The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
9-0
#12 Tennessee
5-2
No. 6 Softball batters No. 12 Tennessee, 11-0 (5 inn.)
02.15.2020 | Softball
The Longhorns offense struck for eight runs while sending 12 batters to the plate during the opening inning
PUERTO VALLARTA, Mexico – On Friday night in Puerto Vallarta College Challenge action at Nancy Almaraz Stadium, No. 6 Texas softball (9-0) set the tone from the start with a dominant eight-run first inning on the way to crushing No. 12 Tennessee (5-2), 11-0 (5 inn.).
Important Notes
- The 11-run win was Texas' largest over a ranked opponent since the Longhorns beat No. 4 Washington back on March 17, 2011, 12-0 (5 inn.) at the Judi Garman Classic.
- Texas is hitting .382 as a team at the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge with 13 extra-base hits, including nine doubles, and a 1.092 OPS, while out-scoring the opposition, 18-2.
- Texas' eight-run first inning was its second-largest output in a single frame this season (most against a ranked opponent), trailing just an 11-run fourth in the 17-0 (5 inn.) rout of Maryland on Feb. 6.
- The Longhorns are hitting a remarkable .491 (54-for-110) this season with runners in scoring position and have 44 two-out RBIs.
- With 96 runs, the Longhorns have scored more runs over the first 10 games of the season than any UT team in program history. The 2011 edition of Texas had 95 runs through the opening 10 contests.
- Texas is 9-0 overall for the first time since opening the 2016 campaign at 12-0.
Major Players
Junior third baseman Mary Iakopo (2-for-2, run, double, two RBIs); freshman designated player Courtney Day (1-for-2, two runs, walk, HR, two RBIs); senior shortstop Kaitlyn Slack (1-for-2, run, two RBIs); redshirt senior left fielder Reagan Hathaway (1-for-3, run, triple, RBI); junior second baseman Janae Jefferson (2-for-2, two runs, walk, RBI); senior center fielder Shannon Rhodes (2-for-3, run, RBI)
In the Circle
Senior right hander Miranda Elish (3-0) allowed an infield hit to the very first batter of the game and no more as the Crown Point, Ind., native tossed a complete-game, one-hit shutout with one walk and one strikeout.
The Details
After Elish worked around a leadoff infield single during Tennessee's first at-bat, the Longhorns quickly took any suspense out of the ranked match-up by sending 12 batters to the plate in the opening frame while racing to an 8-0 advantage. The largest blows of the incredible outburst came with two outs via a two-run Iakopo double down the left field line, a Slack two-RBI single to left, a Hathaway RBI triple to deep center and a Jefferson RBI base knock up the middle.
Texas was back at it in the bottom of the second as Day stepped to the dish with a runner aboard and absolutely crushed a two-run blast to left center to make it 10-0.
A Rhodes RBI single back through the middle plated Jefferson in the bottom of the third to set Texas' final offensive output at 11 runs.
From there, Elish quickly brought the run-rule into play by retiring the last seven Lady Vols she faced from the third through the fifth innings to seal the statement victory.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Elish, Miranda (3-0)
L: Kiki Milloy (0-1)
Base Running:
HBP: Ally Shipman 1
Batting:
2B: Iakopo, Mary 1
3B: Hathaway, Reagan 1
HR: Day, Courtney 1
RBI: Hathaway, Reagan 1 ; Jefferson, Janae 1 ; Rhodes, Shannon 1 ; Day, Courtney 2 ; Iakopo, Mary 2 ; Slack, Kaitlyn 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Hathaway, Reagan 1 ; Jefferson, Janae 2 ; Rhodes, Shannon 1 ; Sullivan, Colleen 1 ; Popelka, Alyssa 1 ; Day, Courtney 2 ; Washington, Kaitlyn 1 ; Iakopo, Mary 1 ; Slack, Kaitlyn 1
SB: Rhodes, Shannon 1 ; Sullivan, Colleen 1
