Lady Vols Gear up for Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic

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By Rhiannon Potkey, Special to UTSports.com

Midway through Tuesday's practice, the Tennessee softball team learned what it would be watching on the bus ride from Los Angeles to Cathedral City the following day.

Co-head coach Ralph Weekly is pulling out a film from his greatest hits collection by showing "A Cinderella Season: The Lady Vols Fight Back." The HBO documentary details the Tennessee basketball team's run to the 1997 NCAA title under legendary coach Pat Summitt.

Weekly wants the players to understand how much blood, sweat and tears is required to win a title. It's not always comfortable, it's rarely easy and it will require some tough love.

The Lady Vols are in the self-discovery portion of their schedule as they work to find their full identity as a team.

Although the program's cornerstone standards remain the same each season, roles change, players evolve and new freshmen are incorporated.

Tennessee has spent the first month of the season on the road learning more about each other, dealing with adversity and displaying resiliency.

The No. 11 Lady Vols (10-1) complete their tri-state travels at the prestigious Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic in California, playing six games against opponents from five different conferences.

The Lady Vols open the tournament on Thursday against BYU and Bethune-Cookman. They play UC Davis and Oregon State on Friday and finish on Saturday against No. 2/5 Oregon and Northwestern.

Knowing they are going to get every opponent's best shot because of their national stature, co-head coach Karen Weekly wants the Lady Vols showcasing more confidence from the first pitch.

"I just think we need to carry ourselves with a little bit more swagger and realize who we are and why we came here," she said. "We came here to be in tough games and we came here to win those tough games and I think we need to take the field with an attitude and with a swagger, not a cockiness, not an overconfidence, just an assuredness."

Despite having just one loss, Tennessee remains a work in progress. The Lady Vols need to find more consistency in their lineup and less walks from their pitching staff.

Offensively, Tennessee is getting solid production from the top of the order in Aubrey Leach, Jenna Holcomb, Meghan Gregg and Chelsea Seggern, and at the No. 9 spot with CJ McClain.

It's the 5-8 spots that remain unsettled.

"The teams that are very successful and are really challenging at the end, they are getting something consistently from every position in the lineup," Karen Weekly said. "Even if it means your eight hole understands how to draw walks, how to get hit by a pitch, how to grind out at-bats to turn them into eight, nine, 10 pitch at-bats. That is where we need to get more out of the 5-8 spots."

It's not something that can be fixed with more time in the cages and a few mechanical tweaks.

"Once the season starts, your swing is your swing. It's really more working between the ears and a lot of that does just happen out there in a game," Karen Weekly said. "But it is them trusting their preparation and going out there and trusting a good routine and a good process and them being committed to it."

In the circle, pitchers Matty Moss, Caylan Arnold and Gabby Sprang have a collective ERA of 2.03. The trio has combined for 23 walks against 69 strikeouts.

Starting games stronger and cutting down on the free passes has been a point of emphasis for the staff.
Arnold has issued 10 walks in 32.2 innings pitched while striking out 41. Asked what the ideal walks to innings pitched ratio should be at Tennessee, the sophomore right-hander responded without hesitation.

"No walks," Arnold said. "That is what is acceptable for me. No walks. That is my goal. I don't always reach it, but that is my goal."

During their road trips, the Lady Vols have fostered a tighter chemistry. They aren't allowed to use cell phones on the bus or at team meals. The policy helps enhance bonding and encourages more face-to-face conversations in an era where screen time has become omnipresent.

"For us, our cell phones are pretty much like our life in a way. We are connected to everything through our cell phones," Arnold said. "(The policy) allows us to, after games, not focus so much on what someone is saying, like how the media is talking about us or how we did and things like that."

Although the players have grown up tethered to their phones, the Tennessee coaches don't encounter much resistance to the rules.

"It's something that's been in place for so many years that it's just tradition," Karen Weekly said. "I think they understand the reason and I think they get used to it and appreciate it."

Being on the road doesn't mean the Lady Vols have encountered a true hostile atmosphere. In fact, they have felt more at home than most other tournament teams.

During the Michele Smith Pediatric Cancer Invitational in Florida last week, orange was the predominant color in the stands.

"It was unbelievable. It was 100 to 1 the number of Tennessee fans we had there and the Locos that were there with their costumes and cheers," Karen Weekly said. "Of course, that gets everybody going. So that was a really special environment for us."

Even in her third season playing for the Lady Vols, junior Aubrey Leach is still blown away by the support.

"It amazes me every time," she said. "Coming all the way down to Florida in full crazy outfits and everything. The energy we feel from the very start of the game to the very end, they really do influence us and give us that extra energy boost when we need it."

After two tournaments and 11 games, Leach is starting to get a better read on the pulse of the team.
"I think we have some grit and we really enjoy playing together," Leach said. "We've had some ups and downs, everyone is going to make mistakes every once in a while. But I think as a cohesive unit we are together and I really enjoy that part of the game. Even if you are not doing so hot, someone else is there picking you up with energy, attitude and effort."

The six games in the California desert will provide more insight into the team and more chances for players to step forward.

The Weeklys have a strong belief in the team's potential. They just need every player to find the confidence to realize it.

"We just really need some kids to play ball and get rid of the anxiety and the fear and the worries and just relax and play," Karen Weekly said. "We recruited them because we saw that they knew how to play ball and a lot of them are just letting a lot of things between the ears get in the way of that."

University of Tennessee Athletics

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Players Mentioned

Caylan Arnold

Meghan Gregg

Jenna Holcomb

Aubrey Leach

CJ McClain

Matty Moss

Chelsea Seggern

Gabby Sprang

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