Alabama softball split two games with seventh-ranked Florida State on the way to a 3-1 record in the Easton Bama Bash this past weekend in Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide defeated Florida State 3-0 as well as Georgia State 5-1 on Friday, and then pushed past Northern Iowa 11-3 on Saturday before falling to the Seminoles 3-1 that night. Sunday’s game against Georgia State was canceled due to weather.
Pitcher Alexis Osorio and infielders Bailey Hemphill and Demi Turner earned all-Tournament honors for the Tide. Osorio pitched beautifully in the victory over Florida State, tossing a scoreless three-hitter that saw her strike out ten Seminoles. Hemphill went 3-12 over the weekend, and had a big day Saturday with a four-RBI afternoon against Northern Iowa and a double against Florida State later that night. Senior Demi Turner was spectacular in her first starts of the season after dealing with a toe injury for the first two weeks of the year. Overall, Turner went 4-10, with a huge triple in the first game against Florida State and three hits against Northern Iowa.
In the first game against Florida State, Alabama was able to manufacture runs against a tough pitcher on the way to the victory. Despite going 1-12 with runners on-base in the contest, Alabama was able to find ways to bring base-runners back around to the plate. Elissa Brown was a bit part of this effort, as the sophomore found her way on base in each at-bat (1-1, two walks). Gabby Callaway and Reagan Dykes also record RBI in the Tide’s 3-0 victory.
Game two against the Seminoles saw freshman Madison Preston in the circle for Alabama. In her first start against a quality team, Preston pitched beautifully, allowing three earned runs on five hits and striking out two. The Crimson Tide record five hits themselves, including a Sydney Booker RBI single in the fifth inning that brought Callaway around to score. Alabama loaded the bases in the seventh inning with two outs after a few free passes and a hit from Booker, but junior Caroline Hardy popped out in foul ground to end the game.
Alabama has another huge week ahead. Tuesday, the Crimson Tide will travel to Birmingham to face a UAB that they’re 21-0 against all-time. Then, the team will fly to Seattle, Washington, on Wednesday for the Husky Classic. Alabama will face BYU on Friday followed by a meeting with a top five Washington Huskies team later that evening. Saturday, the Tide plays Portland State before another meeting with the tournament host Huskies. The weekend will close with a contest against Northwestern. All games will be broadcasted live on 93.3 FM, and game times can be found on rolltide.com.
