Alabama softball takes series over #2 Oklahoma
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. โ With the weekend series on the line Monday night at Rhoads Stadium, Oklahoma and Alabama softball battled to extra innings before freshman Audrey Vandagriff came through with the big hit in the bottom of the eighth, a walk-off solo home run to give the Crimson Tide the 2-1 win and the weekend series over the Sooners.
The game was Alabamaโs (30-16, 7-8 SEC) first extra-inning game of the season and its first walk-off home run since Skylar Wallace against Georgia on May 9, 2019 at the SEC Tournament.
For the third time this weekend, Alabama took the first lead over Oklahoma (36-5, 10-5 SEC) as a third-inning RBI double from Kali Heivilin plated the first run of the day. The Sooners answered right back in the next half-inning, tying the game on a solo home run form Nelly McEnroe-Marinas. With the score still tied in the top of the seventh, Oklahoma loaded the bases with one out but the Alabama defense came through with a pair of force outs to get out of the jam and keep the score tied. The Tide couldnโt walk it off in the bottom half though, sending it to extra innings for the first time this season.
Oklahoma got two on base in the top of the eighth but Alabama again escaped the inning unscathed to keep the score tied. Vandagriff didnโt waste any time in the bottom half of the inning, sending the first pitch down the left field line and over the fence for the walk-off home run to seal the 2-1 victory and the weekend series for the Tide.
From Alabama Softball Head Coach Patrick Murphy
โWhat a great series. All three games were televised, and we almost had 13,000 people for a three-game series. It showcased what a great sport softball is, and tonight was an instant classic. I say it a lot โ โbend donโt breakโ โ and Oklahoma had the bases loaded with one out and we didnโt break. That was the key moment defensively, and Audrey [Vandagriff] did what Audrey does. Catelyn [Riley] threw 19.0 shutout innings against one of the best teams in the country and that never happens.โ
Alabama Softball Highlights
- The game was Alabamaโs first extra-inning game of the season
- Audrey Vandagriffโs walk-off home run was the Crimson Tideโs first since Skylar Wallace on May 9, 2019 vs. Georgia at the SEC Tournament
- Alabama softball set a new series attendance record this weekend with 12,898 fans across all three games, including sellout crowds of 4,400 on Saturday and Sunday
- The Tide has now won both of its three-game series vs. Oklahoma at Rhoads Stadium, previously defeating the Sooners in the 2015 Super Regional round
- The series win is Alabamaโs first over a top-2 ranked team since defeating then-No. 1 Florida April 1-3, 2016 in Gainesville
- The Tide scored first in all three games, owning a season record of 17-7 in games that Alabama scores first
- Catelyn Riley threw a career-high 8.0 innings and tied her season best with five strikeouts
- The home run was Vandagriffโs fourth this season, all of which have come against top-five teams: No. 4 UCLA (Feb. 15), No. 5 Texas A&M (March 21), No. 5 LSU (April 6) and No. 2 Oklahoma (April 14)
- Vandagriff had three hits in the game, her team-leading 17th multi-hit game this season, and swiped her NCAA-best 46th stolen base of the season to give her sole possession of sixth place on the UA single-season records
Scoring Summary
- B3 | Kali Heivilin drove in Audrey Vandagriff with an RBI double (1-0, 1 Out)
- T4 | Nelly McEnroe-Marinas tied the game with a solo home run (1-1, 2 Out)
- B8 | Audrey Vandagriff sent the first pitch of the at-bat over the fence for a walk-off home run (2-1, 0 Out)
Up Next: at #6/8 Florida (Gainesville, Fla.)
- Thursday, April 17 โ 5 p.m. CT
- Friday, April 18 โ 5 p.m. CT โ SEC Network
- Saturday, April 19 โ 1 p.m. CT โ ESPN2
(Courtesy: The University of Alabama)
