April 25, 2003
ATLANTA – In a rematch of the opening game of last season’s NCAA Regional, the Georgia Tech softball team (33-18, 3-2 ACC) travels to the Alabama Softball Complex for a 1p.m. ET doubleheader Saturday with the 17th-ranked Crimson Tide (39-16, 21-6 SEC).
Alabama leads the all-time series, 3-1, including a 3-0 mark in Tuscaloosa, but Tech won last season’s postseason meeting, 3-1 in 10 innings. Ace Jessica Sallinger went the distance and struck out 13 batters, and first baseman Katie Donovan drove in two runs in the 10th for the win. The Jackets went on to reach the regional final before being eliminated.
Saturday’s doubleheader marks Tech’s seventh and eighth games against teams ranked among the NFCA Top 25, and the Jackets are in search of their first win of the season against a top-25 opponent. The Tide is also the seventh different Southeastern Conference team on Tech’s 2003 state. The Jackets are currently 3-6 against the league this season.
Last time out the Jackets were edged by Auburn, 1-0, in 10 innings. Sallinger (18-12) tossed nine perfect innings before surrendering the game-winning single in the bottom of the 10th. The Jackets were no-hit for the first time since a 2-0 loss to Georgia State on April 25, 2000, by the Tigers’ Kristin Keyes.
Winners of 13 of 16, Alabama is fresh off a 6-3 win over Chattanooga Tuesday. Sophomore Ashley Courtney leads the Tide with a .367 average, while junior Jackie McClain is batting .361 with six home runs and a team-best 42 runs batted in. Jennifer Reach (.331) and Stephanie VanBrakle (.324) also check in above .300. VanBrakle also leads the Bama pitching staff with a 1.43 earned run average. She is 13-4, while junior Erin Wright stands 18-5 with a 2.01 ERA.
Sallinger leads the ACC with 280 strikeouts and tops Tech with a 1.10 ERA. Junior Erin Voeltz is 12-4 with a 2.48 ERA. Junior shortstop Tara Knudsen leads the Jackets, who have won seven of their last nine games, in most offensive categories, including a .308 average, 11 homers and 33 RBI.
Following Saturday’s games, Tech breaks for finals before hosting Auburn and No. 13 Florida State in the final weekend of the regular season. The Tigers come to Glenn Field for a 4 p.m. single game, May 2, while the Seminoles come calling for a 1 p.m. doubleheader, May 4.
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