After a dominant performance on Thursday at the St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Invitational in Clearwater, Florida, Alabama split its doubleheader on Friday defeating South Florida, 9-1 before losing to No. 2 UCLA, 8-0.

Game 1 vs. South Florida

Alabama’s offense once again led the team to victory, as it run-ruled its opponent in back-to-back games against South Florida on Saturday. The Crimson Tide produced eight of its nine runs in the fourth and fifth innings against the Bulls.

The explosion of offense started in the fourth inning with a three-run home run by junior Kaylee Tow, her first of the season. With the three RBIs, Tow has registered an RBI in five of the first seven games, resulting in a team-leading seven RBIs. Graduate student Alexis Mack had a big game at the plate, as she went 3-for-3 and scored two runs in the win. With the three-hit performance, Mack extended her hitting streak to four games, which raised her batting average to .429 after she hit .273 through the first four games. Junior KB Sides registered her second multi-RBI game as she went 2-for-3 with two RBIs.

Senior Sarah Cornell picked up her first win of the season against the Bulls. Cornell allowed one run on five hits and struck out two in 4.1 innings of work. Freshman Lexi Kilfoyl stepped in to relieve Cornell in the fifth inning and used just eight pitches to strike out the final two batters of the game.

Game 2 vs. No. 2 UCLA

The offense that produced seven or more runs in the first three games at the St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Invitational was held to just a hit in the 7-0 loss to No. 2 UCLA. UCLA pitcher Megan Faraimo kept the Crimson Tide busy as she pitched a complete-game shutout, allowing two hits and struck out six. Faraimo carried a perfect game into the fifth inning, which was broken up by a Bruin fielding error.

Fellow sophomore Montana Fouts struggled in her outing as she picked up her first loss of the 2020 season. Fouts’ troubles began in the first inning as she walked five batters and hit another in the first 10 batters she faced. UCLA capitalized, scoring two runs in the first inning and taking two more in the second before Fouts was pulled for Kilfoyl. The freshman pitched the remaining 5.0 innings, allowing two earned runs on six hits and struck out three in the loss.

The Crimson Tide will be back in action on Sunday morning as No. 9 Alabama will take on No. 16 Oklahoma State. First pitch is scheduled for 9:30 a.m.