Softball SEC Team

[TD1 225]

Lowe made 2nd All-SEC team

Lowe, Penta, Cox, and Packer made the All-Freshmen Team

Koepke made the Newcomer Team

[99TGR 26]

From the first inning, it looks like SC is wanting to bunt and steal on us. Think we got away with a pass ball too.

[tigersrock1980 17]

Fire CMD now. Get him out of the dugout 

[tigersrock1980 17]

Don’t let CMD on the bus back from Tuscaloosa. Make him walk.  

[blakem 296]

He seriously doesn’t deserve another year at this point. We are the lowest of the low in the SEC

[EagleEye67 1,938]

1 hour ago, tigersrock1980 said:

Fire CMD now. Get him out of the dugout 

Tick, tock, tick, tock....

[around4ever 4,139]

If I’m Shelby Lowe, I’m exploring the portal. She can play for anybody.  Why she didn’t start, I don’t know other than CMD being CMD. 

[tigersrock1980 17]

Guess CMD didn’t go back and look at the earlier games versus SC that we played. 4 struggled back then as well and we were lucky to win 1 against them back in February.  He is such a clown and should be canned immediately.  

[tigersrock1980 17]

5 minutes ago, around4ever said:

If I’m Shelby Lowe, I’m exploring the portal. She can play for anybody.  Why she didn’t start, I don’t know other than CMD being CMD. 

If I were all the pitchers, I’d look into leaving with CMD’s nonexistent offense why would they want to pitch with no support.   

[AUBwins 10,068]

7 minutes ago, around4ever said:

If I’m Shelby Lowe, I’m exploring the portal. She can play for anybody.  Why she didn’t start, I don’t know other than CMD being CMD. 

She would have been close to those pitchers of the year with some offense. 

[AUBwins 10,068]

Dean failed in his one goal this year. Treat every game like the last. Pitch your best available pitcher in a play in game. If he was avoiding Maddie pitching against LSU, heck, you have KK, Lexie, and Sam. 

[swimmama 45]

Dean needs to be gone tonight. He has literally killed this program. The poor girls. They will probably be heading to the portal by tomorrow. It was so much fun before he got here. 

[Hspoprn 199]

Wish I could say that it was an interesting season, but it wasn't. I love the sport, and these girls deserve better.

Hope Perry and the young lady from S.C. are alright.

[AU1947 157]

1 hour ago, around4ever said:

If I’m Shelby Lowe, I’m exploring the portal. She can play for anybody.  Why she didn’t start, I don’t know other than CMD being CMD. 

Appears to have been over confident going into the ballgame looking ahead to LSU... "Bird in the hand is better than 2 in the bush..."  Maybe he was looking at the bush..

[TD1 225]

I was quite surprised to see Penta starting when I turned the game on.  You have to win the play in before you even start thinking about playing LSU. 

[steeleagle 2,945]

I didn’t have a problem w starting Penta. What she did in February has nothing to do w how she had developed until now. She had improved. 
 

the problem this team still has as it did all year was a terrible hitting team. 
 

whether Penta struggled and  KK did a super job keeping us only down 1 for every inning until the 7th but to not get but 3-4 hits and not put any pressure on their pitcher is not going to win any game. 
 

the struggles at the plate are unacceptable and unprecedented probably in history of Auburn softball. 
 

the coaches strategy can always be argued when u lose but not this teams hitting. 

[AU1947 157]

From the Pent House to the Out House in 4 years!

[slot canyon 1,332]

13 hours ago, around4ever said:

If I’m Shelby Lowe, I’m exploring the portal. She can play for anybody.  Why she didn’t start, I don’t know other than CMD being CMD. 

We really don't know what kind of condition she was in having finished throwing 167 pitches over the May 7 - 9 period.  I would like to think that if she was capable she would have started.  Penta actually pitched the regular season game that we won vs SC.  Still seems to boil down to failure to manufacture hits.

[AU1947 157]

22 minutes ago, slot canyon said:

We really don't know what kind of condition she was in having finished throwing 167 pitches over the May 7 - 9 period.  I would like to think that if she was capable she would have started.  Penta actually pitched the regular season game that we won vs SC.  Still seems to boil down to failure to manufacture hits.

Slot I too remember that game and went back and looked at the box score. It was almost the same outcome from the game in February.  However SC has progressed where we have digressed..

[Mikey 16,565]

Worst hitting team I've ever seen, in softball or baseball. These players were good hitters in high school or they wouldn't have been offered college scholarships. A bad year is one thing but this problem is identifiable and clear. Something's wrong with our hitting approach and it's not some small thing.

[steeleagle 2,945]

1 hour ago, slot canyon said:

We really don't know what kind of condition she was in having finished throwing 167 pitches over the May 7 - 9 period.  I would like to think that if she was capable she would have started.  Penta actually pitched the regular season game that we won vs SC.  Still seems to boil down to failure to manufacture hits.

I agree. Coaches always have to play odds when in this dilemma of a play in game and how to use pitchers. Observations from the game:

1. I don't have problem w/ Penta starting. As he has in past, he gave her a short leash, and it didn't hurt us. If you're playing the worst team in the league, Penta has pitched well enough to take that chance, so it would give us an even greater chance against LSU in game 2. That decision didn't cost us the game, considering we still could only muster 1 run.

2. As you said, as in almost all of our losses, it was bc we could not generate any runs that doomed this team. Not going to blame any pitching decisions since they mostly have done really well all year. Our hitting was atrocious. 

3. someone complained about how Dean handled the 6th inning. After Rivera got a basehit to start the inning, some questioned Dean's decision to bunt her to 2nd with the #2 batter. I think that was smart strategy, and the right one. We were down 1 run, and we struggled all year to have big hits and innings. So, in most baseball/softball strategy, in late innings, down 1, you bunt the tying run to 2nd base. 

4, Huge kudo to KK Dismukes, who came in under enormous pressure in the 2nd inning w/ the bases loaded and 0 outs and didn't let them score then or for the next 6 innings striking out 8, and kept us in the game. Great pitching. 

[steeleagle 2,945]

9 minutes ago, Mikey said:

Worst hitting team I've ever seen, in softball or baseball. These players were good hitters in high school or they wouldn't have been offered college scholarships. A bad year is one thing but this problem is identifiable and clear. Something's wrong with our hitting approach and it's not some small thing.

Agree totally. Usually in baseball or softball, some times you getting into slumps during the year, but this hitting issue was consistent the whole softball season. And usually some players have great hitting years, while some struggle, but I don't recall any hitter breaking out nad putting up great numbers. That tells me as you stated that there is a definite hitting philosophy issue that was used that kept these players from improving at the plate. Amazing how few RBIs, or power hitting was displayed ALL year. 

I'm worried now that bc of the results down the stretch(2-10 record), may cost them a chance at the NCAAs. I always thought that bc of how strong the SEC was we would make it, but losing to the worst league team may have cost us. 

Any others agree/disagree?

Edited May 12, 2021 by steeleagle

[Jad0003 405]

@steeleagle I do not think our spot in a regional is in jeopardy with the loss to SC. We have a top 10 SOS and will still be in top 25 for the RPI. We also have good wins over FSU, Kentucky(x2), Texas A&M(x2), LSU, Missouri, Ole Miss, Troy(x2), and SE Missouri State(x3) who are all in Top 100 of the RPI. 

Also agree on your 4 points about the game. It’s hard to criticize Dean for starting Penta. I understand people questioning it, but Lowe needed a rest after the grind of the SEC. She will now get a week and half to do so. Penta had strong outings over the past few weeks, but this umpire squeezed her, specifically on her rise and curve ball. Kudos to KK and the off speed curveball though. She kept those batters off balance even when they knew it was coming.

We will not travel to any SEC schools for regionals, so the best possible outcome is we go somewhere like FSU or Clemson, which seems likely at this point with the NCAA trying to limit travel for teams. They are both good teams, but neither are elite. If we can get Penta, Dismukes, and / or Handley to take care of the first round game, I think we have a chance with Lowe in the circle for the #1 seed in our bracket. It’s not a big chance, but it’s a chance. 

Edited May 12, 2021 by Jad0003

[99TGR 26]

2 hours ago, Jad0003 said:

@steeleagle I do not think our spot in a regional is in jeopardy with the loss to SC. We have a top 10 SOS and will still be in top 25 for the RPI. We also have good wins over FSU, Kentucky(x2), Texas A&M(x2), LSU, Missouri, Ole Miss, Troy(x2), and SE Missouri State(x3) who are all in Top 100 of the RPI. 

Also agree on your 4 points about the game. It’s hard to criticize Dean for starting Penta. I understand people questioning it, but Lowe needed a rest after the grind of the SEC. She will now get a week and half to do so. Penta had strong outings over the past few weeks, but this umpire squeezed her, specifically on her rise and curve ball. Kudos to KK and the off speed curveball though. She kept those batters off balance even when they knew it was coming.

We will not travel to any SEC schools for regionals, so the best possible outcome is we go somewhere like FSU or Clemson, which seems likely at this point with the NCAA trying to limit travel for teams. They are both good teams, but neither are elite. If we can get Penta, Dismukes, and / or Handley to take care of the first round game, I think we have a chance with Lowe in the circle for the #1 seed in our bracket. It’s not a big chance, but it’s a chance. 

Agree with you, except on one small point. I thought Penta was close to hitting her spots but the catching was subpar. Our catcher didn't help establish the strike zone for the pitcher/umpire and that cost us a couple of strikeouts.

[AU1947 157]

SMH as we are the worst team in the SEC. Why? Because we got the L and not the W!