TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama softball took home two wins Friday at the Spring Break Showdown, shutting out Louisiana, 3-0, before hitting five home runs en route to a 12-3 win in six innings over Iowa.

In the first game of the day, Alabama (18-6) and Louisiana (11-9) were scoreless through three innings until an RBI triple from Brooke Ellestad and a two-run homer from Marlie Giles put the Crimson Tide in the run column in the bottom of the fourth. That proved enough cushion for Jocelyn Briski in the circle (6-5), as she went the distance with the three-hit shutout, her first career complete game shutout.

Iowa (14-6) got on the board in the opening frame of game two with an RBI single but the Crimson Tide responded quickly in the bottom half of the inning with a pair of home runs from Kali Heivilin and Ellestad to move ahead 4-1. The Hawkeyes got two unearned runs in the top of the third, but Alabama answered right back in the bottom half again with Heivilin’s second homer of the day, a two-run shot to left to make it 6-3. Catelyn Riley got in on the home run action with a solo shot in the fifth to make it 7-3, and then brought home another run in the sixth after an RBI single to right field. Later in the same inning, a wild pitch to score Alexis Pupillo and an RBI triple from Kali Heivilin made it 10-3 before Ellestad ended the game early with a two-run home run to bring the final score to 12-3.

“Jocelyn Briski had her first complete game shutout as an Alabama pitcher in the first game. She pitched in and out of trouble to preserve the shutout. In the second game, batters four through six collectively, had five home runs and a bunch of RBIs. It was amazing to watch”

Highlights

• Alabama extended its winning streak to 12 games
• The five home runs vs. Iowa were the most in a game for the Tide since Feb. 12, 2022 at Arizona
• Catelyn Riley, Kali Heivilin and Brooke Ellestad had three hits each vs. Louisiana, batting fourth, fifth and sixth in the order, respectively
• Heivilin was 3-for-3 vs. the Ragin Cajuns with two home runs and a triple, driving in a career-high six RBIs as the first Alabama player to do so since Claire Jenkins vs. Texas A&M on April 2, 2021
• The game was also Heivilin’s first two home run game, the first for any Tide player since Marlie Giles last season vs. UAB (Feb. 25, 2024)
• Brooke Ellestad was a combined 5-for-7 on the day, adding a pair of multi-hit games to push her season total to nine, which is tied with Audrey Vandagriff for the team lead
• Vandagriff reached base safely in both games, extending her streak to 12 games, while also swiping two bases to push her NCAA-leading season total to 29 stolen bases
• The complete-game shutout over Louisiana was the first of Jocelyn Briski’s career

Scoring Summary: Alabama 3, Louisiana 0

• B4 | Brooke Ellestad hit an RBI triple into the left field corner (1-0, 1 Out)
• B4 | Marlie Giles blasted a two-run home run to left (3-0, 1 Out)

Scoring Summary: Alabama 12, Iowa 3 (6 INN.)

• T1 | Soo-Jin Berry pulled an RBI single through the right side (0-1, 0 Out)
• B1 | Kali Heivilin sent a sky-high three run home run to center field (3-1, 2 Out)
• B1 | Brooke Ellestad followed with a solo home run in the next at-bat (4-1, 2 Out)
• T3 | A two-out error brought in an unearned run (4-2, 2 Out)
• T3 | A double in the gap drove in another run (4-3, 2 Out)
• B3 | Heivilin hit her second home run of the day, a two-run shot to left (6-3, 0 Out)
• B5 | Catelyn Riley roped a solo home run to left field (7-3, 1 Out)
• B6 | Riley dropped an RBI single into right center (8-3, 2 Out)
• B6 | Alexis Pupillo scored from third on a wild pitch (9-3, 2 Out)
• B6 | Heivilin roped an RBI triple to left center (10-3, 2 Out)
• B6 | Ellestad blasted a two-run home run to left field (12-3, 2 Out)

Up Next: Spring Break Showdown (Tuscaloosa, Ala.)

• Saturday, March 8 vs. Iowa – 1 p.m. CT
• Saturday, March 8 vs. Louisiana – 3 p.m. CT