| BSB/SB Five Arms Lead to Tuesday's 2-0 Shutout of Middle Tennessee

[UA Press Release]

Homestand Continues for Baseball with Weekend Series against Northern Kentucky - Alabama Athletics

Alabama baseball continues on its current six-game homestand this weekend, hosting Northern Kentucky for a three-game series at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The C...

rolltide.com

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama baseball continues on its current six-game homestand this weekend, hosting Northern Kentucky for a three-game series at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The Crimson Tide and Norse are slated for 3 p.m. CT in the opener followed by a 2 p.m. first pitch on Saturday and a 1 p.m. start in the series finale. All three games will air live on SEC Network+.

Alabama's weekend matchup with Northern Kentucky will feature the Crimson Tide's "Kid's Day" promotion on Sunday. All kids (18 and under) can receive a $5 general admission ticket to the series finale. The first 75 kids through the gates of Sewell-Thomas Stadium will also receive Alabama lanyards. Following the final out of Sunday's matchup, kids 12 and under can run the bases at The Joe.

FOLLOW THE TIDE
Fans can follow this weekend's games via the below outlets:
Watch: SEC Network+
Listen: 102.9 FM / CTSN / TuneIn App
Twitter: @AlabamaBSB
Live Stats: RollTide.com

PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS
FRIDAY: UA – Sam Finnerty (Sr., RHP) vs. NKU – Sam Williams (R-Sr., LHP)
SATURDAY: UA – Brock Love (R-Jr., RHP) vs. NKU – Kyle Service (So., RHP)
SUNDAY: UA – TBA vs. NKU – Jake Dennis (Jr., LHP)

LEADING OFF
• Alabama and Northern Kentucky will meet for the first time in the history of the two schools.
• The Crimson Tide has faced three member-schools in its history and only two of the current six member-teams, going a perfect 10-0 in the combined meetings. Alabama has squared off with UIC on five occasions and Youngstown State three times. Alabama met Cleveland State twice in its history, but the Vikings no longer participate in baseball. UA has never met Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Oakland or Wright State in addition to Northern Kentucky.
• Alabama will call on its usual game-one starter for Friday's opener in senior right-hander Sam Finnerty. The Crimson Tide will follow with redshirt junior Brock Love, a righty, in Saturday's matchup with Sunday's starter to be announced.
• Northern Kentucky will begin the weekend with redshirt senior southpaw Sam Williams on the hill for the opener. The Norse will then look to sophomore righty Kyle Service on Saturday and junior left-hander Jake Dennis on getaway day in Sunday's series finale.

ABOUT ALABAMA
• Alabama enters this weekend on an eight-game win streak after going 2-0 in the midweek and a perfect 3-0 last weekend on the road in Mobile. The Crimson Tide swept South Alabama on the Jaguars' home turf last weekend before taking down UAB, 5-4, on Tuesday followed by another 5-4 win, this one over South Dakota State, in a 14-inning affair.
• Alabama held on for a 4-3 win over UAB on Tuesday night at The Joe. The Tide entered the ninth with a three-run lead, but the Blazers loaded the bases to force a pitching change. Graduate Jeremy Randolph was able to limit the damage, stranding the tying run at third with a strikeout looking to end the game and earn his second save in as many chances.
• At the plate, senior Joe Breaux and sophomore Tyler Gentry each finished with three-hit performances, with Breaux adding a triple and a run while Gentry contributed a home run, one run scored and a team-high two RBI.
• Gentry's RBI-single in the 14th pushed Alabama past South Dakota State, 5-4, in 14 innings on Wednesday. Alabama took a 4-1 lead into the ninth, but a three-run rally by the Jackrabbits moved the game into extras.
• Randolph carried the Crimson Tide through the early innings, tossing 3.1 scoreless with only one walk and two hits allowed while striking out a season-high five batters. Kyle Cameron then took over, working 2.0 scoreless frames for the win. The redshirt junior allowed just one hit to keep the SDSU offense at bay and allow his bats the time needed to push across the winning run.
• Gentry led the Tide offense on Wednesday for a second consecutive game, finishing 3-for-7 with a team-high two RBI. Also posting a three-hit effort was Morgan McCullough. The junior finished 3-for-5 with a triple to go with his team-high two walks and two runs scored.
• A three-run eighth put the game out of reach, as Alabama earned a 7-3 win over South Alabama on Friday night at Stanky Field. The Crimson Tide was able to jump out to an early two-run advantage, but a three-run homer by South Alabama in the third gave the Jaguars the lead. The Tide answered back three innings later, plating one run in both the sixth and seventh innings followed by the huge three-run eighth to blow things open.
• The offense was patient at the plate, drawing a season-high 10 walks in addition to the nine hits. All nine starters reached base safely with eight of the nine recording a hit. Gentry and freshman Drew Williamson each recorded three base-on-balls, while junior Justin King led the team in hits with a 2-for-4 night that included a double, an RBI and one of the team's walks.
• On the mound Friday, Sam Finnerty tossed another quality start for UA. The senior worked 6.0 innings, allowing three runs on four hits and a walk with four punchouts. He ended his night by retiring seven straight before handing the ball over to Casey Cobb. The junior right-hander notched his first save of the season with 3.0 scoreless frames that included three punchouts and only one hit allowed.
• Alabama claimed a pair of victories over South Alabama on Saturday at Stanky Field. The Crimson Tide won game one of the doubleheader, 10-5, and followed with a 6-1 victory in the nightcap to claim the series sweep. UA arms totaled 27 strikeouts and limited the USA hitters to a .215 average across the doubleheader to help secure the pair of wins. The hitters wrapped up the two games batting .338 with 13 extra-base hits and eight walks while going a perfect 6-for-6 on stolen bases.
• UA recorded a season-high 15 hits en route to a 10-5 victory in game one of the doubleheader. The Crimson Tide offense featured three players with three-plus hits, led by Gentry's 4-for-5 day that saw the sophomore fall just a triple short of the cycle. Gentry contributed two doubles and a home run to go with a team-leading two runs and three RBI. McCullough finished his afternoon 3-for-6, just a home run short of the cycle. The junior doubled and tripled while adding two RBI, one run scored and a stolen base. Rounding out the trio was junior Kolby Robinson. The Tide shortstop finished a perfect 3-for-3 with one run scored.
• The Tide used five pitchers to secure the win in game one, led by Deacon Medders, who earned the W thanks to 3.2 innings of work that included six strikeouts. Medders retired 11 straight to start his afternoon and allowed just two hits and a walk.
• Brock Love put together a dominant performance in his first true start of the season to help the Crimson Tide to a 6-1 win in the series finale with South Alabama. The redshirt junior tossed 4.2 frames of scoreless baseball, allowing just one hit and walking a batter while striking out a career-high 11 batters in the winning effort.
• At the plate, seven of the Tide hitters recorded at least one hit on the night, led by Breaux The senior finished 3-for-5 with a double, an RBI and one run scored. Also putting together a multi-hit night was Williamson and Robinson, with each batter totaling a pair of hits, one RBI and one run apiece.
• The three victories over the Jaguars marked the first time UA has won three consecutive road games against USA since a victory on Feb. 26, 1983, followed by a pair of wins in Mobile on March 3-4, 1984. The Crimson Tide had never won a three-game series over South in Mobile and had only one three-game series win over USA, this one in Tuscaloosa from April 18-19, 1981.

ABOUT NORTHERN KENTUCKY
• Todd Asalon is in his 19th season with the Norse in 2019 and owns a 533-504-1 record at NKU entering this weekend's series. Asalon, a 24-year veteran as a collegiate head coach, is joined by assistant coaches Dizzy Peyton and Pay Hyde.
• Northern Kentucky returns 19 letterwinners, including five positional starters and four starting pitchers, from the 2018 team that finished 14-39 overall and 9-21 in Horizon League action. The 2019 roster is without 13 lettermen from a season ago, a number that includes four positional starters and two starting pitchers. NKU also welcomes 16 newcomers to this year's roster.
• The Norse were selected to finish sixth in the Horizon League in the league's preseason poll, as voted on by the conference's head coaches.

 

[UA Press Release]

Crimson Tide Offense Overpowers Northern Kentucky in 15-1 Win on Friday Night - University of Alabama Athletics

Alabama baseball recorded a season-high 18 hits on the way to a 15-1 victory over Northern Kentucky on Friday afternoon at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. With the victory,

rolltide.com

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama baseball recorded a season-high 18 hits on the way to a 15-1 victory over Northern Kentucky on Friday afternoon at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. With the victory, the Crimson Tide extends its winning streak to nine games and improves to 13-2 on the season.

"This was a good win for us," said Alabama head coach Brad Bohannon. "We've been talking about executing better offensively. We had a lot of hard contact throughout the lineup. We got a couple of big hits early to bust it open, and then we got a lot of guys in there that all did a good job."

The Crimson Tide totaled a season-high 18 hits on the way to a season-best 15 runs in the series opener with the Norse. Eleven different players recorded at least one hit with four posting multi-hit efforts. The offense was led by junior Brett Auerbach, who finished a perfect 5-for-5 with two doubles, two runs scored and a team-high tying three RBI. The five-hit effort matched the Alabama program record for hits in a game and marked the 32nd five-hit game in Tide history.

Also contributing multi-hit efforts were freshmen Drew Williamson and T.J. Reeves along with senior Keith Holcombe, with all three players totaling two knocks. Reeves led the way with a 2-for-2 showing that included a double, his first career home run, three RBI and a team-best three runs scored.

Not to be outdone were the Crimson Tide pitchers. Sam Finnerty (4-0) was sharp once again, tossing 7.0 innings of one-run baseball. The senior gave up five hits while striking out six to match his career-high total for punchouts as a starter. Finnerty was followed by Dylan Smith and Dylan Oliver who both recorded 1.0 frame with one strikeout apiece while holding NKU hitless. The trio of arms did not issue a walk on the day, the first time Alabama has done so in a game this season.

Alabama struck early, scoring seven runs across the first three innings with five in the second and two in the third. The Tide then put up a season-high tying seven runs in the fifth inning to make it a 14-0 affair through five. Northern Kentucky tallied one run in the seventh off Finnerty, but that would end their scoring. Alabama came right back for one of its own in the bottom of the eighth to set the score at 15-1, the eventual final.

The Crimson Tide and Norse return to the diamond tomorrow for game two of the series at The Joe. The Saturday matchup has been moved up to an 11 a.m. first pitch after previously being listed for 2 p.m. Alabama will call on redshirt junior Brock Love, a right-hander, for the start while Northern Kentucky will counter with sophomore righty Kyle Service. Fans can catch all the action live on SEC Network+.

 

[UA Press Release]

Complete Effort on Offense Propels Baseball to 9-4 Win over Northern Kentucky on Saturday - University of Alabama Athletics

Alabama baseball used a complete offensive effort 1-through-9 to down Northern Kentucky, 9-4, on Saturday at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. With the win, the Crimson Tide

rolltide.com

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama baseball used a complete offensive effort 1-through-9 to down Northern Kentucky, 9-4, on Saturday at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. With the win, the Crimson Tide improves to 14-2 on the year and extends its winning streak to 10 games, the longest by a Tide team since 2003.

"I was glad to get the win," said Alabama head coach Brad Bohannon. "Brock (Love) gave us a good start." Bohannon also added, " The wind was blowing in. It's hard to put up a big number on a day when the wind is blowing that aggressively. I thought we hit a lot of balls hard and were very aggressive on the bases. (There were) a lot of positives today with a lot of areas still to improve on."

All nine Alabama hitters reached base safely on Saturday with seven of the nine recording at least one hit. The Tide also matched its season-high mark for walks with 10 and was hit by a season-leading four pitches. Eight of the nine starters also contributed at least one RBI while seven of the nine totaled at least one run scored. On the bases, the Tide was able to swipe three bases to match its season-high in that category, as well.

Juniors Morgan McCullough and Kobe Morris each recorded a pair of hits, one run scored and a walk with McCullough adding a double and an RBI. Senior Joe Breaux led the Tide in RBI with two on his team-leading eighth double of the season while also walking once. Freshman Drew Williamson and junior Brett Auerbach paced UA in walks and runs with two apiece, while Auerbach used his 1-for-3 day to extend his hitting streak to seven games.

Starter Brock Love (2-0) picked up his second win in as many outings with 5.0 frames of one-run baseball. The redshirt junior allowed four hits and a walk while striking out six before handing it over to the bullpen. Alabama's three relievers did not allow an earned run across the final 4.0 innings and tallied three strikeouts in the process to help the Tide secure the Saturday win and the series victory.

Northern Kentucky was first on the board in game two of the series, scoring one in the second on a solo home run. The Tide answered back with a run in the third to bring the score even at one apiece. A walk for Williamson led things off before a single and a one-out walk loaded the bases for Tyler Gentry. The sophomore grounded a single deep in the hole at short to pull things even at 1-1.

Alabama broke the tie in the fourth thanks to Breaux's two-RBI double to set the score at 3-1. The Tide extended the lead with two more in the fifth to gain a 5-1 advantage. Senior Keith Holcombe drew a one-out walk and was brought home on a triple from John Trousdale, the junior's first three-bagger of the season. After a walk, Williamson sent a sacrifice fly to center to score the inning's second run and give the Tide a four-run advantage.

The Tide added two more runs in the sixth on four consecutive walks and an infield single from Robinson, but Northern Kentucky countered with three runs in the top of the seventh to cut the lead to 7-4. Alabama came right back to add a pair of insurance runs in the home half of the seventh for a 9-4 advantage, the eventual final.

Alabama goes for the series sweep of Northern Kentucky on Sunday with the game scheduled for a 1 p.m. CT first pitch at The Joe. The Crimson Tide will call on junior right-hander Wil Freeman in the start while the Norse counter with junior Jake Dennis, a righty. Fans can catch the series finale live on SEC Network+.

 

[TerryP]

2018: 52 HP for the season.
2019: 24 HP and they're not to SEC play yet.

5-0 Bama, bottom of the 4th with the bases loaded.

 

[TerryP]

Well, double to right by Holcombe scoring three. 8-0.

 

[JoseyWalesTheOutlaw]

10-1 Top of the 8th

Harry Doyle: Monty, anything to add?
Color Man: Umm... no.
Harry Doyle: He's not the best colorman in the league for nothing, folks!

 

[JoseyWalesTheOutlaw]

10-1 was the final...……..Roll Tide

Lets see how we perform when we play someone that is somebody...…….

 

[TerryP]

Lets see how we perform when we play someone that is somebody

We're not going to learn a lot about this week's midweek game against MTSU. They're around .333 for the season right now. So, we're looking at a team going 15-2 in the out of conference / preseason games. That begs a question. When is the last time Bama started SEC play with only two losses?

A win against MTSU would also mean this team has strung together 12 wins in a row. Against lesser competition than they'll face in the SEC? Sure. No doubt. But, it is the longest winning streak Bama has seen since 1999. I'd say that's something we can accept at face value. We've not seen that in quite some time.

 

[TerryP]

Eli with a nice call:

 

[UA Press Release]

Baseball Completes the Sweep of Northern Kentucky with a 10-1 Win on Sunday - University of Alabama Athletics

Alabama baseball completed the series sweep of Northern Kentucky with a 10-1 win on Sunday afternoon at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The victory improves the Crimson Tide

rolltide.com

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama baseball completed the series sweep of Northern Kentucky with a 10-1 win on Sunday afternoon at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The victory improves the Crimson Tide to 15-2 on the year and extends the Tide's winning streak to 11 games, the longest streak for a Tide team since 1999.

"It was a really good win for us," said Alabama head coach Brad Bohannon. "I though Wil (Freeman) set the tone. I'm really proud of his outing because he's gotten better every time out. He's done a good job of throwing his fastball to both sides and his breaking ball for a strike. (Garret) Rukes, Dylan (Oliver) and Deacon (Medders) threw three no-hit innings out of the pen and were outstanding. Just really glad to get another win."

Alabama received a strong start from junior Wil Freeman(2-0) on Sunday. The right-hander allowed only one run on six hits and a walk with four strikeouts across a season-high 5.2 innings for the win. The Crimson Tide then went to the bullpen, with the trio of redshirt sophomore Garret Rukes along with juniors Dylan Oliver and Deacon Meddersshutting the door. The three relievers combined for 3.0 scoreless, hitless frames and punched out a pair of NKU hitters.

The Tide's offense recorded only six hits in the series finale but was able to draw a season-high 12 walks. Juniors Morgan McCullough and Johnny Hawk joined sophomore Tyler Gentry in drawing a team-high two walks apiece. Hawk and Gentry each added two runs scored while Gentry and McCullough contributed one RBI apiece. Freshman T.J. Reeves led Alabama in hits with a 2-for-3 showing that included one RBI and a run while senior Keith Holcombe paced the team in RBI thanks to his bases-clearing, three-RBI double.

The Crimson Tide used two four-run innings in both the second and fourth to gain an 8-0 advantage. The fourth was highlighted by a walk, hit-by-pitch and two more walks for the first run, followed by Holcombe's bases-clearing double to put the game out of reach. Northern Kentucky got on the board in the fifth with one tally, but Alabama answered with a two-spot in the home half of the fifth to set the score at 10-1. The teams would go scoreless over the final 3.0 innings on the way to a Crimson Tide win and series sweep.

Alabama returns to the diamond on Tuesday for a single midweek matchup with Middle Tennessee to close out the current six-game homestand. The Crimson Tide and Blue Raiders are scheduled for a 6 p.m. CT first pitch at The Joe with the game airing live on SEC Network+.

 

[EasyTider]

Over/Under 40% winning percentage in SEC play. My guess, just a bit under.

 

[Bama News]

Alabama's Brock Love shuts down Northern Kentucky

Alabama baseball clinched its weekend series against Northern Kentucky with a 9-4 win Saturday at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The Crimson Tide briefly fell

www.houmatoday.com

https://www.tidesports.com/alabama-baseball-draws-12-walks-to-finish-sweep-of-northern-kentucky/

 

[TerryP]

Harry Doyle:

 

[TerryP]

@EasyTider,
It's my opinion you're underestimating this years squad.

You're thinking less than .400 winning percentage in SEC play when the early season numbers point to a much better season. Last year they were .360 in conference play. Granted, we haven't seen them start SEC play so we're guessing here...but there are signs that say the team is in much better shape than last season.

IE: The 2018 squad won five games on the road last season (5-15.) This years team is 3-0 on the road. We're looking at around 30 games left before regional play begins in the tourney and to match last year they're two wins away. They'll hit that mark and pass it.

This team is sitting on 15 wins. We'll likely be looking at 16-2 going into SEC play. 11 games will separate the two season totals in wins...with 30 or so games left to play.

FWIW, Collegiate Baseball's poll puts Bama at #26 this week. That's the highest ranking we've seen in how long?

 

[UAgrad93]

We should be 16-2 headed to Ole Piss this weekend. Squeeze out 13-15 wins in conference play and we should get back to Hoover and also get a call for Regionals. Bohannon has these guys playing with confidence and as a team. Pitching has been solid as well as our defense, both 2nd among conference teams. Hitting is in at #6. We were done no favors by the SEC office but this team may surprise a few people.

 

[EasyTider]

How many conf games do baseball play? I agree that this team is significantly improved but SEC is freaking loaded.

 

[UAgrad93]

How many conf games do baseball play? I agree that this team is significantly improved but SEC is freaking loaded.

30 conference games!! 10 3 game series. Ole Piss, U of SC, Miss State, UGA, Barn, LSwho, Vandy, Florida, Arky, and A&M. All ranked inside the Top 25.

 

[BamaFan334]

His Hall of Fame speech is off the charts funny. I love it when he said "I still think I should have gone in as a player". Well, he got paid like one here, so I'm sure he got a good laugh.

 

[UA Press Release]

Five Arms Lead Baseball to 2-0 Shutout of Middle Tennessee - University of Alabama Athletics

Alabama baseball used five pitchers to combine for a 2-0 shutout of Middle Tennessee on Tuesday night at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The shutout was the third of the

rolltide.com

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama baseball used five pitchers to combine for a 2-0 shutout of Middle Tennessee on Tuesday night at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The shutout was the third of the season and moved the Crimson Tide's overall record to 16-2. The victory also extended UA's winning streak to 12 games which ties for the eighth-longest streak in program history.

"I was glad to see us play a really clean game," said Alabama head coach Brad Bohannon. "We didn't walk a batter, and we didn't make an error – it's tough for the other team to score when you do that. I was really proud of the focus throughout the lineup today, as well."

The Crimson Tide pitchers did not allow walk or throw a wild pitch while the defense played an errorless game for a clean performance in the field. Alabama's arms combined for five strikeouts and threw 89 strikes across 121 total pitches in the shutout victory.

"I've been talking a lot about the length of our pitching staff and that's a strength for us," Bohannon added about his team's effort on the mound. "I was really excited about Tyler Ras and Dylan Smith who pitched early. Those are two freshman that are really talented, and they get better every time out. Then we were able to use the older guys later in the game. I'm just really, really proud of the pitching and defense."

Freshman Tyler Ras got the start before handing it over to fellow rookie Dylan Smith. The duo tossed 5.0 frames and allowed only four hits over that time. Redshirt junior Davis Vainer (1-0) followed with 2.0 dominant innings that included three punchouts for the win. Kyle Cameron, also a redshirt junior, worked the eighth before graduate closer Jeremy Randolph entered for the ninth, striking out the final batter for his third save in as many chances. In total, the five pitchers allowed only six hits to Middle Tennessee batters.

Alabama matched MTSU with six hits of its own, but Drew Williamson's two-out, two-RBI double in the sixth proved the difference in the game. Senior Keith Holcombe began the rally with a one-out single before junior John Trousdale put the pair in scoring position with a double to right. One out later, Williamson sent a single back up the middle on a 1-2 pitch to bring in both runners for the 2-0 advantage, the eventual final.

The Crimson Tide will now take to the road this weekend to begin Southeastern Conference play in Oxford against No. 8 Ole Miss. The three-game series is scheduled for a 6:30 p.m. start on Friday followed by a pair of 1:30 p.m. first pitches on both Saturday and Sunday. Fans can catch all the action live on SEC Network+.

Get all the latest information on the team by following @AlabamaBSB on Twitter and Instagram and on Facebook at Alabama Baseball. General athletic news can be found at UA_Athletics on Twitter and Instagram and AlabamaAthletics on Facebook.