Knoxville Regional Breakdown
Teams from Blacksburg, Oxford and Birmingham converge on Knoxville later this week to face a Tennessee team that could be a major threat to move to super-regionals. Tennessee (46-10) boasts the fourth-strongest team in the nation according to the RPI; only Alabama sports a better RPI among Southeastern Conference schools. Tennessee, ranked No. 5 in the last Division I coaches poll, beat Florida and Alabama back in March and worked through a very difficult SEC schedule to reach this stretch. The Renfroe sisters, junior Ivy and sophomore Ellen, are two tough pitchers to crack. Ellen sports a 26-3 record, 1.22 earned run average and 265 strikeouts, while Ivy is 19-6 with a 1.99 ERA and 154 K’s. Its .304 batting average is 29th in the nation and second in the SEC. This is primarily due to junior Lauren Gibson (.325-13-42, 15 SB) and sophomore Madison Shipman (.316-9-58, 17 SB). Last year the Volunteers made regionals and fell twice to Oklahoma State but beat Liberty and Georgia Tech. It lost to Arizona in the 2007 national finals and also was knocked out by Arizona in the 2010 College World Series. Tennessee will be tough to stop.
Virginia Tech (40-19) has a 16-5 mark on the road but hasn’t been to the postseason since 2008, when it made a splash all the way to the College World Series before Florida ended its season. This Virginia Tech team is not as tough to face (.248, eighth in the Atlantic Coast Conference). Junior Jasmine Harrell (27-13, 200 strikeouts) is a threat in the pitcher’s circle and the team has a collection of hitters between seven and nine home runs, but it lacks a breakout threat. UAB (37-20), from Conference USA, made regionals in 2010 and 2011 but fell to Lipscomb and Florida State, respectively. The Blazers are second in the conference in home runs per game and earned run average, but they lack a strikeout threat. Senior catcher Mandy Lowman (.359-11-36) is hot on offense, as is sophomore Kristen McGrath (.303-14-39). Miami of Ohio (40-18), out of the Mid-American Conference, made trips to regionals in 2009, where it lost to Notre Dame, and in 2005, where Virginia Tech ousted the Red Hawks. Senior Jessica Simpson (31-13, 346 strikeouts) is a main reason why Miami has the lowest ERA in the MAC, but its lack of power will be a detriment here.
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