From The Alabama Athletics Department Thursday March 2, 2017
Alabama Softball Returns Home to Host Easton Crimson Classic
The Crimson Tide welcomes Jacksonville, Drake and Stanford to Rhoads Stadium
GAME NOTES (PDF) | TOURNAMENT CENTRAL PAGE
THIS WEEKEND
EASTON CRIMSON CLASSIC
TUSCALOOSA, ALA. - RHOADS STADIUM
FRIDAY, MARCH 3
· Alabama vs. Jacksonville - 4 p.m. CT
· Alabama vs. Drake - 6 p.m. CT
SATURDAY, MARCH 4
· Alabama vs. Stanford - 1:30 p.m. CT
· Alabama vs. Drake - 4 p.m. CT
SUNDAY, MARCH 5
· Alabama vs. Jacksonville - 1:30 p.m. CT
FOLLOWING THE TIDE
· Video: SEC Network+ (Online Only)
· Radio: 93.3 FM (praise933.com)
· Live Stats: rolltide.com
· Twitter: @AlabamaSB
SCOUTING ALABAMA (14-2)
· Alabama swept its five opponents at the Easton Bama Bash last weekend before gutting out a tough 5-4 extra-inning victory at UAB on Tuesday.
· This weekend’s Easton Crimson Classic begins a 12-game home stand for the Tide, its longest home stand of the 2017 season.
· Alabama dropped one spot in the USA Today/NFCA poll to No. 11 this week but moved up to a ninth-place tie with Oklahoma in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll.
· Head Coach Patrick Murphy is now just 17 wins shy of his 1,000th career victory, currently owning a 983-277 (.780) record. This includes a 28-20 mark as the interim head coach at Northwest Missouri State in 1995 and a 955-257 record as the head coach of the Crimson Tide since 1999.
THE OPPONENTS
Jacksonville Dolphins
· Atlantic Sun Conference
· 2017 Record: 10-5
· Head Coach: Jennifer Steele (3rd Season)
Jacksonville Stat Leaders:
· Batting Avg. - Allie McCourt - .380
· Hits - Allie McCourt - 19
· Home Runs - Bethany Kursch - 3
· Wins - Taylor Thorpe - 5
· ERA - Taylor Thorpe - 1.69
· Strikeouts - Taylor Thorpe – 13
Drake Bulldogs
· Missouri Valley Conference
· 2017 Record: 12-5
· Head Coach: Rich Calvert (15th Season)
Drake Stat Leaders:
· Batting Avg. - Sarah Maddox - .347
· Hits - Sarah Maddox - 17
· Home Runs - Sarah Maddox - 6
· Wins - Nicole Newman - 7
· ERA - Nicole Newman - 1.27
· Strikeouts - Nicole Newman – 94
Stanford Cardinal
· Pac 12 Conference
· 2017 Record: 10-5
· Head Coach: Rachel Hanson (Third Season)
· Starters Returning/Lost: 3/0
· Newcomers: 9
Stanford Stat Leaders:
· Batting Avg. - Teaghan Cowles - .547
· Hits - Teaghan Cowles - 29
· Home Runs - Three Tied - 2
· Wins - Lee / Bauer - 4
· ERA - Carolyn Lee - 2.61
· Strikeouts - Carolyn Lee - 35
ALL-TIME VS. THE OPPONENTS
1-0 vs. Jacksonville
· Current Streak: Alabama 1
· First Meeting: March 25, 2014 - W, 6-2 - Jacksonville, Fla.
5-0 vs. Drake
· Current Streak: Alabama 5
· First Meeting: Feb. 28, 1999 - W, 2-1 - Tuscaloosa, Ala. (Bama Bash)
· Last Meeting: Feb. 9, 2013 - W, 8-2 - Cedar Falls, Iowa (UNI-Dome Classic)
· Last Meeting in Tuscaloosa: March 5, 2006 - W, 6-0
6-4 vs. Stanford
· Current Streak: Stanford 1
· First Meeting: March 5, 2000 - L, 2-5 - Columbus, Ga. (NFCA Leadoff Classic)
· Last Meeting: Feb. 14, 2015 - L, 1-4 - Stanford, Calif. (Stanford Nike Invitational)
· Last Meeting in Tuscaloosa - May 27, 2011 - W, 1-0 (NCAA Super Regional)
CRIMSON CLASSIC HISTORY
· Alabama is 44-9 (.830) all-time at the Crimson Classic.
· This year’s tournament will be the 13th Crimson Classic in program history, hosting them previously in 2000-03, 2005-08 and 2013-16.
· This year marks the fifth-straight year the Tide will host a tournament branded the Crimson Classic, the longest such stretch in program history.
· 31 different teams have appeared in the Crimson Classic over the years. Repeat visitors include Drake (2017 and 2006), Western Kentucky (2007 and 2002) and Penn State (2005 and 2003).
LAST TIME OUT: ALABAMA DEFEATS UAB IN EXTRA INNINGS
Alabama softball and UAB were locked in a back-and-forth battle Tuesday night in Birmingham, needing eight innings to decide the contest as the Crimson Tide held on to win, 5-4, in its first extra-inning game of the 2017 season.
Alabama took the first lead of the game before falling behind UAB in the third and then retaking the lead in the fourth. The Blazers came back to tie it in the fifth and an eighth-inning bases loaded walk by Sydney Booker proved the difference in the one-run contest. The Tide left plenty of scoring opportunities on the base paths however, stranding 16 runners on base, just one shy of the Alabama single-game record. Freshman Bailey Hemphill led the offensive effort with a 2-3 day, including her team-leading fourth home run of the season. Alexis Osorio ultimately got the win in relief, throwing 4.0 shutout innings with nine strikeouts.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
· Sydney Littlejohn gave up her first earned run of the year in Tuesday’s game at UAB, pitching 35.1 innings prior without a single earned run. The streak is the longest to start a season in program history and just the third time a pitcher has started a season with at least 30.0 innings without an earned run. Previous streaks include Kelsi Dunne in 2009 with 33.1 innings and Erin Wright in 2001 with 30.0 innings.
· Bailey Hemphill has reached base safely in all 16 games this season. It is the longest reached-base streak for a Tide freshman since Kayla Braud reached base safely in 19-straight games as a freshman in 2010. She is currently ranked second in the SEC in on-base percentage (.632) and seventh in batting average (.487).
· Alexis Osorio leads the SEC with 93 strikeouts, which is 17 better than second-place Kelly Barnhill of Florida with 76. Osorio’s 1.96 K/IP average is second in the league, just trailing Barnhill at 2.02. Osorio and Barnhill are also at the top two spots in the league in opposing batting average at .097 and .112, respectively.
ALABAMA RANKED NINTH AND 11TH IN WEEK THREE POLLS
· Amid much movement in the top 25 polls this week, Alabama softball comes in tied for ninth in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll and at No. 11 in the USA Today/NFCA poll, released Tuesday.
· Alabama dropped one spot in the USA Today/NFCA poll to No. 11 but is tied with Oklahoma for the No. 9 spot in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll.
· Last week, Alabama went 6-0 outscoring its opponents 33-4.
· Florida State held on to the No. 1 spot in the NFCA poll followed by Auburn and Florida while the Gators jumped back to No. 1 in the USA Softball poll. Oregon is No. 4 in both followed by Texas A&M, who made a huge leap all the way from No. 18 last week to No. 5 this week after four ranked wins at the Mary Nutter Classic, including one against the top-ranked Seminoles.
· Ten SEC schools are ranked in this week’s top 25, the most of any conference. Two additional teams are receiving votes outside the top 25.
SYDNEY LITTLEJOHN NAMED SENIOR CLASS CANDIDATE
· Alabama senior Sydney Littlejohn was named one of 30 candidates for the 2017 Senior CLASS award, which celebrates senior student-athletes who use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as community leaders.
· The senior from Rusk, Texas recently completed her undergraduate degree in exercise science and is currently pursuing a master’s in human performance with a sport management track. Last season she was named a CoSIDA Academic All-American and has earned a spot on the SEC Academic Honor Roll each of the last three seasons.
· Charlotte Morgan (2010), Kayla Braud (2013) and Haylie McCleney (2016) previously won the award at Alabama, while Kaila Hunt (2014) was a finalist.
RECORD WATCH
· A number of Crimson Tide players are moving up the career school records so far in the 2017 season.
· Junior Demi Turner is ranked fifth all-time with a .412 career batting average. She has 140 hits in 340 at-bats, making her one of five on the list with a career average over .400. Former teammate Haylie McCleney (2013-16) holds the record at .447.
· Senior Chandler Dare is sixth in stolen base percentage (.878), just three points ahead of sixth-place Kayla Braud at .875. Dare is 6-7 in stolen bases so far this season. She also cracked the top 10 in batting average at .364, just one point shy of ninth-place Ashley Courtney (2002-05) at .365 and four points shy of eighth-place Lauren Parker (2007-09) at .368.
· Senior Marisa Runyon is seventh all-time with a .621 career slugging percentage and is tied for ninth with 35 home runs. Her 146 career RBIs put her 16 shy of cracking the top 10.
· Senior Sydney Littlejohn is fifth all-time with a 1.83 career ERA and seventh with a .210 opposing batting average. Littlejohn went 35.1 innings to start the season before allowing an earned run. Junior teammate Alexis Osorio is seventh (1.96) and second (.174), respectively, in both categories.
· Additionally, Osorio’s 593 career strikeouts rank fifth all-time and her 9.79 strikeouts-per-game average is second, only trailing Kelsi Dunne (2008-11) at 9.82. Osorio is just the fourth pitcher in program history to earn at least 500 strikeouts in their first two seasons. The next strikeout milestone for the junior is Jaclyn Traina (2001-14) in fourth place with 976 career strikeouts.
UP NEXT
Alabama continues its home stand with a pair of midweek matchups at Rhoads Stadium, facing Loyola-Chicago on Tuesday, March 7 at 6 p.m. CT and Valparaiso on Wednesday, March 8 at 6 p.m. CT.
Alabama Softball Returns Home to Host Easton Crimson Classic
The Crimson Tide welcomes Jacksonville, Drake and Stanford to Rhoads Stadium
GAME NOTES (PDF) | TOURNAMENT CENTRAL PAGE
THIS WEEKEND
EASTON CRIMSON CLASSIC
TUSCALOOSA, ALA. - RHOADS STADIUM
FRIDAY, MARCH 3
· Alabama vs. Jacksonville - 4 p.m. CT
· Alabama vs. Drake - 6 p.m. CT
SATURDAY, MARCH 4
· Alabama vs. Stanford - 1:30 p.m. CT
· Alabama vs. Drake - 4 p.m. CT
SUNDAY, MARCH 5
· Alabama vs. Jacksonville - 1:30 p.m. CT
FOLLOWING THE TIDE
· Video: SEC Network+ (Online Only)
· Radio: 93.3 FM (praise933.com)
· Live Stats: rolltide.com
· Twitter: @AlabamaSB
SCOUTING ALABAMA (14-2)
· Alabama swept its five opponents at the Easton Bama Bash last weekend before gutting out a tough 5-4 extra-inning victory at UAB on Tuesday.
· This weekend’s Easton Crimson Classic begins a 12-game home stand for the Tide, its longest home stand of the 2017 season.
· Alabama dropped one spot in the USA Today/NFCA poll to No. 11 this week but moved up to a ninth-place tie with Oklahoma in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll.
· Head Coach Patrick Murphy is now just 17 wins shy of his 1,000th career victory, currently owning a 983-277 (.780) record. This includes a 28-20 mark as the interim head coach at Northwest Missouri State in 1995 and a 955-257 record as the head coach of the Crimson Tide since 1999.
THE OPPONENTS
Jacksonville Dolphins
· Atlantic Sun Conference
· 2017 Record: 10-5
· Head Coach: Jennifer Steele (3rd Season)
Jacksonville Stat Leaders:
· Batting Avg. - Allie McCourt - .380
· Hits - Allie McCourt - 19
· Home Runs - Bethany Kursch - 3
· Wins - Taylor Thorpe - 5
· ERA - Taylor Thorpe - 1.69
· Strikeouts - Taylor Thorpe – 13
Drake Bulldogs
· Missouri Valley Conference
· 2017 Record: 12-5
· Head Coach: Rich Calvert (15th Season)
Drake Stat Leaders:
· Batting Avg. - Sarah Maddox - .347
· Hits - Sarah Maddox - 17
· Home Runs - Sarah Maddox - 6
· Wins - Nicole Newman - 7
· ERA - Nicole Newman - 1.27
· Strikeouts - Nicole Newman – 94
Stanford Cardinal
· Pac 12 Conference
· 2017 Record: 10-5
· Head Coach: Rachel Hanson (Third Season)
· Starters Returning/Lost: 3/0
· Newcomers: 9
Stanford Stat Leaders:
· Batting Avg. - Teaghan Cowles - .547
· Hits - Teaghan Cowles - 29
· Home Runs - Three Tied - 2
· Wins - Lee / Bauer - 4
· ERA - Carolyn Lee - 2.61
· Strikeouts - Carolyn Lee - 35
ALL-TIME VS. THE OPPONENTS
1-0 vs. Jacksonville
· Current Streak: Alabama 1
· First Meeting: March 25, 2014 - W, 6-2 - Jacksonville, Fla.
5-0 vs. Drake
· Current Streak: Alabama 5
· First Meeting: Feb. 28, 1999 - W, 2-1 - Tuscaloosa, Ala. (Bama Bash)
· Last Meeting: Feb. 9, 2013 - W, 8-2 - Cedar Falls, Iowa (UNI-Dome Classic)
· Last Meeting in Tuscaloosa: March 5, 2006 - W, 6-0
6-4 vs. Stanford
· Current Streak: Stanford 1
· First Meeting: March 5, 2000 - L, 2-5 - Columbus, Ga. (NFCA Leadoff Classic)
· Last Meeting: Feb. 14, 2015 - L, 1-4 - Stanford, Calif. (Stanford Nike Invitational)
· Last Meeting in Tuscaloosa - May 27, 2011 - W, 1-0 (NCAA Super Regional)
CRIMSON CLASSIC HISTORY
· Alabama is 44-9 (.830) all-time at the Crimson Classic.
· This year’s tournament will be the 13th Crimson Classic in program history, hosting them previously in 2000-03, 2005-08 and 2013-16.
· This year marks the fifth-straight year the Tide will host a tournament branded the Crimson Classic, the longest such stretch in program history.
· 31 different teams have appeared in the Crimson Classic over the years. Repeat visitors include Drake (2017 and 2006), Western Kentucky (2007 and 2002) and Penn State (2005 and 2003).
LAST TIME OUT: ALABAMA DEFEATS UAB IN EXTRA INNINGS
Alabama softball and UAB were locked in a back-and-forth battle Tuesday night in Birmingham, needing eight innings to decide the contest as the Crimson Tide held on to win, 5-4, in its first extra-inning game of the 2017 season.
Alabama took the first lead of the game before falling behind UAB in the third and then retaking the lead in the fourth. The Blazers came back to tie it in the fifth and an eighth-inning bases loaded walk by Sydney Booker proved the difference in the one-run contest. The Tide left plenty of scoring opportunities on the base paths however, stranding 16 runners on base, just one shy of the Alabama single-game record. Freshman Bailey Hemphill led the offensive effort with a 2-3 day, including her team-leading fourth home run of the season. Alexis Osorio ultimately got the win in relief, throwing 4.0 shutout innings with nine strikeouts.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
· Sydney Littlejohn gave up her first earned run of the year in Tuesday’s game at UAB, pitching 35.1 innings prior without a single earned run. The streak is the longest to start a season in program history and just the third time a pitcher has started a season with at least 30.0 innings without an earned run. Previous streaks include Kelsi Dunne in 2009 with 33.1 innings and Erin Wright in 2001 with 30.0 innings.
· Bailey Hemphill has reached base safely in all 16 games this season. It is the longest reached-base streak for a Tide freshman since Kayla Braud reached base safely in 19-straight games as a freshman in 2010. She is currently ranked second in the SEC in on-base percentage (.632) and seventh in batting average (.487).
· Alexis Osorio leads the SEC with 93 strikeouts, which is 17 better than second-place Kelly Barnhill of Florida with 76. Osorio’s 1.96 K/IP average is second in the league, just trailing Barnhill at 2.02. Osorio and Barnhill are also at the top two spots in the league in opposing batting average at .097 and .112, respectively.
ALABAMA RANKED NINTH AND 11TH IN WEEK THREE POLLS
· Amid much movement in the top 25 polls this week, Alabama softball comes in tied for ninth in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll and at No. 11 in the USA Today/NFCA poll, released Tuesday.
· Alabama dropped one spot in the USA Today/NFCA poll to No. 11 but is tied with Oklahoma for the No. 9 spot in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll.
· Last week, Alabama went 6-0 outscoring its opponents 33-4.
· Florida State held on to the No. 1 spot in the NFCA poll followed by Auburn and Florida while the Gators jumped back to No. 1 in the USA Softball poll. Oregon is No. 4 in both followed by Texas A&M, who made a huge leap all the way from No. 18 last week to No. 5 this week after four ranked wins at the Mary Nutter Classic, including one against the top-ranked Seminoles.
· Ten SEC schools are ranked in this week’s top 25, the most of any conference. Two additional teams are receiving votes outside the top 25.
SYDNEY LITTLEJOHN NAMED SENIOR CLASS CANDIDATE
· Alabama senior Sydney Littlejohn was named one of 30 candidates for the 2017 Senior CLASS award, which celebrates senior student-athletes who use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as community leaders.
· The senior from Rusk, Texas recently completed her undergraduate degree in exercise science and is currently pursuing a master’s in human performance with a sport management track. Last season she was named a CoSIDA Academic All-American and has earned a spot on the SEC Academic Honor Roll each of the last three seasons.
· Charlotte Morgan (2010), Kayla Braud (2013) and Haylie McCleney (2016) previously won the award at Alabama, while Kaila Hunt (2014) was a finalist.
RECORD WATCH
· A number of Crimson Tide players are moving up the career school records so far in the 2017 season.
· Junior Demi Turner is ranked fifth all-time with a .412 career batting average. She has 140 hits in 340 at-bats, making her one of five on the list with a career average over .400. Former teammate Haylie McCleney (2013-16) holds the record at .447.
· Senior Chandler Dare is sixth in stolen base percentage (.878), just three points ahead of sixth-place Kayla Braud at .875. Dare is 6-7 in stolen bases so far this season. She also cracked the top 10 in batting average at .364, just one point shy of ninth-place Ashley Courtney (2002-05) at .365 and four points shy of eighth-place Lauren Parker (2007-09) at .368.
· Senior Marisa Runyon is seventh all-time with a .621 career slugging percentage and is tied for ninth with 35 home runs. Her 146 career RBIs put her 16 shy of cracking the top 10.
· Senior Sydney Littlejohn is fifth all-time with a 1.83 career ERA and seventh with a .210 opposing batting average. Littlejohn went 35.1 innings to start the season before allowing an earned run. Junior teammate Alexis Osorio is seventh (1.96) and second (.174), respectively, in both categories.
· Additionally, Osorio’s 593 career strikeouts rank fifth all-time and her 9.79 strikeouts-per-game average is second, only trailing Kelsi Dunne (2008-11) at 9.82. Osorio is just the fourth pitcher in program history to earn at least 500 strikeouts in their first two seasons. The next strikeout milestone for the junior is Jaclyn Traina (2001-14) in fourth place with 976 career strikeouts.
UP NEXT
Alabama continues its home stand with a pair of midweek matchups at Rhoads Stadium, facing Loyola-Chicago on Tuesday, March 7 at 6 p.m. CT and Valparaiso on Wednesday, March 8 at 6 p.m. CT.
