The Alabama softball team dropped games at Tennessee on Saturday and Sunday, with the Volunteers winning on seventh-inning walk-offs both times. In both cases, Alabama’s offense fell flat with some glaring holes in the batting order.
In Sunday’s 2-0 defeat, Alabama managed just four hits. Two of those came from the top of the lineup – with Chandler Dare and Bailey Hemphill going 1-for-2 and 1-for-3, respectively, and the top three batters going a collective 2-for-8 with a pair of walks. But the middle of the order produced nothing, with the four, five and six spots going a collective 0-for-9.
In Saturday’s 3-2 defeat, it was the top of the order that produced nothing, as the top three batters went 0-for-10 without a walk, including three strikeouts. The middle of the order did produce a little, with the four, five and six spots going a combined 1-for-6 with three walks and a pair of runs scored. Sydney Booker, batting seventh, had a two-RBI triple.
Falling stock
The Crimson Tide softball team, ranked No. 9 going into the weekend, fell to 10-7 in SEC play to drop to fifth place in the league going into Monday night’s finale against Tennessee. Florida (15-2) leads the SEC race, followed by Texas A&M and Tennessee (both at 11-3) and Auburn (10-5).
Alabama also dropped to 14th in the official NCAA RPI (ratings percentage index) rankings, falling two spots. The RPI – which is based on a formula that considers a team’s record, its opponents’ records and the records of its opponents’ opponents – is a component considered by the NCAA selection committee. The top 16 seeds in the country serve as host sites in the NCAA Tournament, with the top eight hosting in the super regional round, if they advance.
