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A clash of styles will be on full display at Davis Diamond on the campus of Texas A&M University beginning on Saturday, July 25, when the championship series for the Athletes Unlimited Softball League gets underway.
The three-game series caps off the AUSL’s second full season of play, and the league’s first in which its teams were based in cities instead of barnstorming across the country. The reigning champions, the Utah Talons, are aiming for their second crown and will face off against the Chicago Bandits.
Utah is powered this season by its superb ace pitcher, Montana Fouts. The University of Alabama product has eclipsed the fledgling league’s strikeout record already this season — outpacing rookie Karlyn Pickens — fanning 63 batters. She also leads the AUSL in innings pitched with 62.1, has walked just 10 batters and has a 7-4 record with a 2.36 ERA.
Georgina Corrick has been dominant too, leading the league with a 1.12 ERA. Utah led the AUSL with the fewest runs (76), earned runs (66) and hits (161) allowed.
On the other side is Chicago, which brings arguably the AUSL’s deepest and most talented offense into the championship series. The Bandits finished the regular season leading the league in batting average (.311), on-base percentage (.402), runs scored (139), hits (203), RBIs (130), doubles (39) and triples (9).
Pacing the Bandits’ offense has been Sami Williams, an Iowa State product who leads the league in hits with 34 and set AUSL single-season records with 34 RBIs and 12 doubles. Skylar Wallace also has a batting average of .480 this season.
Lexi Kilfoyl of Oklahoma State has been the Bandits’ top pitcher this season with a 7-0 record and 1.68 ERA. That’s the league’s best record for a pitcher this season and the second-lowest ERA.
“What we needed to do was give a bigger load to Lexi's shoulders. Last year, we didn't really have her throw complete games, and Lexi is a workhorse who gets better as the game goes on,” Bandits coach Shonda Stanton said. “That was a piece that I felt like needed to happen this year, was to give Lexi more.”
Meanwhile, former Arkansas star Bri Ellis had a breakout season for Utah this year with five home runs and an OPS of 1.215. In her rookie season, the Talons’ lineup also features former UCLA slugger Jordan Woolery.
Utah captured the No. 1 overall seed and advanced to the championship game by finishing at the top of the standings in the six-team league. The Bandits had to defeat the Portland Cascade in a dramatic play-in game that went 11 innings before Ailana Agbayani singled down the first-base line with two outs to score Taryn Kern, making it a 6-5 victory for Chicago in the longest game in AUSL history.
The Talons defeated the Bandits 2-0 in a three-game series in last year’s championship. Utah also won four-of-five regular season meetings this year against Chicago.
“It does feel like it's just execution time now,” Utah infielder Hannah Flippen said. “We have all of the answers to the tests. We just have to go put it on paper and get the job done. Everything that we need is in our dugout.”
Game 1 of the championship series will air live on ABC at 1 p.m. ET on Saturday, July 25, marking the first time ever a professional softball game has been televised on a U.S. broadcast network. Game 2 will air Sunday, July 26, at 2 p.m. ET on ESPN, and — if necessary — Game 3 will air on ESPN2 on Monday, July 27 at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2.
Longtime softball broadcaster Beth Mowins will call the AUSL championship series alongside Amanda Scarborough and Danielle Lawrie.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Utah Talons aim to repeat as AUSL champions against Chicago Bandits
Continue reading...
The three-game series caps off the AUSL’s second full season of play, and the league’s first in which its teams were based in cities instead of barnstorming across the country. The reigning champions, the Utah Talons, are aiming for their second crown and will face off against the Chicago Bandits.
Utah is powered this season by its superb ace pitcher, Montana Fouts. The University of Alabama product has eclipsed the fledgling league’s strikeout record already this season — outpacing rookie Karlyn Pickens — fanning 63 batters. She also leads the AUSL in innings pitched with 62.1, has walked just 10 batters and has a 7-4 record with a 2.36 ERA.
Georgina Corrick has been dominant too, leading the league with a 1.12 ERA. Utah led the AUSL with the fewest runs (76), earned runs (66) and hits (161) allowed.
On the other side is Chicago, which brings arguably the AUSL’s deepest and most talented offense into the championship series. The Bandits finished the regular season leading the league in batting average (.311), on-base percentage (.402), runs scored (139), hits (203), RBIs (130), doubles (39) and triples (9).
Pacing the Bandits’ offense has been Sami Williams, an Iowa State product who leads the league in hits with 34 and set AUSL single-season records with 34 RBIs and 12 doubles. Skylar Wallace also has a batting average of .480 this season.
Lexi Kilfoyl of Oklahoma State has been the Bandits’ top pitcher this season with a 7-0 record and 1.68 ERA. That’s the league’s best record for a pitcher this season and the second-lowest ERA.
“What we needed to do was give a bigger load to Lexi's shoulders. Last year, we didn't really have her throw complete games, and Lexi is a workhorse who gets better as the game goes on,” Bandits coach Shonda Stanton said. “That was a piece that I felt like needed to happen this year, was to give Lexi more.”
Meanwhile, former Arkansas star Bri Ellis had a breakout season for Utah this year with five home runs and an OPS of 1.215. In her rookie season, the Talons’ lineup also features former UCLA slugger Jordan Woolery.
Utah captured the No. 1 overall seed and advanced to the championship game by finishing at the top of the standings in the six-team league. The Bandits had to defeat the Portland Cascade in a dramatic play-in game that went 11 innings before Ailana Agbayani singled down the first-base line with two outs to score Taryn Kern, making it a 6-5 victory for Chicago in the longest game in AUSL history.
The Talons defeated the Bandits 2-0 in a three-game series in last year’s championship. Utah also won four-of-five regular season meetings this year against Chicago.
“It does feel like it's just execution time now,” Utah infielder Hannah Flippen said. “We have all of the answers to the tests. We just have to go put it on paper and get the job done. Everything that we need is in our dugout.”
Game 1 of the championship series will air live on ABC at 1 p.m. ET on Saturday, July 25, marking the first time ever a professional softball game has been televised on a U.S. broadcast network. Game 2 will air Sunday, July 26, at 2 p.m. ET on ESPN, and — if necessary — Game 3 will air on ESPN2 on Monday, July 27 at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2.
Longtime softball broadcaster Beth Mowins will call the AUSL championship series alongside Amanda Scarborough and Danielle Lawrie.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Utah Talons aim to repeat as AUSL champions against Chicago Bandits
Continue reading...
