Salter Has Sweet Performance in Alabama Softball Win Against Mississippi State
Good things happen when you don't walk batters.
That was the advice Alabama softball coach Patrick Murphy gave to Alex Salter a few weeks ago after a rough outing against Arkansas.
The sophomore got the message.
Salter pitched a three-hit shutout against Mississippi State on Saturday as the Crimson Tide took a 6-0 win in Game 2 of the weekend road series.
Since her five-walk outing in a loss to Arkansas, Salter has allowed just six walks in her last 26 innings, including one in the seventh inning to Mississippi State.
Just four Bulldogs reached base Saturday. Salter and the Alabama defense came up with big plays to keep the shutout in tact.
The Bama offense came through, too. Jenna Johnson led Alabama at the plate with three of the team's 11 hits, and also had an RBI.
Alabama didn't waste time getting on the board. Johnson got her first hit in the first inning and Ashley Prange scored on a throwing error for the quick 1-0 lead. Emma Broadfoot made it a 2-0 lead with a single to knock in Bailey Dowling.
That's all Salter needed to keep Mississippi State at bay. She had three innings where she sat down Bulldog hitters in order.
Alabama's offense went stale over the next three innings, but finally put up some insurance runs in the fifth. Prange doubled to start the inning and pinch runner Kali Heivilin later scored on a Dowling single. Johnson drove in Dowling on a sac fly for a 4-0 Crimson Tide lead.
Alabama added a run in the sixth on a sac fly by Prange, and tacked on a run in the seventh after Heivilin scored on a throwing error following Johnson's third hit of the day.
Alabama (31-12, 8-6 SEC) returns to action Sunday in the series finale with the Bulldogs. A win gives the Crimson Tide its first SEC series sweep of the season.
