adjustments against her in the first game and South Alabama took advantage of our mistakes. The second game was a good, old-fashioned pitcher's duel. Jaala Torrence was terrific as the starter, Alea Johnson did her job as a reliever and Kayla Beaver came in to close and did exactly what we wanted her to do."
Highlights
- The win over Arizona was Alabama's eighth shutout of the season and second ranked win
- Kayla Beaver ended the weekend with a 2-0 record and a save over 13.2 innings pitched, allowing just one run while striking out 12
- Marlie Giles' home run was her fourth of the year, just one shy of Abby Duchscherer for the team lead
- Duchscherer extended her current reached-base streak to 10 games, which is a new career best for the sophomore
- Jenna Johnson failed to reach base in the loss to South Alabama, ending her streak at a career-best 14 games
Scoring Summary: South Alabama 2, Alabama 0
- T2 | South Alabama got on the board first with an RBI double (0-1, 2 Out)
- T3 | Another RBI double tacked on a run for the visitors (0-2, 2 Out)
Scoring Summary: Alabama 1, Arizona 0
- B4 | Marlie Giles sent a solo home run to right field (1-0, 0 Out)
Up Next: vs. No. 13/15 Florida (Tuscaloosa, Ala.)
- Saturday, March 9 – 2 p.m. CT
- Sunday, March 10 – 5 p.m. CT – SEC Network
- Monday, March 11 – 6 p.m. CT – SEC Network
For the latest information on the team, follow @AlabamaSB on X/Twitter, BamaSB on Instagram and Alabama Softball on Facebook. General athletic news can also be found at UA_Athletics on Twitter and Instagram and AlabamaAthletics on Facebook.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Olivia Lackie (8-3)
L: Torrence, Jaala (6-1)
Batting:
2B: Sasha Willems 1 ; Odalys Cordova 1
RBI: Sasha Willems 1 ; Odalys Cordova 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Gabby Stagner 1 ; Stephanie Gonzalez 1
CS: Marley Sims 1
Base Running:
SB: Valentine, Riley 1
HBP: Duchscherer, Abby 1
