University of Tennessee Athletics
FOURTH-RANKED LADY VOLS PLAY SEC SERIES AT SOUTH CAROLINA
March 15, 2005 | Softball
March 15, 2005
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KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - The fourth-ranked Lady Vol softball team heads on the road to take on South Carolina in a three-game set this week. The squads play a doubleheader at 4 p.m. on Tuesday and finish the series with a single game on Wednesday with first pitch at 4 p.m.
The Orange and White enters the game on the heels of an impressive series win over No. 8 Alabama over the weekend, the first time UT has defeated the Crimson Tide in a series since 1997. In the series opener, sophomore pitcher Monica Abbott retired 11 straight at one point and earned a putout at home in the sixth inning. Sophomore shortstop Lindsay Schutzler put the game out of reach with a two-run shot over the left field fence in the sixth. The Lady Vols as a team extended their shutout streak to 75-2/3 innings before Alabama hit a home run with two outs in the seventh inning for the final tally of the Big Orange's 3-1 victory.
In the twin bill's nightcap, Alabama took a 1-0 lead in the first, but Tennessee stormed back with seven runs of its own in the bottom of the frame. Sophomore Brittany Bessho completed the rally with a three-run double. Neither team would cross home plate the rest of the game.
Alabama took the final game of the series, 8-1, to end UT's 13-game winning streak. The Crimson Tide scored four in the second, added three in the third and tallied a single run in the seventh to outdistance itself from Tennessee. Schutzler tripled off the center field fence to score UT's lone run in the third. Tennessee has now won 13-of-14 contests and carries a 29-4 record into the series, UT's best start in school history.
After registering a 3-0 record against ranked teams in the Louisville Slugger Desert Classic in Las Vegas, Nev., following that up with a 3-1 mark versus rated teams at the Palm Springs Classic, and claiming two victories over eighth-ranked Alabama on Saturday, the No. 4 Tennessee Lady Vols have posted eight victories versus ranked teams so far this season, the most in the SEC. Five teams are tied for second with three wins each.
Even though South Carolina brings a 15-12 all-time advantage into this week's action, the Lady Vols have taken the last five meetings, including a three-game sweep last season by 1-0, 3-2 and 5-1 scores.
Check into utladyvols.com for live stats of all home contests or call the Lady Vol Hotline at 865-974-8700 (#6) for regular updates during UT softball competition.
