Tennessee relying on young pitching, high-scoring offense in SEC play
The Tennessee Volunteers softball team is on a roll. In fact, up until Sunday, they had the nation’s longest active winning streak.
They aren’t winning because of star power, they are winning as a team and it starts in the circle. Going into the season, Ralph and Karen Weekly were sure that Erin Gabriel would be granted a fifth year by the NCAA. She only played 15 percent of freshman year. Their request was denied and they were forced to turn to sophomore Matty Moss and freshman Caylan Arnold.
Moss, as a freshman, appeared in 32 games and started 17 with a 1.68 ERA in 112.1 innings. This season she has grown into a leadership role as an underclassman and her enthusiasm on the mound shows.
“Our coaches push us and they don’t look at us as a freshman and a sophomore,” said Moss. “I think it’s just expected of us to apply what we’ve learned… I think it’s the mentality of not thinking about the fact that we’re young and letting that be an excuse.”
Arnold had only been taking pitching lessons for a couple years and was new to the Knoxville area when Tennessee discovered her.
“Caylan Arnold’s parents moved here sometime during her high school career and she wasn’t pitching on any club team,” said co-head coach Ralph Weekly. “The first time I knew of Caylan was when I received a call telling me the whole University of Washington coaching staff had flown into Knoxville to watch her do a pitching workout. Then I found out Florida State had already been up here. We got right down there, invited her for visit and found out she wanted to stay home and we’re happy about that.”
The offense of the Vols has taken a huge amount of pressure off the pitchers, especially when they grab an early lead. Tennessee has the fifth highest scoring offense in the country (6.96 runs per game) and leads the Southeastern Conference in runs, RBI, on-base percentage, and doubles.
Aubrey Leach, Brooke Vines and Meghan Gregg are the top three run scorers in the SEC. Gregg has reached base safely in 19 consecutive games and is also top five in nationally in batting average (.472), RBI (66), slugging (.866), on-base percentage (.594) and doubles (18).
“Our team does a good job of executing and getting on base early so that it sets the table for other hitters to knock them in,” said Gregg. “I love being able to come up to the plate behind Aubrey, Jenna (Holcomb) and CJ (McClain). They are confident hitters that know how to work the defense.”
This weekend, the No. 1 Florida Gators visit Rocky Top. The Vols will look to snap a four-game losing streak against them and have some history on their side. The Vols have a three-game home winning streak against Florida and are 13-4 versus ranked opponents this season.
“Most SEC teams play really well at home,” said Weekly. “Florida has the best pitching staff in the league and they are doing a really good job but I do believe anyone can beat anyone on any given day. We’re happy to be where we are right now but we understand that every game is a battle. Our kids are playing really well but I know in this game, things can change.”
