Date: 1/31
Position: Pitchers and Catchers
Returning Letterwinners (Key stats): Devin Brown, Jr. (20-12, 1.66 ERA, 206.2 IP, 3 SV, 27 CG, 11 SHO, 324 Ks, .165 opp. avg), Destin Vicknair, Sr. (13-5, 2.52 ERA, 119.1 IP, 11 CG, 3 SHO, 99 Ks), Abby Tincher, So. (RS) (0-0, 4.77 ERA, 7.1 IP, 3 APP, 1 GS, 3 Ks), Dayla Gulledge, So. (30 GP, .239 avg, 16 hits, 12 runs, 5 2B, 3 HR, 16 RBI, 30 tb, .448 slg%, .409 ob%), Taylor Stevens, So. (7 GP, 2 runs)
Letterwinners lost (Key stats): Stephanie Pilkington (51 GP, .306 avg, 45 hits, 28 runs, 11 2B, 2 HR, 34 RBI, 62 tb, .422 slg%, .406 ob%, .997 fld%), Paige Holmes (19 GP, .200 avg, 10 hits, 7 runs, 1 2B, 8 RBI, 11 tb, .993 fld%), Tucker Caraway (1 APP, 13.12 ERA, 2.2 IP, 1 K),
Newcomers (Yr., Previous school): Bailey Murphy (Fr., Hewitt Trussville High School), Haley Maynard (Jr., Volunteer [Tenn.] State Community College), Chandler Sparkman (Fr., Decatur Heritage Christian Academy), Aly Smith (Fr., Smiths Station High School), Morgan Lutticken (Poway [Calif.] High School).
Miscellaneous Notes
- Since the 2012 season, South Alabama has ranked as one of the top pitching staffs in the Sun Belt, ranking in the top three each of those seasons in earned run average, opponent's batting average, strikeouts, hits allowed and runs allowed.
- Junior pitcher Devin Brown was selected first-team all-Sun Belt Conference during the 2016 season finishing the year with a 20-12 record and a 1.66 ERA, while also registering 324 strikeouts in 206.2 innings of work. She struck out 10.97 batters per seven innings – which ranked second in the NCAA – and held opponents to just a .165 batting average. Brown was third nationally in shutouts, fourth in strikeouts and 11th in hits allowed per seven innings (4.13).
- Brown recorded no-hitters at Appalachian State and vs. Kennesaw State and registered her first and the program's third perfect game in a five-inning, 8-0 win over Louisiana-Monroe. She was selected as the Community Coffee Sun Belt Conference Pitcher of the Week six times throughout the season
- Brown was also selected to the Sun Belt's preseason all-conference squad for the second-straight year and named to the Madness 2017 All-American Fourth Team by CollegeSportsMadness.com.
- Brown has also been ranked as the No. 5 pitcher in the country to Fast Pitch News coming into the season. She was also a Second-Team Preseason All-American selection by the organization.
- In her first season with the program, Destin Vicknair posted a 13-5 record and a 2.52 ERA in 119.1 innings of work and had 99 strikeouts. Vicknair ranked sixth in the Sun Belt in ERA, seventh in strikeouts looking, eighth in strikeouts, opponent's batting average, ninth in wins and 10th in innings pitched.
- USA will have to replace graduated senior Stephanie Pilkington who hit .306 and tied for a team-high with 11 doubles. Pilkington started 33 games behind the plate during the 2016 season.
- South Alabama doesn't have a player of the roster with any Division-I starts behind the plate.
- Vying for time at the catcher position are sophomores Dayla Gulledge and Taylor Stevens and freshmen Aly Smith and Morgan Lutticken.
Head Coach Becky Clark
-On the improvement in the circle of Devin Brown last season: "Devin [Brown] put in a lot of work in the off season last year and that work paid off for her on the field. I think she was stronger and in better shape going into last season and that helped her from an overall stamina standpoint considering her innings increased considerably from her freshman year. I think this year she has to continue to move the ball and change speeds. She has worked hard this past fall on locating more which I think will hopefully help her from an efficiency standpoint."
-On what it means to have another solid starter like Destin Vicknair: "Well going into this season I don't think of [Destin] Vicknair as a number two; I think she has the experience and the overall stuff to compete at a high level. I anticipate her innings increasing this spring and feel like she will be an integral part of our overall success."
-On what she attributes the success of her pitching staffs over the past few seasons: "I think we have been very fortunate to have some very talented pitchers at South Alabama and those pitchers have been not just physically talented, but they have also been mentally strong and extremely competitive. Hitters at our level have gotten so good that you have to put a major emphasis on your pitching staff if you want to be successful. We know if we want to have a chance to win the Sun Belt we will have to go through some incredibly solid offenses so we have to have the pitching to face those challenges."
-On what it's meant to have her pitching staff directed by former Jag All-American Hannah Campbell: "To have someone on staff who not only played here but was dominant in the circle is a huge plus for our pitching staff. She knows what it takes to beat quality offenses because she has done it and that experience bleeds over into your current staff. She gives our pitchers a great daily example of what it takes to be successful through her work ethic and consistent approach to getting her job done."
-On what Stephanie Pilkington meant behind the plate and how her production will be replaced: "[Stephanie Plikington] Pilk was such a great teammate and a grinder. We will definitely miss her toughness and grit but hopefully we have a new wave of catchers who will pick up where she left off. We will be young at that position, but I think we have several players who are capable of stepping up and getting the job done. Aly Smith, Dayla Gulledge, Taylor Stevens, and Morgan Lutticken all have the potential to catch for us and it will most likely come down to opening day as to who will get the start back there."
Senior Destin Vicknair
-On her development since the 2016 season: "Last season, I threw a lot of drop balls and change ups. In talking with [assistant] coach Hannah [Campbell] we talked about what I wanted to improve on and one of the things I wanted to do was add a rise ball. During the fall, we focused on getting my rise ball to work and in doing that, I've noticed that my curve ball and my screw ball have become a lot better. Focusing on getting that one pitch to work has helped all my other pitches work better. I've also gotten better at placing the ball on the corner of the plate rather than it being on the plate."
-On her possibly contributing on the offensive side: "Last year I didn't get the opportunity to contribute at the plate because I told coach [Becky] Clark that I wanted to focus on my pitching because there was a very big change from junior college to this level. As the season went on, I was itching to hit and whenever the season ended, I talked with coach and told her that I wanted to hit again. She's given me that opportunity. Of course I'm not back to where I was two years ago, but it's been exciting to be able to get back out there and hit with my teammates. My goal is to just be looked at by coach as a player she can use off the bench if she needs to in a certain situation. I'm a pitcher first, but if the team needs me to help them at the plate, that's what I want to do."
-On having a young group behind the plate: "It was definitely different for the pitchers this fall, but we have Taylor Stevens and Dayla Gulledge who both worked back there [in practice] last season. Our two freshmen – Aly Smith and Morgan Lutticken – have improved a lot. Aly has really stepped up and I think that has been noticed by coach. I feel like she has improved a lot. Everyday all of the catchers are putting in extra work and working on their blocking drills, their throwing drills; their putting in every ounce of work that they can to get better and they are all very competitive against each other fighting for that spot. It's great to see all of them want to be out there so bad."
-On being part of a strong pitching staff and what that means to a team: "Having a strong staff that your team can depend on is a little nerve-racking sometimes because you sometimes feel like you can't mess up, but at the same time, it's a good thing for your offense to have. They know that they don't have to put as much stress on themselves to produce because they know they have us. We work hard every day and its nit-picky work at times, but it gets us to where we need to be as a staff. What's great about me and Devin [Brown] is that she's more of the up-ball pitcher and I'm more of the down-ball pitcher so we complement each other. Bailey Murphy, Chandler Sparkman and Haley Maynard have all come in and worked hard as well, along with Abby Tincher. Abby has missed some time with an injury, but she's getting back at it. Everyone is working hard and I feel we really do have a strong staff."
-On where she has seen Devin Brown improve during the offseason: "Last season, Devin really didn't use her off-speed pitch as much. During the offseason, she when up to [assistant coach] Hannah [Campbell] and said that she wanted to add a drop-ball and a work on her change up; she really puts a lot of work into her pitching to try and become better any way that she can. Devin didn't want to just stick with her rise ball and her curve ball; she wanted to add more pitches to help her become a better pitcher."
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