Alabama Softball Begins Postseason Play at 2021 SEC Softball Tournament

THIS WEEK: ALABAMA (42-7, 18-6 SEC) AT SEC TOURNAMENT

SCOUTING ALABAMA

No. 3 Alabama is 42-7 overall and 18-6 in SEC play after sweeping 25th-ranked Ole Miss at home last weekend to conclude the regular season
Alabama closed the regular season winning 10 straight games, including nine against ranked teams, outscoring its opponents 68-24
The Crimson Tide hosts the 2021 SEC Tournament this week at Rhoads Stadium, opening play as the No. 3 seed Thursday evening against the winner of Wednesday’s game between Kentucky and Georgia
The Southeastern Conference released its year-end awards this week, with Bailey Hemphill as the SEC Player of the Year and Montana Fouts as the SEC Co-Pitcher of the Year
The Crimson Tide is No. 2 in this week’s NCAA RPI and as high as No. 3 in the national polls

LAST TIME OUT: ALABAMA VS. OLE MISS

Alabama closed out the regular season with a three-game sweep over Ole Miss in Tuscaloosa, winning 8-0, 11-7 and 6-1
It was the Tide’s fourth SEC sweep of the season and its second at home
Alabama hit .470 as a team, going 39-for-83 with just six strikeouts
Kaylee Tow and Alexis Mack led the team with seven hits each, combining to score nine runs and drive in five RBIs
Bailey Hemphill was 4-for-6 (.667) from the plate with a team-leading six runs scored, also drawing four walks
Montana Fouts was 2-0 in the circle, allowing just one earned run over 13.0 innings pitched with 20 strikeouts

BAILEY HEMPHILL NAMED SEC PLAYER OF THE YEAR, MONTANA FOUTS CO-PITCHER OF THE YEAR

The Southeastern Conference released its year-end awards Tuesday, with Alabama’s Bailey Hemphill named the SEC Player of the Year and Montana Fouts the Co-Pitcher of the Year
Hemphill earned Alabama’s third SEC Player of the Year honor, joining Charlotte Morgan who won in back-to-back seasons in 2009 and 2010
Fouts, who was named the SEC Freshman of the Year in 2019, becomes the Crimson Tide’s seventh pitcher of the year, following Stephanie VanBrakle (2006), Kelsi Dunne (2010-11), Jaclyn Traina (2012, 2014) and Sarah Cornell (2019)
Hemphill and Fouts were also named to the All-SEC First Team alongside Elissa Brown and Alexis Mack, while Kaylee Tow was named to the All-SEC Second Team
This year’s slate brings Alabama’s program total to 105 All-SEC honorees
Additional awards went to Lexi Kilfoyl and Savannah Woodard on the All-SEC Newcomer Team and KB Sides on the SEC All-Defensive team in right field

ALABAMA ALL-TIME AT THE SEC TOURNAMENT

Alabama has a 41-26 (.612) all-time record at the SEC Tournament, qualifying every season since the inaugural tournament in 1997
The Crimson Tide has won five SEC Tournament titles: 1998, 2003, 2005, 2010, 2012
Alabama’s 41 tournament wins is the second-most of any team, only trailing LSU’s 43

RECORDS VS. OPPONENTS AT SEC TOURNAMENT

5-1 vs. Arkansas (Last Meeting: 2017 – W, 4-1)
6-3 vs. Auburn (Last Meeting: 2018 – W, 6-4)
3-6 vs. Florida (Last Meeting: 2019 – L, 1-2)
5-2 vs. Georgia (Last Meeting: 2019 – W, 2-1 (8))
2-0 vs. Kentucky (Last Meeting: 2019 – W, 6-3)
6-6 vs. LSU (Last Meeting: 2010 – W, 5-4)
vs. Ole Miss (Last Meeting: 2017 – L, 1-4)
7-1 vs. Mississippi State (Last Meeting: 2016 – W, 2-1)
vs. Missouri
0-3 vs. South Carolina (Last Meeting: 2002 – L, 4-6)
4-3 vs. Tennessee (Last Meeting: 2010 – W, 4-3)
vs. Texas A&M (Last Meeting: 2017 – W, 2-1 (10))

SEC WEEKLY AWARD WINNERS

Montana Fouts’ SEC Pitcher of the Week award this week was the 10th weekly honor this season for Alabama, setting a new single-season record
The Tide has earned four Pitcher of the Week (Fouts x4), three Player of the Week (Hemphill x2, Tow) and three Newcomer of the Week (Kilfoyl x2, Woodard) awards this season

Most SEC Weekly Awards in a Season

2021 – 10 (4 Pitcher, 3 Player, 3 Newcomer)
2006 – 9 (5 Player, 4 Pitcher)
2019 – 7 (1 Player, 2 Pitcher, 4 Freshman)
2012 – 7 (4 Player, 3 Pitcher)
2008 – 7 (4 Player, 2 Pitcher, 1 Freshman)
2007 – 7 (3 Player, 1 Pitcher, 3 Freshman)

DOUBLE DIGIT STRIKEOUTS

Montana Fouts has thrown 10+ strikeouts 14 times this season, including eight of her last 10 starts
Her eight most recent double-digit totals have come against ranked teams
Fouts’ 14 games with double-digit strikeouts is the third-highest total for any UA pitcher in a season

Most Games with 10+ Strikeouts in a Season

HEMPHILL TWO SHY OF UA CAREER HOME RUN RECORD

Senior Bailey Hemphill’s 58 career home runs is tied with Kaila Hunt (2011-14) and Charlotte Morgan (2007-10) for second in the UA career rankings, two shy of Kelly Kretschman’s (1998-2001) career record of 60
She is the fifth player in program history to reach the 50 home run mark, the first since Hunt
Hemphill tied the UA single-season record in 2019 with 26 home runs
With her second home run in game one against Auburn on March 12, Hemphill became the third player in program history to surpass the 200 career RBI mark, joining Charlotte Morgan (2007-10) and Kaila Hunt (2011-14) in the prestigious club
Now with 223 career RBIs, Hemphill passed Hunt’s total of 215 and continues to close in on Morgan’s school-record total of 264

ALABAMA LEAGUE PLAY LEADERS

Team Rankings (Top 3)

Individual Rankings (Top 3)

UP NEXT – NCAA REGIONALS