2017 NCAA Softball Tournament Regional Recap
A wild weekend is nearly behind us in NCAA DI Softball, with the exception of the Baton Rouge and Norman regionals that will end today due to some bad weather. FPN takes a look at the weekend that was.
Gators Drop one but Advance
The top-seeded Florida Gators had to go to a final elimination game Sunday after being upset 1-0 by Oklahoma State. Florida bounced back with a solid 5-0 win to advance to the Super Regionals. In the loss to the Cowboys Kelly Barnhill gave up just three hits and struck out 15 but a serious lack of run support hurt her. Credit should also go to Brandi Needham (Oklahoma State) who gave up no runs on three hits and five strikeouts. The Florida bats woke up in the next game when they plated runs in 5-of-7 innings. Delanie Gourley was great in the circle allowing just one hit while striking out 11. Nicole DeWitt hit a two-run home run and Kayli Kvistad went 2-for-3 in the game. Florida will now host Alabama this Thursday.
The Senior Pitcher would not let this be her last game as a Gator! Delanie Gourley talks about her mindset post-game with the SEC Network! pic.twitter.com/0YZh6xrPmw
— Gators Softball (@GatorsSB) May 21, 2017
Alabama Holds on to Advance
The Crimson Tide defeated Minnesota for the second time in two days by a score of 1-0 to advance. This regional was all about the pitching, most Sara Groenewegen (Minnesota) vs. Alabama pitchers Alexis Osorio and Sydney Littlejohn. All three pitchers were great this weekend with the Bama duo coming out on top. Groenewegen, in the regional, threw 21.2 innings with 27 strikeouts and two walks. Osorio went 10.2 innings with 13 strikeouts and Littlejohn posted 10 innings of work with 11 strikeouts and two wins. What turned out to be two great games was overshadowed by the controversy, which is a topic for another day and one that FPN will be addressing after the WCWS is complete. Right now it is all about the tournament and the great performances of all 64 teams in the field. Alabama will now head to Gainesville to face in conference rival Florida.
Arizona makes a Statement
The second-seeded Arizona Wildcats looked sharp this weekend. In three games they did not even allow a run and outscored their opponents 25-0 going 3-0. Mandie Perez (Arizona) was hot all weekend long at the plate going 6-for-12 with a double, a home run, nine RBIs and three runs. Katiyana Mauga (Arizona) did have two more home runs this weekend as well. Next up they will host the 15th seed, Baylor.
Baylor says “No, No, No”
Baylor sophomore pitcher Gia Rodoni (17-2) threw her second straight no-hitter in a 1-0 win over James Madison on Sunday. “She was phenomenal,” Head coach Glenn Moore said of his sophomore right-hander. “For her to have two back-to-back, she certainly threw the ball well against a good-hitting team. She didn’t do this against a team that was lucky to beat her. She did it against a great-hitting team, and that made it even more impressive.” Next up, Arizona.
A look back at the final out as Gia Rodoni's NO-NO lifts @BaylorSoftball to the Super Regional! #NCAASoftball pic.twitter.com/dVbcYL1wuk
— NCAA Softball (@NCAAsoftball) May 21, 2017
Oregon Shuts the Door
Third seed Oregon dropped Wisconsin 9-0 on Sunday to advance to the Super Regional after a close call the day having to come back and win against the Badgers 6-5. Oregon center fielder had a great weekend going 7-for-9 (.777 average) with two doubles, four RBIs and four runs. The Ducks offense appears to be getting on track which is not great news for opponents. They will now host Kentucky this weekend.
Wildcats Move On
Kentucky, who has played well the past few weeks, did what they needed two in a 4-2 win over Illinois. The win will send them West to face Oregon. Meagan Prince saw action in all three games this weekend for the Wildcats picking up two of the three wins for them. In 14.1 innings of work, she allowed zero earned runs and just seven hits. Alex Martens also had a big weekend for the Wildcats going 5-for-7 with five RBI and two runs scored. She also had a home run in the final game. “Alex is a winner,” Rachel Lawson said on Saturday. “She was recruited as a winner. I’m not surprised that she’s getting hits right now in the postseason. She is a competitor. That’s why she was picked, to be honest with you. She knows how to focus and she is wise beyond her years. She’s not a typical freshman. She knows how to drown out all of the noise and just focus on the task at hand.” Up next: Oregon.
Florida State shows Power
Florida State won three straight to advance to the Super Regional. Their opponent will be either LSU or LLU. Those two will play today to see who comes to Tallahassee. The Seminoles displayed power at the plate with seven home runs in the Tallahassee Regional, including two on Sunday. On the season FSU now has 71 home runs as a team. Jessie Warren connected on her 23rd home run of the year in the Seminoles 8-5 win over Georgia on Sunday.
UCLA Cruises to Supers
UCLA Cruised to a 9-1 win Sunday over Cal State Fullerton. They did it with power. Of the nine runs scored seven of them were off of home runs. The Bruins outscored the opposition 27-3 this weekend. They will now host the hot Ole Miss Rebels.
.@UCLASoftball is off to the SUPERS!
Catch the highlights from their victory over Fullerton (including a grand slam by Brianna Tautalafua)! pic.twitter.com/8zWsn2CltL
— Pac-12 Network (@Pac12Network) May 22, 2017
Ole Miss Continues its Run
For the first time in school history, Ole Miss is a NCAA Regional Champion and will head to Super Regionals next weekend following a 7-2 victory over North Carolina Sunday afternoon.The Rebels (43-18) capped off what turned into a memorable weekend in Oxford that saw almost 5,000 fans cross through the gates of the Ole Miss Softball Complex. Through three games in the regional, Ole Miss allowed only two runs and while scoring 17 to claim its seventh-straight win on Sunday. They will head west to face a hot UCLA team. This will be a great match-up.
Washinton looks Sharp
Husky starting pitcher Taran Alvelo (31-6), threw her third complete game of the weekend in a 4-2 win over Michigan Sunday to improve to 3-0 at the Seattle Regional, including a no-hitter vs. Montana. The sophomore struck out three batters with no walks as only four Wolverines reached base in the final. They will now host Utah.
Auburn one Step Closer
Auburn advances with an 8-2 win over Cal. That was the second win for Auburn over Cal, in the first meeting Auburn needed nine innings to secure a 4-3 win. “I thought it was a great game for Auburn, I mean, we’ve been talking about putting all the pieces together,” said head coach Clint Myers. “[We had] 16 hits yesterday, so offensively we’re very happy, but we did a better job of situational hitting. We ran the bases well; we turned two double plays, which were huge for us. They will now wait to see who wins today between Tulsa and Oklahoma. If Oklahoma wins they will travel to Auburn for a rematch of lasts your WCWS championship.
Tennessee Moves on
Meghan Gregg tied UT’s single-season RBI record by driving in two runs and starting pitcher Matty Moss was dominating once again in the circle, improving her record to 25-2 this year in a 3-0 shutout of Longwood to advance. The Volunteers (47-10) went undefeated in a NCAA Regional for the eighth time in program history with today’s win over the Lancers. In six of the seven previous occasions, UT went on to advance to the Women’s College World Series. They will now host Texas A&M.
Texas A&M Rolls
The Texas A&M softball team advanced to the NCAA Super Regionals with a 3-1 victory over the Texas Longhorns Sunday afternoon at the Aggie Softball Complex. Keeli Milligan highlighted the Aggie offense during the weekend, hitting 7-for-10 in the Regional while walking twice and stealing a pair of bases. The Texas A&M pitching staff allowed just two runs in 19 innings of work fanning 16 while allowing just 12 hits. Now they head back to Tennessee for the Super Regional.
