Alabama Softball Falls to Tennessee, 3-2, in Friday’s Super Regional Series Opener

Friday, May 24

Knoxville, Tenn.

3 p.m. CT

Alabama

36-18

Tennessee

44-10

Alabama

Tennessee

Alabama Softball Falls to Tennessee, 3-2, in Friday’s Super Regional Series Opener

5/24/2024 6:10:00 PM | Softball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)Photo Gallery

Game two between the Crimson Tide and Lady Vols is Saturday at 2 p.m. CT

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Alabama softball took the early lead over Tennessee in Friday's Super Regional opener, but the Lady Vols capitalized on a fifth-inning error to pull ahead and ultimately win, 3-2, over the Crimson Tide.

Alabama (36-18) took the first lead on a pair of runs in the first and second innings and it remained 2-0 until Tennessee (44-10) capitalized on a two-out error in the bottom of the fifth, scoring three unearned runs to take a 3-2 lead. The Tide stranded a pair in scoring position in the sixth and went down in order in the seventh to end the game. Kristen White was 2-for-4 at the leadoff spot, her sixth multi-hit game of the year, while Marlie Giles extended her reached-base streak to a career-best eight games. Kayla Beaver (17-9) took the tough-luck loss in the circle, with all three runs allowed as unearned, while Jocelyn Briski allowed just one baserunner over 1.1 relief innings to close the game.

From Head Coach Patrick Murphy

"Today's game was just a barn-burner. We've improved so much game after game leading up to the postseason. In all three phases of the game. We had double the hits and half as many errors and the only thing we didn't win at is the final score. It was a hell of a first game and I think all of us are looking forward to tomorrow and we'll see what happens. This team doesn't quit and neither will the coaching staff."

Highlights

Alabama has previously overcome a game one Super Regional loss to win series over Stanford (2011), Oklahoma (2015) and Northwestern (2023)
The game was just the fourth loss in 34 games in which the Tide has scored first, and just its second when scoring in the first inning
Kristen White was 2-for-4 from the leadoff spot, her sixth multi-hit game of the year and her fourth-straight with a hit
Marlie Giles extended her reached-base streak to a career-best eight games

Scoring Summary

T1 | Kristen White scored from third on a wild pitch (1-0, 0 Out)
T2 | Marlie Giles scored from second on an RBI single from Riley Valentine (2-0, 2 Out)
B5 | A two-out fielding error plated an unearned run for Tennessee (2-1, 2 Out)
B5 | Laura Mealer gave the Lady Vols the lead with a two-run home run (2-3, 2 Out)

Up Next: Super Regionals vs. Tennessee (Knoxville, Tenn.)

Saturday, May 25 – 2 p.m. CT – TV TBD

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.