Why Tennessee softball's offense in Women's CWS opener bodes well, even as Oklahoma looms
OKLAHOMA CITY — Tennessee softball's 10-5 win over Alabama on Thursday was its first win at the Women's College World Series in a decade. Its 10 runs were the most the Lady Vols have scored in any of their previous 27 WCWS games.
Given Tennessee's offensive success this season, the milestones aren't surprising. The Lady Vols entered Oklahoma City ranked second in the country in scoring (7.1 runs per game) and on-base percentage (.427). They rank 11th in home runs (76) and 12th in slugging percentage (.528), the second-best marks among WCWS teams.
Starting the Women's College World Series with such an offensive burst against good pitching bodes well for what comes next: The Lady Vols (50-8) will face top-seeded Oklahoma on Saturday (3 p.m. ET, ABC). The Sooners lead the country in ERA (1.00). Tennessee's pitching staff entered Oklahoma City right behind them at No. 2 (1.48).
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"It's good to get that first game under our belt and get a W," Tennessee coach Karen Weekly said. "This time of year, that's what it's all about."
The first good sign: Tennessee got the best of Alabama's Jaala Torrence. The right-handed pitcher entered the game having given up just two earned runs in the NCAA Tournament. The Lady Vols got two earned runs off of her in 2⅓ innings.
They'll face pitchers with statistics better than Torrence's when they face Oklahoma, but starting with big hits against a solid starter bodes well.
Tennessee can also feel good about its two-out offense. The Lady Vols scored four of their 10 runs with two outs and went 4-for-12 with two down.
"It gives all of our girls confidence," Weekly said. "The way they perform with two outs is really amazing. They never feel like, 'Okay, we'll just wait for the next inning.'"
Unique in Thursday's win was the success of the full lineup. Every Tennessee hitter had reached base before the third inning ended, all but one had a hit by the end of the game and two had home runs.
The bottom of the order fared as well as the top. Eight-hole hitter Destiny Rodriguez and nine-hole hitter Katie Taylor had two hits, and Taylor had two RBIs. Plus, Tennessee's two home runs came from Jamison Brockenbrough and Rylie West, neither of whom had more than four homers entering the game.
Tennessee will need that kind of success up and down its lineup to contend with elite pitching in the winners bracket.
"The mark of a good team that can compete for championships is: Obviously everyone's going to have studs at the top of the order, but it's those kids that don't get the publicity, their name's not always in the headline, what do they do?" Weekly said. "They were the heroes."
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Why Tennessee softball's offense bodes well in Women's CWS vs. Oklahoma
