Clemson defeats Kentucky 5-1 to advance to 3rd Super Regional in 4 seasons
CLEMSON, S.C. (Clemson SID) – The Clemson Softball team defeated the Kentucky Wildcats (31-28), 5-1, to claim a Regional title in McWhorter Stadium and advance to the Super Regional round for the third time in program history in just five full seasons. The Tigers (47-12) improved to 9-1 all-time in home NCAA games, and defeated each of the three teams – USC Upstate (10-2), Northwestern (1-0) and Kentucky (5-1) – by allowing just three runs.
Reese Basinger (17-5) earned the win in the circle, and Brooke McCubbin retired all four batters she faced to record her fourth save of the season. Freshman Marian Collins went 3-for-3 with a walk and went 8-for-9 with two walks in the three games overall. Fellow freshman Taylor Pipkins launched a three-run homer to extend Clemson's lead to 3-0, while Julia Knowler, Maddie Moore and Kylee Johnson each drove in a run.
The Tigers, the 2025 ACC Champion, advance to play No. 6 National Seed Texas (48-10) in Austin, Texas at the Red and Charline McCombs Softball Field. Dates and times of the super will be announced at a later date once all regionals are completed.
On Sunday, both programs looked to do some damage in the second inning as Clemson loaded the bases with two outs and Kentucky advanced a player to third with two outs. Both pitchers forced fly outs to left field to end the inning unscathed.
The Tigers broke open the scoring in the top of the third inning off of Julia Knowler's program-record 18th double of the year. She drove in Alex Brown, who singled and advanced on a wild pitch earlier that inning. The Wildcats tried to respond in the bottom of the frame after once again getting a runner on third, but Basinger sat Hallie Mitchell down with her second inning-ending strikeout to leave her stranded. Basinger finished the day with three strikeouts, all of which were the final out of their respective innings (first, third and fourth).
Clemson extended its lead in the fourth after Collins and Pipkins delivered at the plate. Collins drew a five-pitch walk to leadoff the inning, and Pipkins blasted her fourth home run of the year 232 feet out of left center to make it 3-0 with no outs. Senior Maddie Moore delivered an RBI double down the right field line to score Brown to make it 4-0 after four. This extended Moore's program-record RBI count to 66, while Brown extended her program-record runs scored count to 66.
Kentucky got one back in the bottom of the sixth to chase Basinger, bringing in McCubbin. The Tiger hurler got Ella Emmert swinging to limit the damage.
The Tigers tacked on a run in the seventh, loading the bases with nobody out, and Macey Cintron scored from third on a Kylee Johnson fielder's choice.
Eight pitches were all that were needed for McCubbin to retire the bottom of the seventh with three groundouts to seal the 5-1 victory for the Tigers.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
2 hours ago
- USA Today
Josh Pearson delivers a storybook performance in Game 1 of super regional
Josh Pearson delivers a storybook performance in Game 1 of super regional When Josh Pearson's name was called, he was ready. The veteran outfielder was tabbed to bat leadoff in Game 1 of the Baton Rouge Super Regional vs. West Virginia. The move was one of several lineup adjustments made by head coach Jay Johnson as the Tigers prepared to face lefty Griffin Kirn. The shuffle included moving Derek Curiel, the typical leadoff man, to the No. 7 hole. Johnson was rewarded for the move with Pearson and Curiel having big days, combining for nine of LSU's 16 RBI. Pearson had two of LSU's biggest hits. He started the rally in the fifth with a leadoff single. The next inning, he hit a grand slam. Seeing Pearson's name atop the lineup caught some by surprise. Pearson saw just four AB's in LSU's regional and had just two hits since May 4. That's usually not the resume of a leadoff hitter in a Super Regional with a trip to Omaha on the line. But Johnson had no doubts. "He's a good player. He's a good hitter. Character, makeup, toughness, raised right, best parents in the world," Johnson said. It can be tough for rotational players to find a rhythm being in and out of the lineup -- but not for Pearson. "He's always ready when we call his name," Johnson said, "He had a good series at South Carolina. He started two of those games. He's the best. He's just the best." Pearson said Johnson texted him on Friday night to tell him he would be in the lineup, but Pearson didn't learn he was batting leadoff until he showed up at the ballpark. "Really, nothing changes. Every day, I kind of show up to the field as if I would be in the lineup at some part of the lineup," Pearson said. Pearson has been around for a long time. He's one of the few holdovers from LSU's 2023 national title team and has been with Johnson since the start at LSU. "Will be odd not having him here. I mean, because that's my only guy. I mean, the four years together, like, that's it," Johnson said. Curiel, a standout true freshman, took a liking to Pearson early. "I'm super proud of Josh," Curiel said, "Josh has been a leader on this team since day one, since I've gotten here. He kind of taught me the ropes, you know, and I look up to him a lot. Two years ago, last year, watching him on TV, I wanted to be his teammate. I wanted to be his friend and he's been like a brother to me." If that was Pearson's final game at Alex Box Stadium, it was a heck of a way to go out. But with the way Pearson swung the bat on Saturday, don't be surprised if he gets a chance to do more damage on Sunday. "It's been awesome. These have been the most fun four years of my life. I wouldn't trade it for anything. I'm going to miss the box. I'm going to miss playing in the box. We've still got one game tomorrow, so we're going to make the most of it for sure.
USA Today
3 hours ago
- USA Today
Jay Johnson's lineup shuffle pays off for LSU baseball in Game 1 vs. West Virginia
Jay Johnson's lineup shuffle pays off for LSU baseball in Game 1 vs. West Virginia LSU baseball head coach Jay Johnson mixed up the Tigers' lineup once again in Saturday's super regional win over West Virginia. Referencing the "56-game" approach to every season, Johnson said each player buys into their role no matter if they're in the regular season or playoffs. "I just think it speaks to good players, mental strength, attitude, team over me, understand their job and what's required of them and being trained for it," Johnson said. "There's a lot that goes into it." Against the Mountaineers' left-handed starting pitcher Griffin Kirn, Josh Pearson batted leadoff with Derek Curiel taking up the seven hole. The latter occupied the top spot for most of the season but Curiel wasn't rattled as he finished with five RBI and three hits, including a home run. "I just approached the game how we approach the game all the time," Curiel said. "Whether I'm batting first, second, seventh, just trying to go up there and do my job. [I] feel like I executed that well today and that was just the plan." Along the same lines, Pearson remained ready for his opportunity to make an impact during the postseason and learned he'd be starting from Johnson on Friday. With Kirn on the bump, he batted in four runs on two hits and scored two runs himself. "Every day I kind of show up to the field as if I would be in the lineup," Pearson said. "[I] came today ready to go and saw my name in the leadoff spot and I knew I had a job to do and I had to get the job done." LSU returns to action on Sunday, looking to punch its ticket to the College World Series.
USA Today
4 hours ago
- USA Today
Auburn basketball jumps in ESPN's preseason rankings following Tahaad Pettiford's decision
Auburn basketball jumps in ESPN's preseason rankings following Tahaad Pettiford's decision ESPN's Jeff Borzello feels that Auburn will be a strong squad with Tahaad Pettiford in its lineup. In a world without Tahaad Pettiford, the Auburn Tigers looked primed to take a major step back from the success of a Final Four season in 2024-2025. With the sophomore sharpshooter back on board after withdrawing his name from the NBA Draft, Bruce Pearl's team is now talented enough to strive towards replicating last year's run. Many experts across the college basketball world agree, as the Tigers have jumped up early rankings after the news last season's fantastic freshman would "run it back" in 2025-26. One of those experts ESPN's Jeff Borzello, recently tabbed the Tigers as the No. 14 team in the country, which also happens to be fourth in the SEC. The No. 14 Tigers trail the defending champion Florida Gators (No. 2), Kentucky Wildcats (No. 9) and Arkansas Razorbacks (No. 11) among the SEC programs on the list. Alabama (No. 17) and Tennessee (No. 23) are the only other ranked teams from the conference. Three other squads on Auburn's 2025-2026 schedule rank ahead of the Tigers as well, with No. 1 ranked Purdue and last year's runner up Houston (No. 3) rounding out Borzello's trio at the top. Arizona, who the Tigers will begin a home-and-home series with this year, ranks one spot ahead of Auburn, at No. 13. Despite Auburn beating all but one of those teams (Florida) last season, Borzello explains the ranking was due to "Bruce Pearl's roster faces an overhaul" as he cited the sudden departure of Chad Baker-Mazara as a major loss. Still, Pearl's additions of Texas Tech guard Kevin Overton, UCF forward and BIG 12 leading scorer Keyshawn Hall, and Mississippi State forward KeShawn Murphy give Auburn proven, Power 4, big time talent. It is important to note preseason rankings, specifically ones done in June, aren't often accurate. Auburn's ranking at the No. 14 spot should say more about the Tigers ability to reload and make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament again than it does indicate a step back. For reference, Bruce Pearl's squad was ranked all the way back at No. 18 in last season's preseason AP Poll. Contact/Follow us @TheAuburnWire on X (Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Auburn news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Brian on Twitter@TheRealBHauch
