Texas softball paid no mind to its 29-game win streak being snapped by its state rival, No. 15 Texas A&M. The loss sure stung. But the team simply acknowledged that all good things must come to an end.
Instead, the Longhorns are directing their energy toward their away series against No. 7 Alabama. Texas has just four days to recover, review and practice for the fourth conference series of the season, beginning Thursday evening.
Alabama boasts 33 wins with two losses, thanks to its pitching depth and impressive fielding percentage. The Crimson Tide couldn’t complete the sweep in two out of its three conference series, dropping a game to No. 9 Arkansas and one to an unranked Missouri.
Through its 35 games, Alabama has registered a .984 fielding percentage, which is fifth in the Southeastern Conference. Comparatively, Texas has one of the lowest fielding percentages in the SEC with a .966, tied for third lowest in the conference.
“They have a .984 fielding percentage, so they’re fielding the ball pretty well,” head coach Mike White said. “There’s not a lot of pressure on their defense, so they’re able to … take care of it.”
While the Crimson Tide’s roster is stacked with skilled fielders, their pitching depth puts less pressure on the defense. Alabama has three pitchers who have an earned run average below 1.50 with over 45 innings pitched each.
Alabama junior pitcher Jocelyn Briski is throwing an ERA of 1.28 through 76.1 innings, and freshman pitcher Kaitlyn Pallozzi is right behind her teammate with her average sitting at 1.34. Texas’ ace, junior pitcher Teagan Kavan, has a 2.44 ERA through 89 innings pitched.
Texas batters struggled to make contact with the ball against Texas A&M, a team that utilized four total pitchers across the weekend against the Longhorns. Texas only registered 22 hits throughout the series, while Texas A&M had 33 and out-hit them in every single game.
“There’s no losing if you’re learning, and we’ll see if they take my advice on that one,” White said. “Offensively, we didn’t quite get clicking until late into the third game there, and we got out-hit all three series.”
Even with some recent inconsistencies at the plate, Texas is still ranked fourth in the SEC in on-base percentage with .473 and has four batters hitting at least .400. Junior infielder and catcher Katie Stewart leads the Longhorns with a .471 batting average with 17 home runs and 44 RBIs.
In comparison, Alabama has just two starters hitting over .400. Sophomore infielder Brooke Wells leads the team with a .467 average in 90 at-bats and 15 home runs.
Even though the Crimson Tide’s batting statistics aren’t as strong as the Longhorns’, senior infielder Leighann Goode is still preparing her teammates for anything, especially after the Aggies revealed some of their weaknesses that weren’t previously seen.
“As the infield, you have to take charge and really be out there and be there for your pitcher,” Goode said. “I think always talking to each other is very important.”
It remains to be seen if Texas was just having an off day against Texas A&M, or if there are serious problems in the circle and behind the plate. Texas will face Alabama on Thursday at 6 p.m. CT at Rhoads Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
