Tennessee 2013 Softball World Series Capsule

Tennessee Volunteers
SEC (44-10, 16-6)

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Tennessee comes into the postseason having four lost of its last six, but three of those losses have been to Missouri, which earned the sixth seed nationally. This is the ninth consecutive year that the Vols are hosting a Regional. In five of the past eight years, Tennessee has made it to the Women's College World Series, and losing in the Regional the other three years. Prior to those eight years, the Vols had only made the tournament twice in program history, never hosting at all.

Big Wins: 3/8 Alabama (4-3), 3/16 at Florida (3-1), 5/4 at Missouri (10-1)
Bad Losses: 2/22 vs Northwestern (2-3), 2/28 at Charleston (1-3), 4/26 Arkansas (1-2)
Coach: Karen Weekly and Ralph Weekly

Why They Can Surprise:

Tennessee has been an offensive machine pretty much all year.  Entering this weekend's games, Tennessee ranked fourth in the nation in team batting verage (.343), fourth in scoring (7.31 runs per game), 10th in slugging percentage (.541), 12 in stolen bases per game (1.90), 19th in team ERA (1.97) and 12th in fielding percentage (.974). Seniors Raven Chavanne and Lauren Gibson were both named Top 10 Finalists for the 2013 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award. Chavanne, Gibson, Kat Dotson and Madison Shipman earned First Team All-SEC honors and all four were also named to the SEC All-Defensive  Team. Chavanne is the active hits leader in NCAA Tournament play with 30 hits. Ivy and Ellen Renfroe have been two of the country's most consistent pitchers the last couple years and Vols fans are happy to have them leading their pitching staff. However, with the team's offense scoring so much, great pitching is just a luxury.

Why They Can Disappoint:

The Tennessee have scored one or fewer runs in three of the team's four recent losses. If the offense can't provide enough runs for the Renfroe's it may be harder for the Vols to advance, as both sisters have had a rougher time this season than last. Outside of the four players who were named to the all-conference team, Tennessee has one true hitting threat, so if those four aren't hitting, the offense mat struggle more than the team would like. The team will go as far as the hitting takes them. If the offense struggles, it will put more pressure on the pitchers to be pretty much perfect.

Key Field Players:
Raven Chavanne, Senior, 3B/OF, .471 BA, 7 HR, 31 RBI, 39 SB
Lauren Gibson, Senior, IF, .429 BA, 18 HR, 66 RBI
Madison Shipman, Junior, IF, .371 BA, 9 HR, 54 RBI
Kat Dotson, Senior, OF, .351 BA, 5 HR, 40 RBI, 17 SB
Melissa Davin, Junior, UT, .303 BA, 5 HR, 24 RBI
Cheyanne Tarango, Sophomore, IF, .287 BA, 9 HR, 41 RBI

Key Pitchers:
Ellen Renfroe, Junior, Pitcher, 1.93 ERA, 16-4 W/L, 10 CG, 152.0 IP, 161 SO
Ivy Renfroe, Senior, Pitcher, 1.91 ERA, 17-4 W/L, 10 CG, 124.1 IP, 125 SO

By the Numbers:
Batting Average: .343 (4th in nation, 1st in conference)
Earned Run Average: 1.96 (19, 2)
Fielding Percentage: .974 (12, 3)
Scoring Offense: 7.31 (4, 1)
Home Runs per Game: 1.12 (23, 6)
Doubles per Game: 1.29 (77, 6)
Triples per Game: 0.29 (19, 2)
Stolen Bases per Game: 1.90 (12, 3)
Slugging Percentage: .541 (10, 3)
Double Plays per Game: 0.25 (133, 9)

Recent Postseason Appearances:

 
*all team stats through 5/5

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