Jordan Stephens Walk-Off Home Run Sends No. 2 Alabama to Third Run Rule of Weekend
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Alabama softball scored six runs in the first two innings of Sunday's game against Middle Tennessee (2-9), and it seemed like the Crimson Tide was about to cruise to an easy run rule game in five innings.
Then the Alabama (9-0) bats went quiet for the next three innings looking like the Tide would have to play a complete seven-inning game until true freshman Jordan Stephens stepped up to the plate with two on in the bottom of the sixth. She crushed the second pitch she saw over the left field wall for a three-run walk-off home run to beat the Blue Raiders 9-1 at Rhoads Stadium.
Before Stephens stepped to the plate, head coach Patrick Murphy called a timeout and was seen in length huddle with Stephens and the two baserunners. He told her to sit on the changeup. And when she got her opportunity at the pitch, she didn't miss it.
"I just saw it come in, and I fired," Stephens said. "I knew what I could do, and the best outcome possible came out of it.
"I've dreamed for so long about being here and playing on the big stage and just having that opportunity to be up to bat in that situation was already amazing. I just really wanted to take advantage of that opportunity in any way that I could.”
Alabama Athletics
Alabama Athletics
Alabama Athletics
Murphy said Stephens is probably the most improved player on their team from the beginning of the school year in August. She's been doing everything right in the weight room, on the field and off the field.
"We always believe that we're going to come up with a hit to score a run or whatever it is," Murphy said. "[Ashley] Prange had the big one today early in the game, and then Jordan Stephens had the big one at the end of the game."
Prange got the scoring started in the bottom of the first with a two-run home run, her third of the year, to give Alabama the early 2-0 lead. She is tied for the team lead in hits (10) and home runs through nine games.
The senior third basemen said she feels like she's seeing the ball really well right now.
"I feel like right now I'm in a good space mentally, and I know that helps a lot hitting and just keeping that confidence and knowing that I can, and I will," Prange said.
With the home runs from Prange and Stephens Sunday afternoon, Alabama now has 14 total home runs from eight different players.
Starter Montana Fouts had a no-hitter going through five innings. It was the fourth inning before the Blue Raiders had their first baserunner and the sixth before they could muster a hit. A bloop hit off the bat of by Laura Mealer brought in the lone run for Middle Tennessee.
Fouts gave up her first walk of the season, but only allowed three hits and collected 13 strikeouts to reach double-digit strikeouts in every start this season.
Murphy's one complaint after a nearly perfect weekend for his team was the situational hitting, or lack thereof after Alabama went up 6-0.
"If I could be picky about anything, it’s situational hitting where we had the bases loaded with no outs after we had scored three, and we didn’t continue the inning," Murphy said. "And we could’ve put them away early, really early. So that part of it we needed to be better at, just better pitch selection. And then I don’t care if it’s a sac fly or a ground ball or whatever, I want an RBI. So that part of it needs to improve."
The win over Middle Tennessee wraps up another dominating weekend for the Crimson Tide that featured three shutouts, three run rules and two top-10 wins. The defense did not commit an error in five games, and the pitching staff only allowed three runs all weekend.
