KNOXVILLE – The instructions from Tennessee softball co-head coaches Ralph and Karen Weekly were clear and urgent Friday as midnight approached.
The Lady Volunteers had just defeated Monmouth 9-0 in an NCAA regional game that began four hours late because of severe weather, and their next game was set for noon Saturday.
“We had food there in the clubhouse,” Karen Weekly said. “We put it in a box for them and said, ‘Eat it in the car so that when you get home, you hop in the shower, take the fastest shower you’ve ever taken and get to bed.'”
The quick turnaround frustrated Tennessee’s coaches, but it did not frazzle their players. The Lady Vols, seeded 10th overall, rode their most explosive offensive performance in nearly a month to a 12-3 mercy-rule win over James Madison in six innings to stay on the winner’s side of the regional’s bracket.
Tennessee will have two chances to win one game Sunday against Ohio and advance to next weekend’s super regional round.
“I think I got like seven hours (of sleep) last night,” said pitcher Caylan Arnold, the benefactor of four Tennessee home runs Saturday. “That’s not bad. But it was a very quick turnaround. But we definitely did a very good job of doing what we needed to do.”
James Madison, which played in Friday’s early game, had a little bit more rest than the Lady Vols, and it showed early when a second-inning home run by Natalie Cutright crept just inside the right-field foul pole to put the Dukes ahead 1-0. An outward breeze that helped the ball clear the wall soon began benefiting Tennessee.
Scarlet McSwain homered to center in second with Ashley Morgan on base to put the Lady Vols ahead 2-1. They added to the lead in each successive inning, culminating with Meghan Gregg’s game-ending two-run homer.
The Lady Vols totaled 13 hits, with Abby Lockman and Chelsea Seggern hitting Tennessee’s other homers.
“I think the first one Scarlet McSwain hit, that was kind of the answer back,” Karen Weekly said. “They get their run on the board with a home run that just barely made it out. I think that was key that we answered back. That moment is something that’s infectious.
“But I think today our kids were really locked in pitch to pitch. So you didn’t sense any emotional swings, up or down, with at-bats.”
Tennessee totaled 13 hits in the contest. The loss forced James Madison to play another game under the Saturday afternoon sun, with Ohio winning 7-3 to eliminate the Dukes, but the Lady Vols were able to go home and catch up on the sleep they missed because of Friday’s late game and Saturday’s early start.
“I think it’s something that needs to be looked at and changed, because I don’t think it’s to the student-athletes’ welfare to have to play on such a short turnaround,” Karen Weekly said. “But we did not mention that to our players. What we told our players at the end of the game yesterday is that you need to go home and go to bed right away.”
Contact David Cobb at dcobb@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @DavidWCobb and on Facebook at facebook.com/volsupdate.