Photo of Paige Parker Courtesy of Oklahoma Athletics
Below is a quick round-up of how each the Top 25 teams did in the opening weekend. Note that the rankings are based on the preseason rankings and not those published today.
No. 25 DePaul (1-4)
The Blue Demons got off to a rocky start in 2015 going just 1-4 on the opening weekend. Pitching appeared to be the main issue as they were outscored 44-23 in five games. Their bats were good with seven of their main players hitting above .300 on the weekend. Leading the way was sophomore Dylan Christensen who hit .500 with two doubles. Junior Morgan Maize hit three home runs over the weekend with a .467 average and 4 RBI. DePaul will look to rebound this coming weekend at the Houston Hilton Plaza Invitational.
No. 24 Texas A&M (3-2)
It was an interesting weekend for the Aggies who went 3-2. They split with No. 7 UCLA and then dropped a tough 1-0 game to Purdue to close the weekend out. They had two different players hit key grand slams over the weekend. The first was junior Cali Lanphear who broke a 1-1 tie with Utah in the season opener. They went on to win 5-1. The second big one came from freshman Tori Vidales in the second game against UCLA which gave them a nice early 6-2 lead. They never looked back and ended up winning 6-4, avenging a 13-0 loss the day before. Next up they will host the Aggie Classic.
No. 23 South Alabama (3-2)
The Jaguars had a solid opening weekend. They lost a 2-1 heartbreaker to No. 3 Alabama in the season opener. They held a 1-0 lead heading into the last inning, up until that point senior Farish Beard had been lights out. Then in the seventh a key single by Alabama’s Chandler Dare and a fielding error undid that strong outing by Beard. Beard ended up pitching only 9 innings this weekend getting seven strikeouts with an ERA of 0.78. At the plate junior Stephanie Pilkington knocked in nearly a third of the teams RBI (5). The Jaguars only allowed six runs all weekend. Their other loss was a 1-0 game against Eastern Kentucky that was a true pitchers dual.
No. 22 Notre Dame (4-1)
Notre Dame got off to a strong start 2015 going 4-1 and earning a win over No. 7 UCLA. Senior Katey Haus was a girl on fire batting .625 with three home runs, eight RBI and a 1.250 SLG. That is a pretty impressive start for Haus who was a 2014 NFCA Mid-Atlantic All-Region Second Team selection. Senior Cassidy Whidden also had a big weekend at the plate hitting .538 with two home runs, five RBI and a 1.231 SLG. They found themselves in three rather high scoring games and won two of those three. There only blemish was an 8-7 loss to Cal State Fullerton. Next up they head to Baton Rouge, LA and the Tiger Classic.
No. 21 Tulsa (4-1)
The record is a good start but Tulsa had some struggles against teams they should have be heavily favored against. Senior Erica Sampson had a good weekend hitting .412 with two home runs and six RBI. But they were out hit as a team 36-35. Next week they will play in the FAU Strike-Out Cancer Tournament.
No. 20 Auburn (6-0)
Second year coach Clint Myers has this team playing at a high level. They ended the season in 2014 well and appear to have continued that upward trend. They went 6-0 on the weekend and outscored opponents 67-8. The Tigers had three players with slugging percentages over one in junior Emily Carosone (1.214 SLG), sophomore Kasey Cooper (1.063 SLG) and sophomore Haley Fagan (1.308 SLG). Four of the Tigers combined to earn a 1.87 ERA as well. The will host the Tiger Invitational this weekend.
No. 19 LSU (5-0)
Pitching was very strong for LSU in their first weekend of action, four pitchers combined for a 1.06 ERA with 41 strikeouts and only 19 hits. Junior Bianka Bell had no problem seeing the ball batting .563 with three home runs, 10 RBI and a 1.313 SLG. Over five games the Tigers outscored the opposition 34-5. Things get tougher as they face No. 22 Notre Dame twice this weekend when the host their own Tiger Invitational.
No. 18 Nebraska (4-1)
It was a decent start for Nebraska who went 4-1. Two Cornhuskers had great weekends at the plate in junior Kiki Stokes and junior Alicia Armstrong. Stokes hit .650 with two home runs, 10 RBI and 10 runs scored. Armstrong was equally impressive batting .625 with three home runs and nine RBI. On the mound they were led by sophomore Cassie McClure who went 2-0 with a 2.33 ERA. They will face No. 5 Florida State this weekend at the Unconquered Invitational.
No. 17 Missouri (0-0)
The Tigers were idle in week one. They will open this weekend at the Dot Richardson Invitational.
No. 16 Arizona State (4-3)
It was not the ideal season opening for the Sun Devils who fought to a 4-3 record suffering three upset losses. The pitching was not that bad with a combined 3.86 ERA, but several big innings throughout the weekend hurt them. Amber Freeman was the leader on offense hitting .522 with two home runs and seven RBI. Things do not get much easier this weekend when the host the Littlewood Classic and Oklahoma comes to town.
No. 15 Minnesota (5-0)
Minnesota starts the season 5-0 for the second straight year. The opened the season upsetting No. 11 Washington behind a strong performance behind sophomore Sara Groenewegen. Groenewegen went all five innings securing the shutout with nine strikeouts. More help came from freshman Danielle Parlich who batted .583 with nine RBI including a 3-3 performance in the season opener. Minnesota will get a tough test next week when they face No. 17 Missouri.
No. 14 Arizona (3-0)
Arizona played a three game set against Oklahoma State winning all three. The Wildcats had five hitters bat .400 or better and ended the weekend with a team average of .359. The pitching staff was also on top of their game combining for a 1.05 ERA. At the plate their top hitter was sophomore Mo Mercado who hit .600. Trish Parks posted a 1.08 over 13 innings while earning two wins. They play at home again this weekend six games scheduled.
No. 13 Tennessee (4-0)
The Vols got off to a fast start with great offense and strong pitching. In four games they outscored their opponents 42-7 while holding them to a .181 average. Sophomore Taylor Koenig was impressive going 6-9 with two home runs and 10 RBI. Junior Gretchen Aucoin was lights out earning two wins without giving up a run over 8.1 innings. They will play five more games this upcoming weekend at the USF Presidents Day Weekend Tournament.
No. 12 Georgia (6-0)
It’s a pretty good weekend when you hit .788 and score 10 runs. That is exactly what freshman Cortni Emanuel did. Not a bad way to start your college career. Further proof to the explosiveness on offense was there 99 total bases. Things went very well from the mound as well. Junior Chelsea Wilkinson pitched the bulk of the innings with a 1.27 ERA and 33 strikeouts over 22 innings. This weekend they will be hosting the 12th Annual Georgia Softball Classic.
No. 11 Washington (4-1)
With the exception of their shutout loss to Minnesota the Huskies played well. There one issue seemed to be consistency on the mound. Offensively they were putting up runs sans the Minnesota Game. Senior Kylee Lahners had a good weekend at the plate as well. This weekend they will be in the Littlewood Classic.
No. 10 Baylor (5-0)
Baylor showed a solid balanced line-up on their way to a 5-0 start. Offensively they were led by senior Kaitlyn Thumann who hit .571 with 5 RBI on the weekend. Four pitchers combined for an impressive 0.80 ERA. They also held opponents to a .148 batting average as well. This week they will resume action at the NSU Demon Invitational.
No. 9 Louisiana-Lafayette (4-0)
It is never a bad weekend when you outscore the opposition 40-0. That is exactly what the Ragin Cajun’s did. They were able to do that with senior ace Christina Hamilton only pitching two innings. They also hat hot bats with six players hitting above .400 on the weekend. Leading the way was senior Meagan Thomas with a .714 BA and five runs. Sophomore Haley Hayden belted three home runs and seven RBI while hitting .583. This weekend they will host the Mardi Gras Classic presented by Hilton Lafayette.
No. 8 Michigan (3-1)
Michigan opened their season against No. 1 Florida and dropped a heartbreaker 2-1. They bounced back and won their next three games to post a 3-1 record. Michigan was able to tie their game with Florida in the top half of the seventh but Florida responded with a run of their own in the bottom half to secure the win. Pitching was strong all weekend for the Wolverines led by senior Sara Driesenga who won two games while posting a 0.0 ERA with 13 strikeouts. Leading them at the plate was junior Sierra Romero who batted .400 with four RBI. Freshman Aidan Falk made the most of her six at-bats going 3-6. Next up they will head to the Unconquered Invitational where they will face No. 5 Florida State twice.
No. 7 UCLA (4-2)
The Bruins had their struggles in the opening weekend dropping two games, it should be noted that both losses were to ranked opponents and one was a spilt. Senior Ally Carda pitched well going 3-1 with a 1.29 ERA and 28 strike outs over 16.1 innings. Their offense looked good with three players hitting at least two home runs. One of those being Carda who batted .400 with eight RBI. Junior Allexis Bennett hit .529 on the weekend as well. The Bruins will head to Las Vegas this weekend.
No. 6 Kentucky (4-1)
Kentucky was near perfect on the weekend, their only loss came against No. 5 Florida State 3-2 which they reversed later with a 3-1 over Seminoles. Senior Griffin Joiner provided a lot of offense knocking 9 of the teams 26 RBI while batting .438 on the weekend. Both junior Kelsey Nunley and sophomore Meagan Price had strong weekends on the mound. Nunley did not give up a run the 13 innings she threw going 2-0. Prince went 2-1 with a 1.31 ERA and 22 strikeouts over 16 innings. This weekend they will be in action at the Phyllis Rafter Memorial Invitational.
No. 5 Florida State (3-1)
As stated they split with Kentucky this past weekend, but overall looked solid. Senior Lacey Waldrop went 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA and 24 strikeouts. Teammate Jessica Burroughs pitched well also 1-1 with a 0.00 ERA and 22 strikeouts. At the plate Bailey Schinella had a good weekend batting .364 with six RBI on the weekend. This team will have great pitching but will need to find a way to generate more offense. They will be tested this weekend when the face both No. 8 Michigan and No. 18 Nebraska at the Unconquered Invitational.
No. 4 Oklahoma (5-0)
Freshman Paige Parker starter her college career well pitching a perfect game against Hawaii. She went five inning giving up no hits, walks or runs while striking out nine. The Sooners showed all weekend why they may have the most feared order in college softball. Senior Lauren Chamberlain was at the top of her game going 6-12 with nine walks, 12 RBI, eight runs and three home runs. As a team the outscored their opponents 52-5. This week they are at the Littlewood Classic where they will face No. 11 Washington and No. 16 Arizona State.
No. 3 Alabama (6-0)
“Roll Tide” is exactly what Alabama did this past weekend going 6-0 outscoring the competition 44-6. Their pitching staff held opponents to just a .188 batting average. Sydney Littlejohn went 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA in 10 innings of work. Freshman Alexis Osorio looked strong in her first college games going 3-0 with a 1.20 ERA and 25 strikeouts. Another freshman made noise in Demi Turner who hit .647 with five RBI and seven runs. They head west this weekend for the Stanford Nike Invitational.
No. 2 Oregon (6-0)
The Ducks were impressive at the plate and on the mound in the opening weekend. They had eight players bat .400 or better and Cheridan Hawkins went 3-0 with a 0.00 ERA and 25 strikeouts. Janelle Lindvall had a strong weekend at the plate knocking in 10 runs while hitting .500. As a team they also hit eight home runs and won three of their five games in five innings. They will head south to Texas this weekend for games with Houston, Sam Houston State and Texas A&M.
No. 1 Florida (5-0)
It was a strong start for the defending national champions as they went a perfect 5-0 and outscored their opponents 46-6. It should be noted that all six of those runs were unearned leaving the pitching staff with a combined 0.00 ERA. The innings were split pretty even between Aleshia Ocasio, Delanie Gourley and Lauren Haeger. All three had double digit strikeouts as well. At the plate four starters hit .500 or better. They had one close game with Michigan 2-1 that they had to win in the bottom of the seventh. Kirsti Merritt batted .545 with three home runs, nine RBI and five runs to lead the Gators. They make a quick Wednesday trip to Jacksonville before hosting teams at home this weekend.
