Second-ranked Alabama softball preserved its undefeated record with a pair of hard-fought wins Saturday at the T-Mobile Crimson Classic, defeating Texas 3-1 before
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TUSCALOOSA, Ala. ā Second-ranked Alabama softball preserved its undefeated record with a pair of hard-fought wins Saturday at the T-Mobile Crimson Classic, defeating Texas 3-1 before rallying to a 4-2 win over Miami (OH).
For just the second time all season, Alabama (19-0) trailed after Texas (10-9) took the first lead in the top of the second. The Crimson Tide moved ahead an inning later scoring two and added an insurance run in the sixth, which proved enough as the Longhorns were held scoreless after the second inning stranding eight on base. In the nightcap against Miami (4-7), Alabama fell behind after a second-inning solo home run and was held hitless until a fourth-inning double from
Bailey Dowling. She eventually came home on a bases-loaded walk to tie the game and a sac fly RBI from
Jenna Johnson gave Alabama the lead. The Redhawks tied it back up in the next half-inning but Dowling responded in the bottom half with a two-run home run, which proved enough to give the Tide the 4-2 victory.
Dowling was a combined 3-for-6 on the day, including the double and home run in game two.
Ally Shipman earned a hit in each game, driving in a run against the Longhorns and scoring on Dowling's home run against the Redhawks.
Montana Fouts (9-0) earned the win in relief in both games, throwing a combined 7.1 innings with just one unearned run allowed and 11 strikeouts.
"First, the crowd was awesome. Not only are they the best fans in the country, they're also the most knowledgeable. They can feel when we need a little boost. Any time a pitcher starts to get a little anxious, they come through in the clutch, so the crowd was awesome. Second, I was really pleased with both [Alex] Salter and [Jaala] Torrence. Combined they gave us 6.2 innings of pitching and we needed that. Montana came in and did the rest in both games, but we needed their starts to get us through. The team defense was great, I thought we made some really good plays. We basically came up with enough hits to win both games."
Highlights
- Today's games were the first time Alabama allowed its opponent to score first all season
- Ally Shipman is on a four-game hit streak and has earned at least one RBI in five of her last seven games
- Kaylee Tow extended her reached-base streak to 16 games, just one shy of tying her career high set in 2019
- Dallis Goodnight extended her reached-base streak to 12 games
- Montana Fouts has allowed one run or less in all but one of her appearances this season
Scoring Summary vs. Texas
- T2 | Texas took the first lead on a bases-loaded walk (0-1, 2 Out)
- B3 | Ally Shipman tied the game with an RBI groundout (1-1, 0 Out)
- B3 | Dallis Goodnight scored on a double steal attempt (2-1, 2 Out)
- B6 | Kat Grill brought a run home with an RBI groundout (3-1, 1 Out)
Scoring Summary vs. Miami
- T2 | Miami took the first lead with a solo home run (0-1, 1 Out)
- B4 | Abby Doerr drew a bases-loaded walk to tie the game (1-1, 1 Out)
- B4 | Jenna Johnson drove in Bailey Dowling on a sac fly RBI (2-1, 1 Out)
- T5 | Miami tied it back up on an RBI groundout (2-2, 1 Out)
- B5 | Dowling smashed a two-run home run to left center (4-2, 2 Out)
Up Next: T-Mobile Crimson Classic (Tuscaloosa, Ala.)
- Sunday, March 6 vs. Miami (OH) ā 12:30 p.m. CT
Bama even made her replacement work a little bit.
