So Close, Yet So Far

As the Alabama softball season was winding down, hopes were high for the Crimson Tide and rightly so. The Tide (52-10) were SEC Champions and the number one seed coming into the NCAA playoffs. They cruised right into the Super Regional, and, after beating Hawaii in game one, they were in prime position to advance to the College World Series. I honestly did not know that Hawaii had a legitimate team (they are actually the most productive home run team in the nation) until game two when they surprisingly took charge and pounced to a 7-1 lead. Alabama led a fabulous charge back into contention but ended up falling 8-7 after Hawaii trickled in a run in the sixth. No worries-even though they had broken our amazing 28 game win streak, I figured the Tide would pull out game three. It looked so in the bottom of the seventh inning with the Tide up 4-3. We had our ace Kelsi Dunne in the game. Fittingly for Hawaii however, they ended things with a two-run homer that dashed the hopes of an amazing Tide team. This is the glory of the playoffs. Even though I'm disappointed that the girls didn't make it to the World Series, you have to feel some degree of excitement for the underdog and have a respect for some amazing heart from both teams.

As for the Alabama baseball team, things weren't clear as far as the postseason is concerned. The Tide (37-22) haven't completely played to their potential and are one of the most bipolar teams that I have seen. This wasn't the case in the SEC tournament. The Tide played marvelous during the pre-championship rounds (beating No. 16 Auburn, No. 21 Ole Miss, and No. 4 Florida) and were looking at a showdown with rival LSU for the championship. LSU jumped to a 3-1 lead before a rain delay in the fourth inning. The Tide rebounded to tie the game in the eighth inning and fought hard into extras. Alabama had chances in the ninth and tenth to finish the matter, but they were shut down by an outstanding performance from Anthony Ranaudo. The Tigers finally managed to squeeze out a run in the 11th, and the Tide could not respond. Even though they came up short just as the women did, the Tide is rising at the right time. Alabama fans should be anxious to see their team begin the playoffs. I know that I wouldn't want to play our team after watching them over the past week, and everyone likes a good underdog.