The Crimson Tide softball team defeated a top-10 Georgia Tech team 13-1 Wednesday night at home, adding win number 16 to their streak. The Tide now stands at 40-9 this season.
Going into Wednesday’s game, Georgia Tech was 43-8 and 16-2 in the ACC. The Yellow Jackets won Sunday against Florida State and managed to hold on to their ACC title once again.
Starting out on the right foot, Tide starting pitcher Kelsi Dunne let only one Tech player on base and flew through the first half of the inning.
Leading off for the Tide, freshman Kayla Braud walked, courtesy of Tech pitcher Hope Rush, only to steal second base just minutes later. Senior Charlotte Morgan hit her first career triple at the bottom of the first, driving in both Braud and Cassie Reilly-Boccia and closing out the inning out 3-0.
“It was just great to be able to do that before I left,” said Morgan about her first inning triple.
At the top of the second inning it was three up, three down. The Tide utilized its calm communication and took out three Tech contenders in a row, speeding through another top half of an inning.
Tech’s replacement pitcher in the second inning, Jessica Coan, filled the bases with Tide players and, with an off pitch, allowed Braud to slide into home plate. Amanda Locke blasted a ball clean over the center of the far wall and added three more runs to the Tide’s score. Kendall Dawson made her way around the line up again and, with a single past the shortstop, got Courtney Conley to home plate for one more, leaving the score 8-0.
The Tide showed explosive hustle both on the field and on base. Tech went three up, three down again at the top of the third inning thanks to Dunne. The Tide’s Lisa Elizondo entered the game as a pinch runner for Morgan at the bottom of the third and was moved into score by a walk. Jazlyn Lunceford scored a run and Keima Davis hit a single and got Locke in for another, ending the inning with the score 11-0.
Kelsi Weseman scored the Yellow Jackets’ first run of the game in the top of the fourth. Cat Dozier hit a ground ball that drove in Reilly-Boccia with a base hit in the bottom of the fourth. Alex Blewitt walked, filling the bases for Dawson to score a run with a base hit. The inning ended with the Tide in control, 13-1.
The game ended dramatically as Dunne extended her arm and caught the ball, fired straight from Yellow Jacket Jen Yee’s bat for the final out. The Tide ended with 12 hits and no errors.
“Beating a top-ranked team 13-1 is really saying something,” said head coach Patrick Murphy. “It looks really good right now, we just need to stay on a roll.”
The ladies will be back in action hosting Tennessee this weekend for their final SEC series.
