This season may not be what the Volts (7-15) hoped for but they have a chance to end on a high note with two games left in the regular season. They’ll face the top team in the AUSL, the Talons (17-5) in Tuscaloosa, Ala. at Rhoads Stadium in a two-game series.
These are five things to expect in T-Town.
1. Kelly Kretschman Homecoming
The head coach of the Volts, Kelly Kretschman, is an Alabama Softball legend. Her career totals as a member of the Crimson Tide include a .437 batting average, 368 hits, 288 runs, 60 home runs, 16 triples, 65 doubles, and a slugging percentage of .766. She’s been back to play and coach at her alma mater, but this will be her first time back at the helm of the Volts.
2. The Talons’ pitching staff is on fire.
The Talons have the best ERA in the league as a staff. Three of the four top individual ERAs in the league come from the team that will finish in first place in the AUSL regular season (Georgina Corrick, Montana Fouts, and Raelin Chaffin). It will be a good challenge for the Volts, coming off a series where their bats seemed to be heating up.
3. The rookies are on a roll.
Rookies Ciara Briggs and Mia Scott have been settling in over the last couple of games. Briggs is hitting .333 on the season and in the second game of the Bandits series, she was 3-for-4 with one RBI.
Scott has been hot as well. In the last game of the series, she was 2-for-3 with a walk.
If the Volts want to have a chance against the great Talons pitching staff, they will need multiple hitters to contribute.
4. Rhoads Stadium is ready to rock and roll.
Rhoads Stadium is known for bringing big, fun crowds to Alabama Softball games. In their post-game press conference, both Kretschman and Tiare Jennings talked about how fun (or difficult if you are the visiting team) the atmosphere is in Tuscaloosa.
Head coach of the Crimson Tide, Patrick Murphy, has also been rallying fans to come and support the AUSL.
5. Everyone will be leaving it all out on the field.
Kretschman noted in her press conference after their victory against the Bandits that even though the Volts cannot make the final series, players will still be giving it their all because they need to set themselves up for next season. Coaches and general managers are all watching.
The series begins at 7 p.m. ET on Tuesday, airing live on ESPN2.
Maria Trivelpiece is currently the Director of Video Communications and Reporter at the American Athletic Conference and a softball color analyst. Trivelpiece was an outfielder at Fordham University and still stays involved with the game through coaching and covering the sport. You can follow her on X M_Trivelpiece or Instagram @_mariatrivelpiece
