No. 3 Alabama Softball Shuts Out Troy, Sweeps Easton Crimson Classic
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — No. 3 Alabama softball improved to 14-0 on Sunday with a 2-0 pitcher's-duel victory over Troy.
The win also concluded the Crimson Tide's appearance at the Easton Crimson Classic, which saw Alabama win all five of its games.
“[Troy] is very solid," Alabama coach Patrick Murphy said. "It’s fun to play a quality team game after game. In a game like this you’ve got to rely on the pitcher and the defense.
“These close games are very good for us. I want us to hit .600 but that’s not realistic.”
Crimson Tide sophomore pitcher Lexi Kilfoyl (6-0) tossed a three-hitter a day after a no-hitter on Saturday against North Carolina. Six of her nine Sunday strikeouts came with runners on base.
“When I get runners on, I really try to focus on getting the batter and getting the out,” Kilfoyl said. “Throwing back-to-back days is not the easiest on my body. Today I wasn’t throwing as hard as I was yesterday.
“Pitching in these games is really a lot of fun.”
Kilfoyl’s season ERA through her six starts in the circle is 0.16.
“As a drop-ball pitcher, when it’s working it’s the hardest thing to lay off," Murphy said of Kilfoyl. "Boom. It falls off the table. Her off-speed was good and her location was good.”
Troy pitcher Leanna Johnson (7-2) also tossed a two-hitter, but her fielders weren’t as sharp as Kilfoyl’s. Alabama’s Alexis Mack singled, stole second and scored on consecutive passed balls in the first.
In the bottom of the fifth, grad-student utility Bailey Hemphill led off with a walk, leading to a bunt by shortstop Bailey Dowling to move pinch runner Kayla Davis up. As Davis attempted to take an uncovered third, Troy threw the ball away and Davis scored the second and final run of the game.
“As a baserunner you try to create havoc, be smart and aggressive,” Murphy said. “That’s what Davis did, and Mack the same thing.”
Up next, Alabama will host Mississippi State in a non-conference tilt on Wednesday. This weekend, the Crimson Tide will then host its third and final Easton tournament, the T-town Showdown, with a field including Kent State, Northern Iowa and in-state foe South Alabama.
“As the competition gets better, the execution by our hitters needs to get better,” Murphy said.
