TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama softball added two more victories to the win column Saturday afternoon at the T-Mobile Crimson Classic, defeating SIUE 7-4 before shutting out Furman 8-0 in six innings.
Alabama (14-6) opened the day with a 7-4 win over SIUE (5-9), as Catelyn Riley (5-1) took a no-hitter and a 7-0 lead into the sixth inning before the Cougars broke up the no-hitter and the shutout in the frame. They would go on to score a total of three runs in the sixth and another in the seventh to draw within three, but Emily Winstead took home the save in the circle and closed out the game with 1.1 relief innings. Kristen White was 2-for-2 at the top of the order with Kendal Clark also tallying a two-hit game including an RBI triple.
In game two against Furman (6-13), the Crimson Tide scored in each of the first four innings, including a pair of home runs from Alexis Pupillo and Brooke Ellestad to lead 7-0. Alabama stranded the potential game-ending run in scoring position in the bottom of the fifth, but took advantage of the second opportunity to do so in the next inning after a Salen Hawkins RBI single ended the game at 8-0.
FROM HEAD COACH PATRICK MURPHY
“The first game was a little sloppy. Defensively, they were all plays that we can make, but I was really happy with Caitlyn [Riley] – she gets a hit and gets the win. It’s always a good senior day when that happens. And then I was really pleased with the late adjustments in the second game. Obviously we run-ruled them, but they were just better at-bats as we went along and faced their second pitcher. We still left a few runs on the board but you can’t complain when you get a run-rule.”
HIGHLIGHTS
- Kristen White was a combined 4-for-5 Saturday with two runs scored
- Abby Duchscherer hit her team-leading fifth double vs. the Paladins as part of a 3-for-3 day at the plate, her third three-hit game of the season all of which have come in the last five games
- Audrey Vandagriff also had three hits vs. Furman, giving her a team-leading seven multi-hit games this year
- Home runs from Alexis Pupillo and Brooke Ellestad vs. the Paladins gives the Tide eight games this season with two or more home runs
- Alea Johnson tied her career-high with six strikeouts in the win vs. Furman
- Emily Winstead earned her second save of the season, already matching her career total prior to this year
SCORING SUMMARY VS. SIUE
- B1 | Catelyn Riley plated two runs with a single in the gap (2-0, 1 Out)
- B3 | Kali Heivilin sent an RBI single back up the middle (3-0, 0 Out)
- B3 | Kendal Clark bounced an RBI triple off the wall in right (4-0, 0 Out)
- B3 | Mari Hubbard pulled an RBI single through the left side (5-0, 0 Out)
- B3 | A fielding error brought home an unearned run for Alabama (6-0, 1 Out)
- B3 | The Tide tacked on another with an RBI groundout (7-0, 1 Out)
- T6 | An SIUE RBI groundout erased the shutout (7-1, 1 Out)
- T6 | A bases-loaded single to right scored two (7-3, 2 Out)
- T7 | SIUE plated a run on a squeeze bunt (7-4, 1 Out)
SCORING SUMMARY VS. FURMAN
UP NEXT: T-MOBILE CRIMSON CLASSIC (TUSCALOOSA, ALA.)
- Sunday, March 2 vs. UAB – 1 p.m. CT
