2013 Softball World Series Louisville Regional Breakdown

2013 Softball World Series Louisville Regional Breakdown

#15 Louisville, UCLA, UAB, Fort Wayne

If you like offense, Louisville is the place to be. The Cardinals are one of the best hitting teams in the country. They hit .340 as a team and average nearly seven runs per game. The lineup is potent from top to bottom and UCLA, UAB and Fort Wayne pitchers will not have an easy time against Coach Sandy Pearsall’s group. Alicja Wolny has been a consistent and clutch hitter for quite some time and she is poised to lead her team to the Super-Regionals. Wolny will get plenty of help from Katie Keller, who batted .412 and led the Cardinals with 12 homeruns and 54 RBIs during her junior campaign. The lineup strength continues to hit for power and average with Jordan Trimble, Maggie Ruckenbrod, Whitney Arion and Hannah Kiyohara. In the circle Louisville has split time between juniors Rachel LeCoq and Caralisa Connell. Together they allow about two runs per game. However, the competition is about to get tougher.

UCLA has three of the most dangerous hitters in the 2013 NCAA Tournament. B.B. Bates has gone deep 24 times this season and driven in 72 runs. Stephany LaRosa has hit 15 homeruns and tallied 50 RBIs, while Ally Carda comes in with 16 homeruns and 47 RBIs. And they all hit at least .340 too. Those are some impressive numbers and it is no wonder the Bruins ranked eighth in all of Division I softball in homeruns. What makes Bates, LaRosa and Carda so dangerous is that often other players are on base. Those three will garner most of the RBIs, but players like Gracie Goulder and Allexis Bennett are no strangers to trotting around the bases after somebody else hits a homerun. Carda has also been the Bruins’ best pitcher this year and in the end it very well could come down to who can stop the other team’s offense. UAB may have the arms that can at least slow down some of the big hitters in this regional. Lannah Campbell, Lauren Webster and Leigh Streetman have all pitched between 100 and 150 innings this season. Coach Marla Townsend has the rare luxury of going with the hot hand in the circle and that may be the only way for the Blazers to quiet Louisville and UCLA. Fort Wayne is headed to Louisville after going 12-4 in Summit League play and 34-14 overall. The Mastodons have a couple quality power hitters of their own in Ashleigh Bousquet and Dani Pugh. Larissa Franklin and Alex Bousquet are also dangerous hitters, but without the homerun threat. This group should be too tough for Fort Wayne, but Miranda Kramer is more than capable of keeping games close. In 180.2 innings, the sophomore has struck out 270 batters.

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