No. 5 Tampa Unable to Overcome Early Deficit in Regional Opener
TAMPA, Fla. - The No. 5 University of Tampa (36-7) softball team opened NCAA Division II South Region play with a 3-1 loss to the University of West Alabama (34-27) on Friday at Vince Naimoli Field.
Tampa, the No. 2 seed and host of the four-team regional, was the victim of the second upset of the day as No. 6 seed Florida Southern defeated No. 3 Barry in the first game of the day, 1-0.
West Alabama struck for a pair of first inning runs and later extended its lead to 3-0 with another in the sixth.
The Spartans has their chances in the bottom of the sixth, with a two-out rally that trimmed the Tiger lead to 3-1. Susan Jallo scored the lone UT run, as she stretched a triple into a score thanks to heady baserunning. Tampa would proceed to load the bases, but a liner that was snared by UWA's second baseman put an end to Tampa's hopes.
Deanna Henriott (21-6) started for Tampa and reached another milestone as she became the first player in program history to reach 300 strikeouts in a season. The senior threw 7.0 innings, allowing just three hits while striking out 14 Tigers.
Kristen Skinner (16-10) took the win for UWA, allowing four hits while striking out four Spartans.
Tampa was led by Jallo, Kayleen Boatwright and Stacy Piagno at the plate, with each accounting for one hit apiece. Brooklyn Phillips led UWA with two RBI, with Kelsey Cooper driving in the third Tiger run.
The Spartans will now meet Barry in an elimination game, slated for 3:30 p.m., on Saturday. Florida Southern and West Alabama will face off at 1 p.m., with the winner advancing to Sunday's regional semifinal.
UT will offer live stats and a video webcast for all games at the Tampa Regional. Fans may access this through TampaSpartans.tv.