Tennessee Softball 2024
- Thread starter anecwnrjcns12
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That was it. Didn't score a run in those last two games. Won the first game 3-0. Lost the second game in extras 1-0. That was when the nail was in the coffin. Lost the last game 5-0, I believe.
Taryn Mowatt change-up'd us to death and we, of course, never adjusted.
We had beaten Arizona in our second game of the WCWS that year, 1-0, with the one run being unearned. So Arizona came out of the loser's bracket to win it all.
Our biggest problem to me is we are suppose to be a power team but using the split grip almost guarantees a grounder. Some hitters never got near their potential this year. Kiki and Zaida (love both) were shadows of themselves. The thought hit me watching the hitting mess that I blamed Karen most giving G all those bats all year but it may have been Chris since she had the most exaggerated uppercut swing on the whole team.
Someone has to lose and someone has to win in every game that is played. The LV's came out on the short end of the stick in this game and there is no mystery as to why ....the good hitters on this team disappeared the last three weeks .....in the SEC tourney ,the Regionals and the Super Regionals .Why is the question and no one has the answer as far as I am concerned ......it happens in baseball ,softball and in all sports where slumps occur sometimes at critical moments .....that is life .
To blame the coaches both the Head Coach and batting Coach is ridiculous IMO.....On to next year!!!
To blame the coaches both the Head Coach and batting Coach is ridiculous IMO.....On to next year!!!
OrangeCow68
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If it were isolated, I would agree. But this year the offense disappeared for large chunks of the season. We were extremely lucky to win the SEC. Not having to play Florida, A&M or Arkansas helped. It shows the dominance of Payton and Karlyn. They were the reason for our success. Without them, we are probably a borderline host team.
I said it several times on this board. This team reminded me a lot of the 2012 team that had the Renfroes but a mediocre offense. That team's best player, Raven Chavanne, had a torn labrum all season and could basically only bunt by season's end. They lost their first game of the regional against Miami-OH but came back to win the regional. They were able to push through and barely beat Georgia to get to the WCWS. Granted, they went 0-2 in OKC but still. That Georgia team was much better than this Alabama team and the two teams were very evenly matched in the Supers. This team didn't have the grit that 2012 team had and lost to an inferior team.
TennEddie
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I get a little tired hearing about these “hitting adjustments.” The hitters on the team just weren’t very good. Maybe the scouting reports caught up to them, maybe it is lack of talent, or all of the above.
I also did not see any “mismanagement.” I felt like the pitching was managed properly and we had our best lineup in the field. The players just didn’t produce.
The hitting wilted under the pressure. Saw the Atlanta Braves do this numerous times in the 90s.
OrangeBeachVol
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OKL always has a lineup of hitters that hit all season long every season. If they had slumps it wasn't enough to effect them. That was always something I noted. And yes they usually had the best pitchers and fielding but they hardly ever lost games due to lack of scoring. So Karen needs to find out what's in the water they drink.
anecwnrjcns12
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Majors
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Aladywhovolunteer
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Loved your post @alexvol. Hammer meet nail!
At this level, there simply isn't any room for error. I was blown away by Coach Murphy's analysis of the Mealer double in the third/fourth inning. To paraphrase, "We called a specific pitch and didn't execute it properly. It leaked back over the plate and Mealer deposited it in the out field for a double. You can"t make mistakes at this level."
I understand our coaching staff thinking, Mealer's hit was an indication of Bama's pitcher losing some of her "carving" skills and as a result didn't have G bunt her to third. With our lackluster hitting we still may not have gotten her home but that was an opening to score early which could have created some momentum.
Hind sight being 20/ 20, I think Karlyn should have started all three games. Her Saturday's relief appearance was phenomenal and had she started...Bama doesn't score. Though I am convinced the Bama home run to tie the game and send Payton to the dugout, was the result of two outside strikes called balls forcing a mistake by Payton.
I think yesterday's lost was a carry over from Saturday's loss. After Payton gave up a hit and then hit two batters in the first inning, she needed to be pulled. Although, I don't know, just think our indecision was the uncertainty about Karlyn's stamina. Of course, a two ball count and another mistake and the game was over before it ever got started. Very unfortunate.
Congratulations to Alabama. They should never have been seeded. The SEC and their dominance of the NCAA cost us a trip to the WCWS. Getting the number of SEC teams in the tournament (10/11 what ever) was a joke and now we suffer from the outcome. Should not have to play a conference rival six times in a few weeks.
Saturday's loss did remind me of the second game of the championship series with Arizonia. With some caveats, the Arizonia game only went 10 innings I think. I lived and died with every pitch from Monica in a hotel room in Killean, Texas. We had already beaten Arizonia twice. We sent them to the loosers bracket in an earlier game and then beat them In the first game of the championship series. In the second game Ralph Weekly was heavily medicated from a tooth ache which needed a root canal. As someone said he stood on third with his eyes closed. I remember, the ESPN crew questioned what was wrong with Ralph. As it turned out an abscessed tooth may have cost us a Softball National Championship.
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Rixxx
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anecwnrjcns12
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I think you'll see more conference matchups in the supers next year with Texas and OU joining the conference. Especially when other conferences are nowhere near as strong. Yes it is nice to see a lot of sec teams get hosting seeds, but it is only nice during regionals when there are more teams alive. If you think about it 9 sec teams made supers (I included Texas and OU to prove my point) that is more than half the field that was left entering the weekend so yes it makes for good tv, but teams in other conferences need to elevate their game in order to avoid in-conference matchups. I agree that it does no team any good to have to play a team 6 times in a year especially within a couple weeks of each other.
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