Alabama Softball Wins Two; Takes Tough Road Series Against Mississippi State

It wasn’t an easy weekend for the Alabama Softball in Starkville. Both sides of the ball struggled against Mississippi State. Alabama managed to win the weekend, two games to one, after winning the rubber match Sunday.

The series takes Alabama softball to 28-3 overall and 5-1 in the conference. All three Alabama losses this season have come on the road. The other two were from the Louisianna-Lafayette weekend.

Game one saw Alabama getting the run-rule win 11-3. Saturday, the offense fell flat and the Crimson Tide fell 1-0. Game three saw Alabama rebound and get the 3-0 win. Though Alabama should celebrate the series win, the offensive and pitching game did not perform at their best.

You read that right. The ever-consistent pitching staff didn’t perform to their usual standards this weekend. Particularly, junior Alexis Osorio.

Osorio Struggles In Game One

Between the three members of Alabama’s rotation, Osorio has been, by far the most consistent. In relief situations where senior Sydney Littlejohn started to fade, Osorio managed to become the X-Factor in games with her amazing rise ball and strike zone control.

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Osorio did not show that control of the strike zone on Friday. Her 40-inning scoreless streak was broken up by a 3rd inning home run by Mississippi State. In the fifth inning, when Alabama was up 11-2 and about to invoke the run-rule, Osorio walked the first three batters to load the bases. After Mississippi State reached on a fielder’s choice, Osorio was pulled and both Littlejohn and Moore closed out the game.

The most revealing statistic was that Osorio put up just four strikeouts in the Friday game. Normally she is double digits in that stat.

She recovered in Sunday’s game and was much more consistent. This is the second game on the road, however, that we’ve seen Osorio’s pitching less than outstanding.

Osorio’s pitching consistency is important to the team. This Alabama softball team can struggle offensively, it’s important for Osorio to deliver when she’s in the circle.

Other Notes From Miss State Weekend

Pitching wasn’t the only problem with Alabama softball this weekend. The 1-0 score on Saturday pretty much explains the game. The offensive bats went cold and again proved that Alabama cannot win on pitching alone.

Alabama softball had a total of two hits, both from their two top batters. The offense has to do more and cannot rely on its top of the lineup to pull the weight.

It wasn’t just Alabama’s issues that were the problem. Mississippi State is a better team than they seem on the surface. The Bulldogs got 11 hits on the weekend and capitalized on the three errors made by Alabama.

Coaching was superb, as Vann Stuedeman put the right players in the right place throughout the weekend. Stuedeman was a former pitching coach for Alabama. Watch out for that team this season. They definitely have the talent to play with Alabama.

Next: Comparing 2017 Pitching To The Last Five Years

Alabama does not have a midweek game this week. Their next series will be against South Carolina at home next weekend. Check in with us on Facebook and tell us what you think about Alabama softball.