10 Things You May Have Missed in College Softball This Weekend
The 2017 NCAA College Softball season is in full swing. This past weekend was full of weather delays, schedule changes, walk-off wins, records set, coaching milestones reached, and stand-out performances all across the country. Here are ten things that stood out to us at Fastpitch News.
In Sunday’s conclusion of the Oregon Invitational, the undefeated and ranked Oregon softball team tallied another run-rule win in a 12-1 victory over Hofstra at Jane Sanders Stadium. The Ducks are now 24-0 on the season and remain the only undefeated team in the NCAA with Pac-12 play beginning this week. The Ducks will face Cal on Friday at 6 p.m. PT to kick off a three-game Pac-12 series. “We know Cal, coming in, are a good team and are very athletic. They’re very fast, kind of like Idaho State, as far as speed, so it was good to see them Saturday. We’ll keep an eye on the pitchers a little bit, look at some film, and get ready to play” said Ducks Head Coach Mike White.
The Ole Miss softball team finished the Ole Miss Classic on Sunday with another 10-run offensive performance and strong pitching. The Rebels run-ruled Jackson State in the 10-1 victory and moved to 20-3 on the season. This was the ninth time this season the Rebels have scored in double figures. Also noted with the victory, the Rebels matched last year’s record through 23 games and closed out two-straight weeks of home tournament play with a 7-1 record. Ole Miss returns to midweek action Wednesday night at 6 p.m. vs. Southeastern Louisiana.
Washington beat Minnesota (21-2) for the second time at the Husky Classic, 9-0, in a three-hit shutout Sunday afternoon at Husky Softball stadium. Taran Alvelo (12-1) went the distance for the Huskies (21-3) allowing only three hits over five innings and struck out three. The three hits marked the fewest for Minnesota this season. “This was a great weekend for our team,” said Washington head coach Heather Tarr, who earned her 500th career win after the Friday night 3-2 victory over the Gophers. “The team is continuing to learn how to play Husky Softball.” Washington will open up conference play Friday, March 17 when they host No. 21 Arizona State at 6 p.m.
Texas A&M defeated Mississippi State, 3-1, Sunday in the rubber match of the SEC opening series. The Aggies (21-2, 2-1 SEC) relied on the clutch bat of Sarah Hudek to deliver the game decisive blow. With two outs, one on and a full count in the third, Hudek belted a two-run shot to left center that provided the cushion the Aggies needed to take the series finale. In the circle, junior Lexi Smith stayed perfect on the season improving to 7-0 after earning the complete-game victory. Smith fanned three in her outing allowing just one unearned run and three Bulldog hits.
NDSU head coach Darren Mueller earned his 550th career win at the Westin Invitational on Friday, March 10, at Patricia Wilson Field. Mueller has compiled a 550-295 record in 16 seasons at North Dakota State. The Bison have been to the NCAA tournament seven times over the past eight years including the 2009 NCAA Norman Region championship. NDSU has won seven Summit League tournament championships and six regular season titles including the last five in a row. NDSU (10-14) is scheduled to play No. 2/1-ranked Florida (21-1) in a single-game at 5 p.m. Wednesday, March 15.
Syracuse senior Sydney O’Hara tied a NCAA single-game record with four home runs to help Syracuse (13-7, 1-1 ACC) defeat NC State (7-16, 1-1 ACC), 11-5, in the second game of the conference-opening doubleheader at Dail Stadium on Friday. O’Hara entered the box four times in the second outing of the day and homered in all four at-bats. The feat marks the first time in Syracuse softball history that an Orange player has recorded four home runs in a game and the first time this season for any NCAA Division I player. O’Hara is one of five Division I softball players to record four home runs in a single game ever. The senior tallied eight RBI on the night, a number that stands as a new Syracuse single-game record. O’Hara’s four runs scored also ties a single-game Orange program high.
It was a weekend of back-and-forths during the Auburn vs. LSU series matchups. Game one on Friday resulted in a 5-4 Auburn victory behind five productive offensive hits on the night and solid pitching from Kaylee Carlson who earned her 12th consecutive win on the season. Saturday’s game was moved to a double header on Sunday due to rain. LSU came ready to play in the opening Sunday contest, swiftly defeating the Tigers 8-0 in run-rule fashion. LSU’s Sahvannah Jaquish hit a three-run home run in the sixth, securing the career RBI record at 237. The final matchup on Sunday was another back-and-forth battle between the two teams and was almost a repeat of the Friday night game. Auburn came away with the Sunday victory 5-4, taking the series 2-1 against LSU.
Alabama completed a three-game sweep over Arkansas this weekend. Over the weekend, Merris Schroder went 5-8 (.625) at the plate with three RBIs, stretching her current hitting streak to 18 games, the sixth-longest in program history. Dare was close behind, hitting 4-7 (.571) and was a double shy of hitting for the cycle in game two of the series. Alexis Osorio (13-1) earned all three wins this weekend, throwing 12.2 shutout innings with 21 strikeouts and just two hits allowed. This extends her scoreless innings streak to 35. The Crimson Tide improved to 24-2 on the season and 3-0 in SEC play. Alabama closes its 12-game home stand with a doubleheader against Winthrop and Georgia Southern on Wednesday, March 15 at Rhoads Stadium.
The Notre Dame and Georgia Tech finale was decided on an eighth-inning grand slam by Irish junior infielder Morgan Reed. Reed finished the weekend a combined 6-for-14 (.429) with two home runs, 10 RBI, and five runs scored. Karley Wester moved into a tie with three-time All-American Emilee Koerner (’15) for the Notre Dame career lead in runs scored (196), and second on the all-time hits list with All-American Stephanie Brown (’07) at 277. Notre Dame and Georgia Tech finished the weekend deadlocked at 23 runs scored apiece, on 69 combined hits. The Irish held a 6-3 edge in successful stolen bases. The Irish finished 1-2 on the weekend.
The Georgia softball team (24-3) closed out the UCF Wilson/DeMarini Tournament with a 10-0 win in five innings over Delaware State (1-15) after the Bulldog pitching staff combined for a no-hitter on Sunday. Brittany Gray (15-1), Amanda Ablan and Kylie Bass held down the circle for the bulldogs, allowing just three baserunners with a walk, hit by pitch and fielder’s choice. Gray started the game and posted two strikeouts in two innings. Ablan tabbed four strikeouts in six batters faced in the next two frames while Bass closed out the game with a walk and a strikeout. It was Georgia’s first no-hitter of the season while going down as the program’s 39th performance. It marks the fifth time Gray has been a part of a no-hit effort and the second for Bass. At the plate, Georgia totaled 16 hits, scoring 10 runs in five innings of play. The Bulldogs travel to Atlanta on Wednesday, March 15 for an in-state rival game with Georgia Tech before hosting its SEC opener against Kentucky starting on Saturday, March 18.
