Five-Run Sixth Enough for No. 4 Alabama to Even Series
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The No. 4 Alabama
Crimson Tide scored five times in the bottom of the sixth inning in a one-run
game to power past the No. 11 Kentucky softball team and even the series at a
game a piece on Saturday afternoon at Rhoads Stadium in front of a season-high
3,580 fans.
Kentucky scored its lone run in the top of the
sixth inning as freshman slugger Abbey Cheek tallied up her team-leading 47th
RBI of the season, scoring Sylver Samuel who led off the inning with the first
of her two singles on the day.
The win for Alabama combined with Kentucky’s
win on Friday night sets up a rubber match on Sunday afternoon. The game will
be shown on the SEC Network+, ESPN3 and the WatchESPN app live with coverage
starting at 2:30 p.m. ET.
Key Stat
Five. The five runs given up by Kentucky in
the sixth inning to Alabama tied the most runs given up by UK in a single
inning all season. UK also gave up five in the opening inning against Charlotte
in a 5-1 loss to the 49ers back in pre-conference play.
Key Play
Alabama’s Chandler Dare came to the plate in
the bottom of the sixth inning with two outs in a one-run game and runners on
the corners and laced an RBI single up the middle to score two runners and make
a 2-1 game a 4-1 game. The two RBIs were Dare’s third and fourth RBI of the day.
Key Player
Sylver Samuel was the key player for Kentucky
in the game, going 2-for-4 and scoring Kentucky’s only run of the game. Samuel
increased her team lead in batting average on Saturday afternoon.
Run Recap
Alabama’s Chandler Dare stepped to the plate
with two on and two outs in the bottom of the fourth inning, and singled to
score the opening two runs of the game. ALA 2, UK 0
Sylver Samuel got aboard with one of her two
singles and then was driven in by Abbey Cheek to make it a 2-1 game in the top
of the sixth. ALA 2, UK 1
Alabama scored five runs in the bottom of the
sixth, including three by Leona Lafaele to make it a 7-1 game. FINAL – No. 4
Alabama 7, No. 11 Kentucky 1
For the latest on the Kentucky softball team, follow @UKSoftball on Twitter, Instagram
and Facebook, as well as on the web at UKathletics.com.
