College Softball News

NCAA Softball Super Regional Preview: Florida vs. Alabama

Photo by: Alabama and Florida

Florida and Alabama will square off for the first time this season May 25-27th at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium during the NCAA Super Regional round.

The Gators (53-7) won the Gainesville Regional with a 5-0 victory in game seven over Oklahoma State while the Crimson Tide (45-16) advanced out of the Tuscaloosa Regional with a win over Minnesota 1-0.

From the Plate

The Florida offense hasn’t been as consistent this season. The Gators head into the weekend with a .308 team batting average, an average that is lower than what we have seen from Florida over the years. Junior Kayli Kvistad leads the offensive categories with a .389 batting average with 58 hits, 12 doubles, and 47 RBI in 149 at bats. Amanda Lorenz has also helped lead the way on the offensive side this season. The Sophomore holds a .379 batting average on the season with 64 hits, 10 doubles, 10 home runs, and 39 RBI in 169 at bats.

Alabama is another offense that has struggled at times this season. Senior Marisa Runyon isn’t having the offensive season she has had in years past. Runyon is batting .248 on the season with 35 hits and 29 RBI. Runyon’s bat seemed to wake up during the Regional which is a good sign for Alabama moving into the Super. Bailey Hemphill leads the offensive stats category this season. The freshman is batting .322 with 47 hits, nine home runs, and 41 RBI.

From the Circle

The Gators enter the Super Regional round behind the arms of ace pitchers Kelly Barnhill and Delanie Gourley, who have been dominant in the circle all season. Sophomore Kelly Barnhill enters the weekend with a 23-2 record and a 0.35 ERA, 310 strikeouts, and a .120 batting average against in 161.2 innings pitched. Delanie Gourley’s 2017 season numbers are just as impressive. The senior enters the weekend with a 20-4 record and a 0.71 ERA, 217 strikeouts, and a .141 batting average against in 148.2 innings pitched.

Alabama has also been riding the arms of two pitchers this season. Junior pitcher Alexis Osorio stunned the Minnesota Gopher batting order in the nine-inning pitching duel of the Regional matchup on Saturday. The Gopher’s didn’t record a hit until the top of the eighth inning. Osorio enters the Super Regional with a 22-7 record, a 1.22 ERA, and 318 strikeouts in 190 innings pitched on the season. Bama senior pitcher Sydney Littlejohn faced off against the Gophers in the second matchup. She went 5.1 innings to combine for a shutout with Osorio who closed the door for the final 1.2 innings. Littlejohn enters the Super Regional with a 17-8 record, a 1.28 ERA, and 183 strikeouts in 169 innings pitched.

Analysis/Prediction

You can expect another great pitching duel when you tune in for this Super Regional. Both teams have been shaky on the offensive side, especially against better pitching. Alabama only scored seven runs in the previous Regional round, they defeated Albany 5-1, then earned the 1-0 pitchers duel win against Minnesota on a bases loaded walk, and defeated the Gophers in the final game 1-0. Florida put up 16 runs in their Regional. The Gators were defeated by Oklahoma State 0-1 on Sunday when the Gator offense struggled to get anything going at the plate. The loss was Barnhill’s second on the season. We predict that Florida will come out of this Super Regional. The Gator pitching staff has been dominant all season long. Expect to see low scoring offensive numbers and dominant pitching by both teams when you tune into this Super Regional.

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