Tennessee Softball 2023

[Vol67]

They have options, but seems as though time is getting away. They have a wildcard if they choose to pursue it in a kid that transferred in but only as a student right now.

Not good enough. All this means is it's not a top tier pitcher or even a second tier.

You don't need mid week inning eaters. Plain and simple YOU NEED 3 WEEKEND SEC STARTERS and UT does not have that at this time and from what is left there isn't one. On the other side you need 5 pitchers also which UT doesn't have

 

[DeerPark12]

Out of curiosity do you know where Orsini is looking?

Don't know that there has been a ton of interest because she needs a larger percentage scholarship since she can't do NIL as an international student.

 

[DeerPark12]

Not good enough. All this means is it's not a top tier pitcher or even a second tier.

You don't need mid week inning eaters. Plain and simple YOU NEED 3 WEEKEND SEC STARTERS and UT does not have that at this time and from what is left there isn't one. On the other side you need 5 pitchers also which UT doesn't have

Outside of Tennessee, what SEC team had three top-level weekend starters last season?

 

[CoryDallasLV]

Wow, so according to a couple of folks on here it sounds like the Lady Vols should just forfeit this softball season, LOL. Pickens was SEC freshman of the year and one of the top prospects coming out of high school. Let's see how she improves in the offseason before we write the pitching staff and coaches off maybe. There have been many elite aces who don't necessarily light it up like a Jordy Bahl in their freshman seasons and then make huge strides later. Not saying she will, but how bout we see. Also, didn't Gottshall prove she can pitch at an elite level consistently? Some of these posts are little over the top and probably from the same posters who said fire Karen because she could never get them back to a WCWS. How about we let the offseason and next season play out. You might feel a little bit better once it does.

 

[CoryDallasLV]

Outside of Tennessee, what SEC team had three top-level weekend starters last season?

NONE!

 

[Majors]

Not good enough. All this means is it's not a top tier pitcher or even a second tier.

You don't need mid week inning eaters. Plain and simple YOU NEED 3 WEEKEND SEC STARTERS and UT does not have that at this time and from what is left there isn't one. On the other side you need 5 pitchers also which UT doesn't have

Believe they are only taking 1 this time. With 3 incoming next season.

 

[OrangePark]

“Season is over” is an ill-advised thing to say.

“To be sitting there with scholarship money” is just flatly incorrect. The distribution of scholarship dollars is why you haven’t seen an instant yes from a pitcher at this point. Orsini would be back if they could find her some money.

Please know your facts Orsini was a walk-on and wouldn’t be surprised if she will now get money since she might be the best option left in the portal. But Ashley and Lair are both gone 2 scholarships there and Nugent takes one and that leaves 1 left. 2-1=1. Karen said she wanted a catcher and pitcher that would equal the 2 open scholarships.

 

[Majors]

Please know your facts Orsini was a walk-on and wouldn’t be surprised if she will now get money since she might be the best option left in the portal. But Ashley and Lair are both gone 2 scholarships there and Nugent takes one and that leaves 1 left. 2-1=1. Karen said she wanted a catcher and pitcher that would equal the 2 open scholarships.

He has stated Orsini was a walk-on many times.

 

[OrangePark]

Last season the Lady Vols played 61 games and we have 3 pitchers total on staff vs 6 last season. How is this not concerning entertaining this season as of today with 3 pitchers on staff. If you don’t think this is concerning you need to crawl out from under that rock.
Complete Games last season with counting run ruled games into the complete games also:
Payton 5
Karlyn 3
Ryleigh 1 (In 3 years)
And if you think just this staff is getting us back to the WCWS y’all are crazy.

 

[volman128]

Last season the Lady Vols played 61 games and we have 3 pitchers total on staff vs 6 last season. How is this not concerning entertaining this season as of today with 3 pitchers on staff. If you don’t think this is concerning you need to crawl out from under that rock.
Complete Games last season with counting run ruled games into the complete games also:
Payton 5
Karlyn 3
Ryleigh 1 (In 3 years)
And if you think just this staff is getting us back to the WCWS y’all are crazy.

The fact that you think “not making the WCWS” = “the season is over” is mind boggling. Also I’ve seen teams make OKC with less talented and thinner pitching staffs than what we will have.

 

[OrangePark]

Tennessee is under ranked with the pitching staff and position players they are starting the season with. Florida has NO pitching and Alabama has only 1 pitcher and a huge lack of position players due to mass exiting last year. If Ashley stays healthy they have a good chance on conference champs and a spot at the WCWS. Preseason nationally ranked #12 was a little low if you asked me. Definitely on paper Preseason top 10. If the Lady Vols can beat Texas, Northwestern in the first weekend and Clemson in the third weekend before conference play starts they should be sitting pretty good heading into conference play.

Preseason SEC Rankings:

1. Florida
2. Arkansas
3. Alabama
4. Georgia
5. Tennessee
6. LSU
7. Kentucky
8. Auburn
9. Ole Miss
10. Missouri
11. Mississippi State
12. Texas A&M
13. South Carolina

SEC Preview: Gators, Hogs Ready to Battle for Supremacy

I called it in January we are going to the WCWS because of our pitching staff we had and a lot of you y’all wanted to disagree but now y’all want to say we are in a better situation. No way we are doing anything with that staff. This is softball you got to win the circle to win the game.

 

[OrangePark]

The fact that you think “not making the WCWS” = “the season is over” is mind boggling. Also I’ve seen teams make OKC with less talented and thinner pitching staffs than what we will have.

I agree… but disagree teams have but those teams had Bahl, Fouts or Garcia and we definitely don’t have that!! We got to get to the post season first. As we have seen over the years seeding is huge and to get a good seed so you are at home, it’s based on what you have done throughout the year. No way this current pitching staff is getting through the SEC conference fresh and healthy for the postseason how we are sitting today. Zaida will be pitching conference games before it’s all over.

 

[volinjax]

I called it in January we are going to the WCWS because of our pitching staff we had and a lot of you y’all wanted to disagree but now y’all want to say we are in a better situation. No way we are doing anything with that staff. This is softball you got to win the circle to win the game.

Not a single person has said we're in a better situation.

 

[OrangePark]

Not a single person has said we're in a better situation.

You are correct, I needed to word that differently,
“we’re just fine”

 

[William_77]

I called it in January we are going to the WCWS because of our pitching staff we had and a lot of you y’all wanted to disagree but now y’all want to say we are in a better situation. No way we are doing anything with that staff. This is softball you got to win the circle to win the game.

There weren’t that many elite aces in the portal this year. Not as many as we’ve come accustomed to with the past few seasons having more players with covid year eligibility. It’s also not possible to replace someone like Ashley unless we get one of the all american arms. It sounded like we were in a good place with Keeney but maybe things changed. There’s only so much you can do to get people to choose a certain team. It’s not like Karen hasn’t been trying. I actually feel like she’s really worked the portal well these past few years.

 

[DeerPark12]

Please know your facts Orsini was a walk-on and wouldn’t be surprised if she will now get money since she might be the best option left in the portal. But Ashley and Lair are both gone 2 scholarships there and Nugent takes one and that leaves 1 left. 2-1=1. Karen said she wanted a catcher and pitcher that would equal the 2 open scholarships.

I know my facts. I said Orsini was a walkon, even when many here refused to believe it.

Your math is simply not correct on the scholarship numbers. Remember, softball is an equivalency sport, where most players are not on full aid. You’re splitting 12 scholarships over a roster of 25. Some very popular players are on significantly less athletic money than you think. Particularly players that are accomplished academically and qualify for in-state scholarships. I’m not going to break down how much each was on, because that’s not fair to anyone. But the assumption that two out means two full rides in is just not accurate.

 

[DeerPark12]

The fact that you think “not making the WCWS” = “the season is over” is mind boggling. Also I’ve seen teams make OKC with less talented and thinner pitching staffs than what we will have.

I think we should wait for the roster to be finalized before we go panicking on how thin the pitching staff is or isn’t.

 

[OrangePark]

I know my facts. I said Orsini was a walkon, even when many here refused to believe it.

Your math is simply not correct on the scholarship numbers. Remember, softball is an equivalency sport, where most players are not on full aid. You’re splitting 12 scholarships over a roster of 25. Some very popular players are on significantly less athletic money than you think. Particularly players that are accomplished academically and qualify for in-state scholarships. I’m not going to break down how much each was on, because that’s not fair to anyone. But the assumption that two out means two full rides in is just not accurate.

Actually my math does add up since I’m a math major at UT… It’s 11.7 scholarships for softball for who’s keeping track. Lair was a top 10 player coming for California. There’s no way someone with her talent is coming from California for anything less than a full ride and one of the best pitchers in the country isn’t paying for school not a chance she’s paying a dime. So that’s 2 full rides so for those 2 it could be 2 in, at the P5 schools more aren’t getting money vs getting money. On average only 15 girls on the roster are getting money. just saying…

But on a serious note my math isn’t adding up because I’m guessing we have 8-10 full rides spoken for on this years roster. So got to give Karen correct for spreading the buck… Kiki, Pickens, Pannell, Payton, Puni, Gibson, Nugent, Keene, Faw, and White. White was the dark horse just because she’s a pitcher and highly recruited after leaving Texas.

 

[Majors]

Actually my math does add up since I’m a math major at UT… It’s 11.7 scholarships for softball for who’s keeping track. Lair was a top 10 player coming for California. There’s no way someone with her talent is coming from California for anything less than a full ride and one of the best pitchers in the country isn’t paying for school not a chance she’s paying a dime. So that’s 2 full rides so for those 2 it could be 2 in, just saying

Available money could have been allocated to players currently on the roster. Two out doesn’t mean two in get it.

 

[volman128]

Actually my math does add up since I’m a math major at UT… It’s 11.7 scholarships for softball for who’s keeping track. Lair was a top 10 player coming for California. There’s no way someone with her talent is coming from California for anything less than a full ride and one of the best pitchers in the country isn’t paying for school not a chance she’s paying a dime. So that’s 2 full rides so for those 2 it could be 2 in, just saying

There have been players from CA that were a lot better than Lair who weren’t on a full scholarship.

 

[Aladywhovolunteer]

Actually my math does add up since I’m a math major at UT… It’s 11.7 scholarships for softball for who’s keeping track. Lair was a top 10 player coming for California. There’s no way someone with her talent is coming from California for anything less than a full ride and one of the best pitchers in the country isn’t paying for school not a chance she’s paying a dime. So that’s 2 full rides so for those 2 it could be 2 in, just saying

11.7 is the number of scholarships available for D1 baseball.

D1 softball is 12 scholarships.

DeerPark12 is a very well respected, knowledgable and connected resource for this board.

 

[OrangePark]

There have been players from CA that were a lot better than Lair who weren’t on a full scholarship.

I disagree.. Only player on paper from California was Monica that has come from California. Lair was overrated and it showed but she still was ranked as one of the best California players in the 2021 class. And we haven’t had the best California player outside of Monica.

 

[OrangePark]

11.7 is the number of scholarships available for D1 baseball.

D1 softball is upto 12 scholarships.

DeerPark12 is a very well respected, knowledgable and connected resource for this board.

Yes, I stand corrected it is 12 scholarships. It used to be 11.7 don’t know when it changed but 12 still isn’t enough.

 

[Majors]

I disagree.. Only player on paper from California was Monica that has come from California. Lair was overrated and it showed but she still was ranked as one of the best California players in the 2021 class. And we haven’t had the best California player outside of Monica.

I don’t know the scholarship offers but these turned out pretty good in the accolades department
Raven
Madison Shipman
McKenna Gibson
Lindsey Schutzler

To say Lair is overrated is a discredit to her having surgery after her freshman year. Torn labrums isn’t a quick fix recovery.

 

[DeerPark12]

Actually my math does add up since I’m a math major at UT… It’s 11.7 scholarships for softball for who’s keeping track. Lair was a top 10 player coming for California. There’s no way someone with her talent is coming from California for anything less than a full ride and one of the best pitchers in the country isn’t paying for school not a chance she’s paying a dime. So that’s 2 full rides so for those 2 it could be 2 in, at the P5 schools more aren’t getting money vs getting money. On average only 15 girls on the roster are getting money. just saying…

But on a serious note my math isn’t adding up because I’m guessing we have 8-10 full rides spoken for on this years roster. So got to give Karen correct for spreading the buck… Kiki, Pickens, Pannell, Payton, Puni, Gibson, Nugent, Keene, Faw, and White. White was the dark horse just because she’s a pitcher and highly recruited after leaving Texas.

Baseball has 11.7. Softball has 12.

You’re guessing, as you said, and you aren’t guessing correctly. Ashley, as an in-state student and someone who was on academic money was not on a full scholarship. Not even close. She actually talked about that in several interviews.

Lair was on quite a bit of money, but also had a non-athletic scholarship that covered part of her need, so she did not take up a full athletic scholarship.

Tennessee was limited in what they had available. I’m comfortable saying that and I’m going to stand by it, based on what I know first-hand.