Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00 Welcome back to the extra point from Bama Central.
00:03 I'm Matthew Gibson alongside Will Miller.
00:05 Fresh off a college World Series run in 2023,
00:08 Alabama softball is off to a 5-0 start in 2024,
00:11 capping off a perfect weekend
00:12 at the Buzz Classic in Atlanta.
00:14 Will, what's clicking for the Crimson Tide?
00:17 - Well, it's a strong start with a lot of momentum
00:19 and certainly there were a lot of questions
00:21 because there've been a lot of program faces
00:23 that have departed after that 2023 World Series run.
00:28 Like you mentioned, lots of ups and downs
00:29 of last season that's now in the rear view
00:32 and there's somewhat of a new look roster,
00:36 lots of changes, particularly in the pitching staff,
00:40 but also in some other areas.
00:42 And it was important for this group to start off strong.
00:44 And last season had a loss in the season opener
00:47 that some people thought was somewhat unbecoming
00:50 of the program and we know how that turned out,
00:53 but that's still not the ideal way to get things started.
00:57 - Some highlight plays and moments,
00:59 just as much as the game results themselves.
01:02 Overall, just a really strong weekend, busy weekend.
01:05 It can be tough to play that many games
01:07 in that short of a time span
01:08 and it may not be what you're used to
01:10 by the time conference play rolls around,
01:12 but it was a very emphatic start
01:14 and it's just what this team needed.
01:16 - Yeah, no, I completely agree.
01:17 And I love what Patrick Murphy has done
01:19 with this pitching staff.
01:20 He had guys like, or women like Aaliyah Johnson
01:22 and go get a guy like Caleb Beaver,
01:25 who again, threw a no hitter in the opening game
01:27 versus Villanova, carried another one
01:29 into the sixth inning versus Georgia Tech.
01:31 She's been killing it.
01:32 I really love what Murphy has done with the roster.
01:35 And even with the bats,
01:37 obviously Alabama has been a little bit behind in the game
01:40 in terms of getting those power hitters
01:41 and they still don't necessarily have a roster built
01:44 for that right now.
01:45 Would you go out there
01:46 and bring in a really solid recruiting class
01:48 and bring in back people like a Broadfoot
01:51 or people like Callie Hevelin,
01:53 who just already off to a really good start,
01:54 Abby Dukeshire, I mean, this roster is built for,
01:57 I think another SEC run.
01:59 And there's certainly gonna be another one
02:00 of those top 10 teams in the country this year.
02:02 And for Murphy, it's really another year to,
02:06 sort of not necessarily a make or break year,
02:08 but he's got a really fantastic roster right now.
02:12 And there's no reason Alabama shouldn't be one of those top
02:14 two or three teams, the SEC along with like the Tennessee's
02:16 and LSU's of the world right now.
02:18 - I think Caleb Beaver is really the X factor for this team.
02:23 Obviously there's only one Montana Fouts
02:25 on so many levels for this program,
02:27 but you bring in a pitcher like her who was really,
02:30 really good at a mid-major in Central Arkansas.
02:32 And if you look at their marks last year,
02:34 had a just a fantastic record and she was great.
02:37 And then she comes in and nearly throws two no hitters,
02:40 just real casual like.
02:42 To me, that can be a great sign of things to come,
02:46 going portaling and getting a diamond in the rough like that
02:50 can really make or break a team season,
02:52 especially when you consider the importance
02:54 of that position, the fact that you have to fill
02:57 that ace role some way or another.
02:59 Montana Fouts is gone and it's time to go
03:03 in a new direction.
03:04 Well, there isn't much of a better way to kick things off
03:08 than the direction that Caleb Beaver is going in right now,
03:12 but the outfield was great defensively also.
03:15 Lots of sports center caliber plays and we know
03:18 Caleb Broad brought back to the program in a coaching role,
03:22 which I guess may have caught some people off guard
03:25 at first, but it appears it's paid great dividends
03:28 in the early stages.
03:29 So lots of X factors for this team, but like you said,
03:32 Matthew, I don't think anything to suggest
03:34 that they can't contend once again.
03:36 - Yeah, and I like how you mentioned the defense too.
03:38 Oh my goodness, Larissa Pruitt and Jenna Johnson.
03:40 How about that?
03:41 Larissa Pruitt with the game saving catch
03:42 against Georgia Tech too, that would have broken
03:44 the game open for the Yellow Jackets,
03:46 but she saves that, almost could have been a triple play,
03:48 but ends up getting overturned and Tech gets a run from it,
03:50 but she saved a grand slam on that play.
03:52 And again, that defense is just disgusting,
03:55 but for Bama Central, this has been The Extra Point.
03:58 (upbeat music)