[Tuck4Bama]

Alabama Softball Prepares for SEC Tournament Release: 05/09/2007

Head coach Patrick Murphy has won two SEC Tournament championships
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Crimson Tide will try to win its fourth SEC Tournament Championship when they head to Auburn for the 2007 SEC Tournament this week. Alabama will be the No. 3 seed and face sixth-seeded Georgia on Thursday at 11 a.m. to start the tournament. The Tide is coming off a pair of losses at No. 2 Tennessee last weekend. The Bulldogs won two of the three games in its series against No. 4 LSU last weekend.
SEC Tournament History
Alabama has an all-time record of 20-15 in the SEC Tournament. Here is a look at how they have fared in 10 seasons of tournament play.

SEC Tournament Ledgers
The Crimson Tide has a 20-15 all-time record in the SEC Tournament with three tournament championships in 1998, 2003 and 2005. Here is a look at how they have fared against the other 10 SEC schools.
Last Year’s Tournament
The Crimson Tide won its first game in the 2006 SEC Tournament, defeating Ole Miss 6-0. Chrissy Owens allowed just one hit in six innings with seven strikeouts for the win. Brittany Rogers went 4-for-4 in the game with two runs while Kelley Montalvo was 2-for-2 with a double, walk, run scored and RBI. Tennessee scored two unearned runs in the second game off a Tide error and won 2-1. Stephanie VanBrakle’s solo home run gave Bama its only run of the game.

Scouting Georgia
The Bulldogs struggled early in the season but have caught fire of late winning seven of their last eight contests. They swept both Ole Miss and Arkansas before winning the LSU series by taking two of the three games. On the season they are 43-25 with a 14-5 record on a neutral field and 13-15 mark in SEC play. Kellie Middleton leads the team batting .383 with 15 doubles, five home runs, 42 RBI and 44 stolen bases. Charvi Greer is hitting .356 with 45 runs scored and 39 stolen bases but only has one extra base hit. Melissa Wood and Megan McAllister are tied for the team lead with nine home runs each. Kasi Carroll is the top pitcher for the Bulldogs. She is 26-8 with a 1.85 ERA and 209 strikeouts.
Series History
Alabama leads the all-time series with Georgia 20-10. After losing the first game this season in extra innings, the Tide bounced back with two victories. The Tide had the most success from 1999-2002 when they won eight straight games.
Alabama Players vs. Georgia
Several Crimson Tide players have had success in their careers against Georgia. Jordan Praytor is batting .441 (15-of-34) in 10 games with nine runs scored and seven RBI. Kelley Montalvo is 9-of-17 (.529) with five runs scored in six contests. Lauren Parker was 7-for-10 in this year’s series with four runs, three doubles and four RBI. Blair Potter went 2-0 on the mound this year pitching 12 innings with four runs allowed, three earned, on 10 hits with two walks and seven strikeouts.
Season Series
Alabama saw its 30-game home winning streak come to a close when No. 22 Georgia pulled out a 2-1 victory in nine innings. Two infield singles in the top of the ninth set up a RBI groundout by Melissa Wood. The Tide put two runners on in the bottom half but a popup would end the game. A 10-run second inning led to a 10-2 victory in five innings for UA in the second game. Charlotte Morgan hit her first career grand slam and Dani Woods added a two-run shot. Despite two solo home runs by Kellie Middleton in the series finale, Bama won 9-2. Lauren Parker went 4-for-4 with three runs, two doubles and three RBI and Ashley Holcombe hit a solo home run.
Crimson Tide in the Rankings
Coming off its first No. 1 ranking in school history, the Crimson Tide are ranked second in the USA Today/NFCA Top-25 and are tied for No. 3 this week in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Top-25. Since the first regular season poll came out the Crimson Tide has been ranked in the top five every week this season with this week marking the 13th straight for Bama. The Tide has been ranked in the top 10 for 30 straight weeks and have been ranked in 74 consecutive polls.
RPI Has Bama No. 2
Alabama was listed No. 2 in the latest NFCA Simulated Ratings Percentage Index on May 2. For the fourth straight week the Crimson Tide was listed among the top five RPI in the nation. Arizona has held the top spot every week with the top strength of schedule. The Tide has the second best winning percentage in the nation.
Last Time Out
The Crimson Tide played as the No. 1 team in the country for the first time in school history last weekend but the task was difficult as they went on the road to play No. 2 Tennessee. Four errors by Alabama helped give the Lady Vols a 9-2 victory in the first game. In the second contest the Tide stranded 10 runners on base and had a runner thrown out at home plate. Tennessee won the game 4-0. Brittany Rogers led the Tide going 5-for-8 at the plate in the two games.
One of Top Programs Since 2000
Since 2000 the Alabama softball team has won the second most games of any team in college softball with 423 victories. They are only four wins shy of the winningest program in the country, Arizona, at 427 wins. LSU is close behind with 416 overall victories.
BAMA Matches SEC Home Run Record
The 2007 Alabama softball team matched the school and SEC single season home run record against Kentucky when they drove five out of the park in three games. Senior Mandy Burford hit a solo home run to give them 73 for the season, matching the record set by the 1998 squad. With three games left to play in the regular season they need just one to break the record. This season in 56 games they are averaging 1.30 per contest.
Record Setting Year
Alabama has already set four stolen base records and the single season home run record. They are on pace to shatter other records including, batting avg., slugging pct. and on-base pct. Here is a look at records the Tide are approaching.

Strengths in Numbers
Alabama is the only team in the country that puts nine starters in the batting order every day who have hit four or more home runs. They are actually the only team with more than eight players who have hit four or more as 10 different players have hit four this season for Coach Murphy’s squad. The Tide is also one of only three teams in the country with 13 different players who have hit home runs (Alabama, CSU and Hawai’i).
Stealing Records
This season nearly every season and game school record for stolen bases has fallen or is close to being passed. On April 3 against Northwestern State, Alabama set a record with nine stolen bases in one game. It broke the previous mark of eight. In the first game at Ole Miss, the Tide swiped seven bases to set a new single season record with 139 and now have 155 for the year. Mandy Burford had four SB in the game to match the record held by Kelly Kretschman against Arkansas in 1999. Brittany Rogers has set the single season individual record with 44 SB, one more than Kretschman’s 43 SB in 2000.
150 Stolen Bases and Counting
The Crimson Tide has blazed their way to a SEC-leading 168 stolen bases in 54 games this season, an average of 3.11 stolen bases per game. Brittany Rogers leads the team with 44 stolen bases. Jordan Praytor is next with 28 SB while Mandy Burford has 27. Mallory Benak is 17-of-21 and Lauren Parker is 15-of-20. The Tide has stolen 147 more bases than their opponents and has three or more stolen bases in 31 games.
Speed Demons
Alabama is far and away leading the nation in stolen bases per game at 3.11 per outing. They have posted 168 SB in 54 games. The next best team is Tennessee who is averaging 2.49 per contest and has 136 SB in 55 outings. Only 11 teams have over 100 SB for the season.
Crossing Home
The Crimson Tide players have stepped on home plate 404 times this season to rank second in the nation. They are averaging 7.21 runs per game to lead the country. So far 11 different players have scored 20 runs. Seven of those have tallied over 30 with three over 40 and one over 50. Brittany Rogers leads the SEC with 58 runs, scoring in 38 of the 56 contests. Lauren Parker has scored 46 times with runs in 35 of her 49 games. Mandy Burford is next with 40 runs scored and has scored in 30 outings.
Hitting on All Cylinders
Alabama has been outstanding at the plate all season and currently lead the nation with a .339 team batting average. The Tide has 470 hits in 56 games, an average of 8.39 hits per game. Two players have over 60 hits with Brittany Rogers leading the way with 76 and Lauren Parker close with 62. If the season ended today, Parker would be just four points shy of the school record held by Kelly Kretschman at .467.

[Tuck4Bama]

coninued from last post


Leading the Nation
Alabama ranked first in the country in three different categories when the NCAA came out with its team and individual rankings on Tuesday. They are first in batting (.339 avg.), slugging pct. (.561) and stolen bases per game (3.0). The Tide also rank in the top-10 in four other categories. They are second in win pct. (.893) and scoring (7.21 runs per game), eighth in ERA (1.41) and ninth in home runs per game (1.30).
SEC Leaders
Alabama leads the SEC in 12 team categories. They are batting nine points higher, have scored 77 more runs, hit 17 more HR and stolen 26 more bases than any other school. In SEC games only, Alabama leads the conference in 14 different team categories. They are batting 32 points higher, have a 111 point higher slugging pct., scored 50 more runs, tallied 18 more hits, hit 13 more HR, walked seven more times and stole eight more bases than any other SEC school in conference play.
Eyeing SEC Records
Alabama is right on target to finish the season close to several single season SEC records. With the numbers the team has currently they would be close to or break records for batting avg. (UA .339 - SEC .342), slugging pct. (UA .561 - SEC .527) and on-base pct. (UA .434 - SEC .409). They are also on pace to push the records for runs scored (UA 404 - SEC 437) and RBI (UA 349 - SEC 374). Lauren Parker is also close to the SEC record for batting avg. in a single season with her .463 avg. Sarah Fekete of Tennessee hit .500 in 2006.

Alabama Players in SEC Tournament
Several Alabama players have been successful in the SEC Tournament. Last year in the two games Kelley Montalvo was 3-for-4 with a double, run scored and RBI. Brittany Rogers went 4-for-6 with a double and two runs scored. Chrissy Owens is 1-0 in four games with a save. She has thrown 10 1/3 innings with eight hits allowed, one earned run and two runs allowed, one walk and 12 strikeouts.
50-Win Season
The Crimson Tide won No. 50 against Kentucky to give them 50 wins for the fifth time in school history and third straight year. The first came in 2000 when the team set a school record with 66 victories (66-14). They followed with a 50-11 mark in 2001. Bama has also won over 50 games the last two years going 63-15 in 2005 and 54-11 last year. Bama ended the regular season with a 50-6 record. The .893 winning percentage is the top regular season mark in program history.
Undefeated Months
The Crimson Tide went udefeated in both February and April this season. They won their first 25 games of the sesaon with 17 of those victories coming in February. After posting a 17-4 record in March, the Tide went 16-0 in April to leap to No. 1 in the country. Last year Alabama went 12-1 in February and 15-4 in April. May was also kind to them as they won nine of their 10 games to advance to the Women’s College World Series for the fourth time. The only loss came to Tennessee in the SEC Tournament.
No-Hitter
Blair Potter tossed the 11th no-hitter in school history against Kentucky on April 29 and the first of her career. It was the first no-no of the 2007 season for Alabama after they recorded four last season. Chrissy Owens was the last to record one before Potter when she did not allow a hit in five innings against Mississippi Valley State in the NCAA Regionals last year. Stephanie VanBrakle tallied five no-hitters in her career with the Tide’s only perfect game last season at Kentucky.
Setting the Table
As the leadoff hitter in the Tide lineup, Brittany Rogers (Dacula, Ga.) has done a good job setting the table for her teammates this season. She leads the team with 76 hits and is tops in the SEC with 58 runs scored. She has also set the school record with 44 stolen bases this season. In the 20 times she has reached base in the first inning, she has 15 stolen bases providing a deadly threat early in the game for Bama. In her last eight games she is batting 14-of-31 (.452) with 10 runs scored and eight stolen bases.
Praytor Coming Alive
Junior designated player Jordan Praytor (Vancouver, Wash.) has started to heat up at the right time. Over the last 12 games she is batting .500 (14-of-2 with seven runs scored, three home runs, nine RBI, seven walks and six stolen bases. In the second game against Ole Miss she went 4-for-5 with a home run, two RBI and three runs scored. In the three game series against Kentucky she was 4-for-7 with two home runs, six RBI and three runs scored. She had four RBI in the series opener. She reached base in 7-of-10 plate appearances in the series.

Owens Moves Up on Shutout Lists
Junior righty Chrissy Owens has blossomed into a No. 1 pitcher this year with a 23-3 record and 1.18 ERA. She has started 25 games with 11 shutouts and five combined shutouts for 16 total. She has only allowed 26 earned runs in 154.1 innings with 133 strikeouts. She tallied two shutouts at Ole Miss to move into second on the single season record list and third all-time.
Victory Milestones
Chrissy Owens (Miami, Fla.) earned her 50th career win against Tennessee Chattanooga, becoming just the fifth Tide player to win 50 games. The win also was her 20th of the season and she is now 23-2. It was the 12th 20-win season in the program’s 11-year history. Owens has accomplished the feat in back-to-back seasons after recording 21 victories last season as a sophomore. The last two seasons Alabama has had a pair of players who won 20 games. They are trying to accomplish the feat for the third straight year as Blair Potter is 16-1 on the year.
No Extra Base Hits
Chrissy Owens has only allowed 17 extra base hits this season. She has only allowed two home runs in 154.1 innings, the fewest by any pitcher in the SEC who has pitched an average of one inning per the team’s total games. Owens has only given up six home runs in 423.1 career innings. She has allowed 13 2B and two 3B this season as well for only 17 extra base hits out of 134 total hits. As a team Alabama has only allowed 13 home runs, tied for first in the SEC.

Multi-Hit Games
The Crimson Tide players have tallied 119 multiple-hit games this season. So far 13 different players have posted a game with two or more hits. Brittany Rogers leads the way with 25 multi-hit games while Lauren Parker is right behind her with 21. Rogers has 18 contests with two hits and seven with three hits. Parker has 17 games with two hits, three with three hits and one with four hits. Charlotte Morgan and Jordan Praytor each have 14 on the year with Kelley Montalvo at 11.
Multi-RBI Games
Part of the reason why the Crimson Tide are averaging over seven runs per game is the number of times they have had a player with two or more RBI in a game. Lauren Parker leads the way with 14 multi-RBI games while Dani Woods and Jordan Praytor each have 12. Charlotte Morgan sits at 11 and Kelley Montalvo has tallied 10 multi-RBI contests.
Two-Out RBI
With two outs you can’t count the Tide batters out. They have produced 121 runs this season with two outs. They drove in nine runs with two outs in three games against Kentucky. Lauren Parker leads the team with 18 two-out RBI while Jordan Praytor has driven in 17 runs. Parker is batting .400 (18-of-45) with two outs while Praytor is also hitting .429 (15-of-35). Brittany Rogers is hitting .410 (16-of-39) with two outs and has nine RBI. Dani Woods hit a RBI double against Troy to give her 13 two-out RBI. Mandy Burford has driven in 12 runs with two outs while Charlotte Morgan is next on the list with 11 RBI coming with two outs.
New Infield Has Bright Future
At the start of the 2007 season the Tide had new starters at all four infield positions. So far they have all been pleasant surprises with 34 combined home runs and only 26 errors in 56 games. Another bright side is all four are either freshman or sophomores. Kelley Montalvo is the only returning starter moving from second to third base. She has 10 home runs and seven errors in 171 chances. Sophomore shortstop Kellie Eubanks has six home runs and 12 errors in 172 chances. Sophomore transfer Lauren Parker has nine home runs and five errors in 159 chances. Freshman Charlotte Morgan has nine home runs and two errors in 320 chances.
New Positions
Of the nine every day starters, the Crimson Tide has seven players who are in new roles. All four infield positions features new starters. The starting first baseman from 2006, Dani Woods, has played in the outfield for the first time in her career. Chrissy Owens is the No. 1 pitcher for the first time and Blair Potter became the second SEC starter.

Scoring in Bunches
One of the big reasons that Alabama is 50-6 this season is the fact that they have scored three or more runs in an inning 56 times. They have had an inning with at least three runs in 37 of the 56 contests. They have two games this season with a 10-run inning with both coming in the second frame. They accomplished the feat against Winthrop and most recently Georgia. The 10 runs tied for the second highest run total in a single inning in school history. Alabama has also recorded nine, eight and seven-run innings this season. They have scored six runs six times, five runs nine times, four runs 14 times and three runs 22 times.

Tough to Strikeout
Alabama is a tough out at the plate. They have struck out the fewest times of any SEC school with only 190 k’s in 1,693 plate appearances. Charlotte Morgan is one of the toughest players in the country to strike out with only seven total strikeouts this season, an average of only one strikeout every 19.7 at bats. Lauren Parker has only k’d nine times, one out of every 14.9 at bats.
Walk this Way
The Crimson Tide leads the SEC with 199 walks this season. The patience at the plate has paid off with the team’s SEC-leading .434 on-base percentage. There have been 19 games this season Alabama has drawn five or more walks. On April 3 against Northwestern State the Tide walked 12 times, an Alabama Softball Complex record. Five different players have recorded over 20 walks on the year.
Unbelievable
Brittany Rogers (Dacula, Ga.) accomplished the unthinkable against Tennessee Chattanooga on 4/11. Her slap home run from the left side of the plate gave her inside and outside the park home runs from both the left and right side of the plate. Her four home runs this season have all come in different ways. Her two outside the park home runs came against back-to-back opponents with a right-handed shot against Auburn and left-handed vs. UTC. Earlier this season she hit inside the park home runs on back-to-back days in the Hampton Inn BAMA BASH! She hit one from the left side against Radford and the right against Toledo.
BAMA vs. Ranked Teams
Alabama has played 17 games against teams ranked in the Top-25 this season and own an 11-6 record. The Tide shutout No. 22 N.C. State twice in the Crimson Classic. The following weekend Alabama downed No. 11 ULL twice with a 6-0 victory in the first game and a walkoff three-run home run in the eighth inning by Mandy Burford in the second. The Tide split with No. 22 Florida and followed by sweeping 24th-ranked South Carolina on the road. The Tide lost 2-of-3 at No. 8 LSU but bounced back by winning two of three at home against Georgia. Alabama recently lost two games to No. 2 Tennessee.

[Stoney]

Now if the Women can do that the Men need to respond a National Title in Football!

[Tuck4Bama]

Alabama Advances to SEC Semifinals With Extra Inning 3-2 Win Over Georgia Release: 05/10/2007

Brittany Rogers and Michelle Menningmann had clutch hits on Wednesday for the Tide
AUBURN, Ala. – The third-seeded University of Alabama softball team rallied from a 2-0 deficit late in the game for a 3-2 victory in nine innings over sixth-seeded Georgia to advance to the SEC Tournament Semifinals at Jane B. Moore Field on the campus of Auburn University.
“Today, win or lose, we needed to play in this type of situation,” said Alabama head coach Patrick Murphy. “It was a tight game. We had to have the defense, we had to have the pitching and our theme all year long was that we were going to come up with key hit at some point. We needed a game where the defense and pitching had that constant threat. I thought both of our pitchers did a good job.”
The score was tied at 2-2 entering the bottom of the ninth inning. Sophomore Kellie Eubanks (Prairieville, La.) led off the frame with a double to the gap in left center. It was her seventh double of the season and second hit of the game. Mallory Benak came in to pinch-run for Eubanks and moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by Katie Johnson. Brittany Rogers then came up and hit a harder grounder up the middle for the game-winning single as Benak tallied her 28th run of the season.
“We kind of left a few runners on base,” said Rogers. “We just needed to do it one at a time. Today wasn’t just a big hit as much as following each other, keeping it going and getting one base at a time. I just wanted to hit something hard and make someone make a play.”
Trailing 2-0 heading into the bottom of the sixth, the Tide needed to get something started and a great at bat by Kelley Montalvo provided the necessary lift. She battled by fouling off four pitches with a full count and on the 10th pitch she hit a single up the middle. Georiga’s pitcher Kasi Carroll then hit Alabama’s designated player, Jordan Praytor, in the back to put runners on first and second. Two batters later Mandy Burford loaded the bases with an infield single to third base. After a fielder’s choice second baseman Michelle Menningmann came to the plate.
The senior from Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. was making her 15th start of the season. She hit a high-bouncing single over the third baseman’s head to drive in two runs and tie the game at 2-2. The two RBI increase Menningmann’s season total to 15.
“With two outs, I was just looking to hit something hard and get it through the infield to score a couple of runs,” said Menningmann. “With two outs, I knew the runners were going.”
The pitching was stellar for the Tide all game. Senior Blair Potter earned the starting nod and only allowed two runs on five hits in five innings with one walk and three strikeouts. Chrissy Owens came in to pitch the final four innings and only allowed two hits with two strikeouts to improve to 24-3 on the year.
“Blair was great,” said Murphy. “She was just what we needed. I kept looking up at the scoreboard, and they had scored a run with no hits for several innings. Chrissy did a great job. We finally got their leadoff batter out in the seventh or eighth, and that was a key out.”
Georgia scored the first run of the game in the first inning. Kellie Middleton drew a walk to lead off the game and stole second base. Potter struck out Sojourner Moody but a pitch in the dirt allowed the runner to reach first base. A double steal put runners on second and third with no outs and Melissa Wood followed with a RBI groundout to the shortstop.
The Bulldogs added a run in the top of the sixth. Middleton tallied her second hit of the contest with a leadoff double to center field. Moody followed with a bunt single to put runners at the corners. Potter got Wood to hit a grounder back to her but Middleton scored on the play and Wood beat out the throw to first for another single. Owens came in to pitch after the third hit of the inning and proceeded to get two straight ground outs, one for a 5-3 double play as Montalvo snared a shot hit down the left field line to save at least one run.
In extra innings Owens only allowed one hit, a two-out single in the top of the ninth by Christie Hamilton.
Besides the big hit by Menningmann to tie the game, three other Crimson Tide players contributed two hits in the win. Rogers finished 2-for-5 with the game-winning RBI. Burford was 2-for-4 with a run scored and Kellie Eubanks also had two hits. Middleton scored both of Georgia’s runs in the game and was 2-for-3. Wood had both RBI’s for the Bulldogs.
Carroll receives the loss for UGA to fall to 26-9 on the year. She went the distance, allowing three runs on 10 hits in 8 1/3 innings with three walks and five strikeouts. The Bulldogs are now 43-26 on the season.
Alabama improved to 51-6 on the year and has now won its first game in the SEC Tournament in nine of its 11 seasons. The Tide will face second-seeded LSU in the semifinals on Friday at 5 p.m. at Jane B. Moore Field. The Tigers won two of the three games in the regular season series with Bama at Baton Rouge, La.

[Stoney]

Watch them win....

[Tuck4Bama]

No. 2 Alabama Falls to No. 4 LSU 4-1 in SEC Tournament Semifinals Release: 05/11/2007

Photo courtesy of Anthony Hall - Auburn Athletics
AUBURN, Ala. – The third-seeded Crimson Tide softball team had the bases loaded with one out in the top of the seventh but could not bring a run home as they fell to second-seeded LSU, 4-1, in the semifinals of the SEC Tournament on Friday at Jane B. Moore Field in Auburn, Ala.
The Crimson Tide found themselves trailing for the second straight game in the tournament, only this time they could not come back. Bama threatened by loading the bases with only one out. Ashley Holcombe led off the inning with a single up the middle. After a fielder’s choice Katie Johnson was hit-by-a-pitch to put runners on first and second. Brittany Rogers followed with an infield single back to the pitcher for her second hit of the game.
However, the Tigers’ senior Emily Turner got Kelley Montalvo to pop one up to third base and then struck out Jordan Praytor to end the game. Turner improved to 19-6 on the season and allowed one run on six hits with two walks and seven strikeouts in seven innings.
“They got a key hit when they needed it, and we didn’t,” said Alabama head coach Patrick Murphy. “That’s been the story of the last four games for us. It’s definitely something that we need to work on for the rest of the postseason.”
Alabama was also down 1-0 heading into the fifth inning, Alabama got a leadoff infield single by Kellie Eubanks. She reached out and poked the ball halfway to the pitcher’s mound and reached first without a throw. Mallory Benak came in to pinch-run and advanced to second on a successful sacrifice bunt by Johnson. Johnson also had a sacrifice bunt that advanced the winning run to second in the ninth inning against Georgia on Wednesday.
Rogers came up to the plate next and lined a single to left field. Benak moved to third base and Rogers went to second on the throw. Montalvo drove a deep fly ball to center field to bring the tying run in from third on a sacrifice fly to make the score 1-1. It was Montalvo’s second sac fly of the season and 33rd RBI.
Rachel Mitchell continued her hot hitting in the tournament with a solo home run to lead off the bottom of the fourth inning. Her eighth long ball of the season was her fourth hit in six at bats in the tournament. She was 3-for-4 in the opening round against South Carolina. The home run put LSU in front 1-0.
LSU broke the game open in the bottom of the sixth inning with three runs on four hits for a 4-1 lead. Jazz Jackson started things off with a single up the middle with one out. In her at bat, she hit a ball in front of the plate that bounced back and hit her. The umpire, however, ruled that she was still in the batters box and the ball was foul.
Mitchell put runners on first and second with her second hit of the game, a single off the wall in left field. Leslie Klein then came through with the big hit, a double that went just past the diving Michelle Menningmann at second base to score two runs. Klein moved to third base on the throw. The next batter, Killian Roessner, brought Klein home with a sacrifice fly to right field.
Rogers and Eubanks each recorded two hits in the contest for Alabama. Rogers was 2-for-4 and extended her hitting streak to seven games. She leads the team with 27 multi-hit games. Eubanks finished the SEC Tournament 4-for-7 and now has five multi-hit games with two hits in the last two outings.
Blair Potter fell to 16-2 on the year with the loss. She allowed four runs on six hits in six innings with six strikeouts. Montalvo had a tremendous game defensively besides driving in the Tide’s only run. She made every play at third base with six assists in the contest.
The top of the LSU order finished 5-for-9 in the game and accounted for all four runs. Jackson was 2-for-3 with a run scored, Mitchell was 2-for-3 with a RBI and two runs scored and Klein went 1-for-3 with a run and two RBI.
The Tide lineup was missing its top two RBI leaders on the season with a combined 86 RBI absent from the lineup during the tournament.
Alabama falls to 51-7 on the year with the loss while LSU improves to 51-10. The Crimson Tide will await the NCAA selections which will be announced live on ESPN news from 2-3 p.m. on Sunday.

[Stoney]

They can still win it all in the playoffs.

[Tuck4Bama]

Alabama Softball to Host NCAA Regional Release: 05/13/2007

Alabama watches its name being called for the NCAA Tournament on Sunday
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The University of Alabama softball team was awarded the No. 11 seed for the 2007 NCAA Division I Softball Championships and will host Tennessee Tech, California and Florida State in one of 16 regionals this weekend May 18-20.
“We were a little shocked to get the No. 11 seed,” said first team All-SEC designated player Jordan Praytor. “It doesn’t really matter what seed we are though. We will be ready to play this weekend.”
The Crimson Tide was selected to the NCAA Tournament for the ninth straight season. This will be the fifth year they have hosted a regional and third straight season. They have a 12-2 record at home in the regionals, including 10 straight wins and three regional championships. Alabama is 51-7 on the season and has a 35-1 mark at home.
“We knew anywhere we were put in the bracket we would need to show up and be focused,” said first team All-SEC outfielder Brittany Rogers. “It is going to be a fun time for us this weekend.”
Alabama will square off against Tennessee Tech at 6 p.m. on Friday. The Golden Eagles have a 48-17 record on the season and won the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament. They were 20-5 in their conference and are 28-15 away from home.
“We hope we get 2,000 people out for our games this weekend,” said Alabama head coach Patrick Murphy. “I hope the stands are packed and everybody is ready to go. You are going to have to beat a good team in every round of the tournament.”
The first game of the regional will begin at 3:30 p.m. on Friday with Cal taking on Florida State. The Golden Bears are 33-30 on the year and went 7-14 in the Pac-10. They have a 25-23 record outside of Berkley. The Seminoles are 44-23 overall with a 13-7 mark in the ACC. They have played 28 games away from home with a 14-14 record.
The first game on Saturday will feature the winners of the opening day’s games. The contest will start at 11 a.m. and will be televised by ESPN2. The following two games are scheduled for 1:30 p.m. and 4 p.m. Sunday’s game will start at 1:30 p.m. with a game at 4 p.m. if necessary.
Tickets for the NCAA Regional are now available for purchase by logging on to www.rolltide.com, by calling 205-348-BAMA or at the ticket windows in Coleman Coliseum. Starting at 12:00 noon on Friday, fans can purchase tickets at the Alabama Softball Complex. All-session adult passes are $25 and all-session youth passes are $15. Single session passes are $10 for adults, $6 for youth and $3 for students.
Arizona is the top seed in the tournament with a 39-12-1 record. Northwestern received the second seed and his followed by Oklahoma, Texas A&M and Tennessee to round out the top five. Seven SEC schools were selected to the tournament.

[Stoney]

Okay this is what they've been waiting on... time to play ball.