Just watched our softball team on ESPN3 beat Notre Dame 8-1 in their first ever ACC tournament appearance. Announcers were impressed how aggressive we were from the first pitch on. We looked great, both offensively and defensively and Savannah King held one of the best hitting teams in the country to 6 hits. We lost a 3 game series to Notre Dame by a combined score of 30-7. Some turnaround tonite! Notre Dame's RPI was 19 and ours was 56. We get #2 seed North Carolina in the semis. 35 wins! Congrats ladies!!
Softball wins!
- Thread starter Nish67
- Start date
Isn't that a career high for Coach Aprile?
The team was raking tonight - doubled the production of the next highest scoring team on day 1! - but in a weird sense, I was more impressed by the defense. MUCH better than it was, even last year. Not often you see two returning seniors benched, but the left side of the infield is unquestionably better (Balagtek was actually smooth with the glove, just doesn't have the balance Taylor does). Though Thea & Fannin had some phenomenal plays in the outfield, the infield defenders jumped out to me. Taylor is NOT just a bat.
King didn't quite experience the lows that Brianna Kiesel did, but it's been a bumpy last couple years, so I'm pleased to see her have a moment like that on a stage like that. Contained the ACC POY and a 40 win offense on 97 pitches.
Very fun night.
The team was raking tonight - doubled the production of the next highest scoring team on day 1! - but in a weird sense, I was more impressed by the defense. MUCH better than it was, even last year. Not often you see two returning seniors benched, but the left side of the infield is unquestionably better (Balagtek was actually smooth with the glove, just doesn't have the balance Taylor does). Though Thea & Fannin had some phenomenal plays in the outfield, the infield defenders jumped out to me. Taylor is NOT just a bat.
King didn't quite experience the lows that Brianna Kiesel did, but it's been a bumpy last couple years, so I'm pleased to see her have a moment like that on a stage like that. Contained the ACC POY and a 40 win offense on 97 pitches.
Very fun night.
Welp. Looks like I have a nice sized drive to Blacksburg ahead of me tomorrow morning.
I've seen King pitch both games of a double-header before, but 2 complete games (1 run allowed in 14 innings!) in 24 hours? My goodness, that is one of the most impressive things I've ever witnessed.
They jump on teams early, display big time glove work, and their enthusiasm playing with each other just jumps off the screen. What a run!
I watched them play in Santa Barbara early this season and posted then that I was impressed with their hitting and defense. King didn't pitch in the game I saw and the other two pitchers were really not very good. During the season,
Coach Aprile didn't work King that hard, usually using Harris for one game of a three game series and then only pitching King in the first game and for 3 innings of the third game. It seems to be paying off as she is fresh for the tourney. When Jenny Finch was at Arizona or Cat Ostermann was at Texas, they would routinely pitch both ends of a big doubleheader.
The player who has impressed me the most in these two games is the same one who impressed me so much at Santa Barbara: Freshman McKayla Taylor. If you watch the game, just watch her in the batter's box. She is totally mentally focused and she has a great swing for softball: compact with no wasted movement.
I played fast pitch softball on two championship teams when I was in the Army, and the game is very different today. There is much more scoring and one of the reasons for that is a rule change which has reduced the velocity a pitcher can achieve. It also seems as if they have changed the ball to make it much more difficult to get it to do tricks. I frankly don't like it. I used to love winning 1-0 on a run we often scrounged. One year we played the Air Force team from Hawaii in the All-Pacific championship game and we won 1-0 in 19 innings. Both starters pitched all 19 innings and our pitcher had a 14 inning no hitter.
But I guess those games were too boring so now they have brought the fences in and limited velocity, at least in the women's' game. Mens' fast pitch softball apparently is extinct, replaced by teams full of 250 pound guys who send slow pitch softballs into orbit.
I will say this though: Taylor's swing would work against any pitcher regardless of velocity. It is perfect. But back then, a perfect swing meant you might hit .250. (Of course that is better than half of the Pirates.)
Coach Aprile didn't work King that hard, usually using Harris for one game of a three game series and then only pitching King in the first game and for 3 innings of the third game. It seems to be paying off as she is fresh for the tourney. When Jenny Finch was at Arizona or Cat Ostermann was at Texas, they would routinely pitch both ends of a big doubleheader.
The player who has impressed me the most in these two games is the same one who impressed me so much at Santa Barbara: Freshman McKayla Taylor. If you watch the game, just watch her in the batter's box. She is totally mentally focused and she has a great swing for softball: compact with no wasted movement.
I played fast pitch softball on two championship teams when I was in the Army, and the game is very different today. There is much more scoring and one of the reasons for that is a rule change which has reduced the velocity a pitcher can achieve. It also seems as if they have changed the ball to make it much more difficult to get it to do tricks. I frankly don't like it. I used to love winning 1-0 on a run we often scrounged. One year we played the Air Force team from Hawaii in the All-Pacific championship game and we won 1-0 in 19 innings. Both starters pitched all 19 innings and our pitcher had a 14 inning no hitter.
But I guess those games were too boring so now they have brought the fences in and limited velocity, at least in the women's' game. Mens' fast pitch softball apparently is extinct, replaced by teams full of 250 pound guys who send slow pitch softballs into orbit.
I will say this though: Taylor's swing would work against any pitcher regardless of velocity. It is perfect. But back then, a perfect swing meant you might hit .250. (Of course that is better than half of the Pirates.)
I've seen the team play early in the year at the Charleston tournament and then a couple of weeks ago against Virginia Tech. Mike, I agree with your comments on Taylor but there is so much more to like about this team. Others to highlight include Maggie Sevilla, who I think is the best pure hitter on the team and a vacuum cleaner at second, Shelby Pickett who is dangerous every at bat, has the swagger you love to see and also does the job at third, Carly Thea is the quintessential senior leader with clutch hits and fielding, Jenna Modic, not to be forgotten, made first-team All ACC, Jordan Fannin with so many key hits and on and on. Savannah King is closing out her career in spectacular fashion and will be the toughest to replace next year. You really have to credit Coach Aprile and her staff for what they've accomplished this year. Really enjoyed her post-game comments including the line about the coaches staying out of the way and letting the kids do what they do best.
Today I was puzzled as to why she took King out. She seemed to get stronger in the 3d and 4th innings. But, that was Aprile's pattern all season to only pitch King for 3 or 4 innings of the third game of a series. Here, with the third game being played on a third day rather than as part of a doubleheader and with the tourney on the line, I thought she might let King continue.
I saw Harris and Larkin pitch in San Diego and was underwhelmed. Today the only reason Harris got out of the 5th was a line drive DP and in the 6th, they lit her up between walks.
It was a great effort for three days. I would have preferred that with a 2-2 game after 4 innings, we win or lose with our best.
I hope the freshman from Massachusetts we signed is a top notch pitcher because we will take a big step backwards next year if Harris is the top pitcher. She is big but doesn't throw that hard and has little movement on the ball. But, she is the only returning pitcher. I understand Modric pitched at Miami of Ohio but I have no idea if she is any good.
I like Sevilla but I think Taylor is the better hitter. Her swing is so quiet. In Santa Barbara, Taylor played 2B and Sevilla played SS. I assume Aprile didn't want too much pressure on Taylor by starting her at SS at the start of her freshman season. They both can pick it.
With all the success we have had recruiting in California I was surprised we have no Cali kids coming in this Fall.
UCSB had a ton of HS players at that tourney and Taylor's entire HS team was there. Also a lot of players wearing letter jackets from San Diego area HSs. I assume most were underclassmen and they had to be impressed by how we dismantled UCSB and Santa Clara. So hopefully we can recruit Cali hard for players this coming year. King, Sevilla and Taylor all come from the top HS talent areas here. An assistant with ties out here would help.
BTW, did you notice the difference in body type between Pitt and ND/UNC. With few exceptions, our players are lanky while theirs were stocky. The FSU players were similar to the Pitt players. I think the trend toward stocky players began with the P from UCLA and the 1B from Cal a decade ago. With the rule changes to limit pitchers' ability to dominate, it has accelerated. I was glad to see the two ACC finalists not loaded with that body type.
I saw Harris and Larkin pitch in San Diego and was underwhelmed. Today the only reason Harris got out of the 5th was a line drive DP and in the 6th, they lit her up between walks.
It was a great effort for three days. I would have preferred that with a 2-2 game after 4 innings, we win or lose with our best.
I hope the freshman from Massachusetts we signed is a top notch pitcher because we will take a big step backwards next year if Harris is the top pitcher. She is big but doesn't throw that hard and has little movement on the ball. But, she is the only returning pitcher. I understand Modric pitched at Miami of Ohio but I have no idea if she is any good.
I like Sevilla but I think Taylor is the better hitter. Her swing is so quiet. In Santa Barbara, Taylor played 2B and Sevilla played SS. I assume Aprile didn't want too much pressure on Taylor by starting her at SS at the start of her freshman season. They both can pick it.
With all the success we have had recruiting in California I was surprised we have no Cali kids coming in this Fall.
UCSB had a ton of HS players at that tourney and Taylor's entire HS team was there. Also a lot of players wearing letter jackets from San Diego area HSs. I assume most were underclassmen and they had to be impressed by how we dismantled UCSB and Santa Clara. So hopefully we can recruit Cali hard for players this coming year. King, Sevilla and Taylor all come from the top HS talent areas here. An assistant with ties out here would help.
BTW, did you notice the difference in body type between Pitt and ND/UNC. With few exceptions, our players are lanky while theirs were stocky. The FSU players were similar to the Pitt players. I think the trend toward stocky players began with the P from UCLA and the 1B from Cal a decade ago. With the rule changes to limit pitchers' ability to dominate, it has accelerated. I was glad to see the two ACC finalists not loaded with that body type.
I'm guessing that the only way Savannah comes out of that game is her arm was about to fall off after pitching three days in a row. She is the MVP of this tournament. No way we get to the final without her. Your earlier comments about Coach Aprile keeping her fresh for this tournament I believe are spot on. But she went as far as she could go which was plenty far. I just want to enjoy this team's accomplishments now and not think about the future yet. Pitching is definitely key, no doubt.
Taylor is hyper-competent. Her performance at the plate SPIKED in tournament play - which is absurd - she's got a cannon at short, and she's got above-average range. As much as I loved Nirschl - making a tournament final without her is a massive accomplishment - she was more 4 tool (her arm was average, at best).
It wasn't just Taylor's actions, either. When Harris replaced King, no Panther but Taylor was out there with her pitcher, in equal measures reassuring and motivating her fellow freshman.
Her leadership will be invaluable to the program as the years go on. It'll be difficult to find a replacement for Savannah in that department, but Taylor might be good for it.
It wasn't just Taylor's actions, either. When Harris replaced King, no Panther but Taylor was out there with her pitcher, in equal measures reassuring and motivating her fellow freshman.
Her leadership will be invaluable to the program as the years go on. It'll be difficult to find a replacement for Savannah in that department, but Taylor might be good for it.
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Yeah, King's mind was good. Her arm was not.
She was in tears after the game, and I suspect it's not only because her college career is in jeopardy. She knows she could have beat them (I'm inclined to agree - she was unquestionably the story of that tournament). Nonetheless, the way she willed that team was a marvelous thing to watch. Even when she was removed yesterday, she was actively prodding from the dugout - which has always been true for her, but there was an added eagerness there, given the situation.
I was more surprised that Larkin wasn't brought in, since she was in uniform & looked healthy. Then again, she has only 11 appearances on the year, so there may be something else going on there.
I loved all of Aprile's decisions except for that (which may have been forced due to injury, I have no idea). During the game I was puzzled also frustrated not using the available sub to PH for Duran, but my choice, Throckmorton, appears to have been injured all year.
Show of hands for who had Softball being the first at Pitt to make an Tournament (or in football's case, Championship Game) Final? Yeah, me either. Such a cool story.
She was in tears after the game, and I suspect it's not only because her college career is in jeopardy. She knows she could have beat them (I'm inclined to agree - she was unquestionably the story of that tournament). Nonetheless, the way she willed that team was a marvelous thing to watch. Even when she was removed yesterday, she was actively prodding from the dugout - which has always been true for her, but there was an added eagerness there, given the situation.
I was more surprised that Larkin wasn't brought in, since she was in uniform & looked healthy. Then again, she has only 11 appearances on the year, so there may be something else going on there.
I loved all of Aprile's decisions except for that (which may have been forced due to injury, I have no idea). During the game I was puzzled also frustrated not using the available sub to PH for Duran, but my choice, Throckmorton, appears to have been injured all year.
Show of hands for who had Softball being the first at Pitt to make an Tournament (or in football's case, Championship Game) Final? Yeah, me either. Such a cool story.
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