Though the Crimson Tide did not have a spectacular day at the plate, it got the only hit that mattered as Alabama got a walk-off win against South Alabama on Wednesday at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.
“One thing that this team has been able to do is to find ways to win games,” head coach Mitch Gaspard said. “Those mid-week games can be tough at times, but we battled and we did a good job in the ninth.”
The ninth inning rally started with a walk by centerfielder Taylor Dugas. Dugas stole second on the next pitch, setting catcher Brock Bennett up to be the hero. Thinking Bennet was going to bunt, South Alabama sent its third baseman in to cover the bunter and ran its shortstop over to cover third. However, instead of bunting Bennett swung away and poked a single through the cheating infield to score Dugas and win the game for the Tide.
“It was just nice to come out with a win,” Bennnett said. “After last night and all these mid-week games, it has been tough, but it was nice to get back on the winning track.”
It shouldn’t be a surprise that the Jaguars were expecting a bunt from Bennett. After all, that is what he has been doing all year for the Tide. With Taylor Dugas getting on base as much as he does, it has regularly been Bennnett’s job to move him into scoring position, a job the catcher openly accepts.
“[Dugas] gets on pretty much every at-bat and I just move him up,” Bennett said. “He ends up scoring every time.”
Wednesday was no different for Dugas, as he walked four times and recorded a single to reach all five times he was up to bat.
“I had a few walks tonight and I was seeing the ball really well,” Dugas said. “It was a good night, a good night to get a win.”
The Tide sent sophomore Taylor Wolfe to the mound in what was his fifth start of the season for the Tide. Wolfe did not disappoint, puzzling the Jaguars to only two runs over six innings of work while striking out eight and leaving with a 3-2 lead.
Along with the strong outing from Wolfe, the Tide received a solid performance from pitcher Adam Windsor in his first appearance since breaking his finger.
“Obviously pitching Taylor Wolfe gave us a great start going six innings,” Gaspard said. “I thought the story of the night was Adam Windsor. He actually had a broken finger and that was his first time back. That was really good to see, because not only is it good to see him pitch well, it also gives us another left hander in the bullpen.”
The win was extra sweet for the Tide, as it served as revenge against a Jaguar team that beat the Tide by a walk-off in the teams’ last meeting.
“We definitely remember that game,” Bennett said. “It was nice to come out on top this time.”
Up next for the Tide is a highly touted series against Arkansas, beginning on Friday at 6:35 p.m.
“They are really athletic. They’ve got about 50 stolen bases,” Gaspard said. “They are another really good SEC team and we are going to be in for a real challenge. I think at home we have found ways to win games, and that is what we have to continue to do – take care of the home field and try to win series at home.”
