Tyler Fay’s career-high 6.0 innings pitched paced the Crimson Tide to a 4-1 victory
5/20/2025
HOOVER, AL – No. 9 seed Alabama baseball, led by starting pitcher Tyler Fay, opened its run at the 2025 Southeastern Conference Tournament with a 4-1 win over No. 16 seed Missouri at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium on Tuesday. The win improves the Crimson Tide to 41-16 overall, as Alabama advances to the second round of the SEC Tournament.
Fay (1-2) picked up his first win of 2025 on Tuesday, and deservedly so. The redshirt sophomore tallied a career-high 6.0 innings while matching his career-best strikeout total with six punchouts. Fay's lone blemish was a solo home run in the third, as the big right-hander scattered five hits while issuing just one walk. Matthew Heiberger relieved Fay in the seventh, managing a pair of outs before Braylon Myers stranded the tying run at third to end the inning. Myers allowed just one hit while striking out two in 1.1 innings of relief. Carson Ozmer took the baseball in the final inning, leaving the bases loaded to notch his 17th save of the season.
Justin Lebron reached base in all four of his plate appearances, finishing 1-for-1 with an RBI single and three walks. Kade Snellalso produced an RBI knock as part of a two-run fourth, as his run-scoring single gave the Tide its first lead of the afternoon. Will Hodo was 0-for-2, though the senior worked a walk and lifted an important sacrifice fly in the seventh. Brady Neal was one of two Alabama players to contribute multiple hits, going 2-for-4 with a solo home run. Brennen Norton also managed two hits in the nine-hole, closing his day 2-for-4.
From Head Coach Rob Vaughn
I thought Tyler Fay was absolutely outstanding today. That was the story of the day because we didn't have a lot going off (Sam) Horn. (Justin Lebron) gets a huge two-out hit to get us on the board. Kade (Snell) follows it up with another one, but you don't get that unless you have Tyler Fay do what he did right there, which is go out and just pound the strike zone, execute pitches on short rest. What an unbelievable year (Fay's) had up to this point, started in the pen, was kind of moved into the rotation on short rest at LSU and turned in an unbelievable start there. And every time he touches the baseball, he gives us a chance to win, and I know our team is very comfortable playing behind him. He keeps getting better. He's a competitor, he's tough, he's all those things you look for out of a starting pitcher. Proud of how we executed today, proud of how we grinded that game out. It was a game of attrition. You're just fighting to get to the next day. And we got Tennessee tomorrow morning, so we'll get rested up and get ready to go for a good one tomorrow.
How It Happened
-UA-
RTR,
Diamond Tide
5/20/2025
HOOVER, AL – No. 9 seed Alabama baseball, led by starting pitcher Tyler Fay, opened its run at the 2025 Southeastern Conference Tournament with a 4-1 win over No. 16 seed Missouri at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium on Tuesday. The win improves the Crimson Tide to 41-16 overall, as Alabama advances to the second round of the SEC Tournament.
Fay (1-2) picked up his first win of 2025 on Tuesday, and deservedly so. The redshirt sophomore tallied a career-high 6.0 innings while matching his career-best strikeout total with six punchouts. Fay's lone blemish was a solo home run in the third, as the big right-hander scattered five hits while issuing just one walk. Matthew Heiberger relieved Fay in the seventh, managing a pair of outs before Braylon Myers stranded the tying run at third to end the inning. Myers allowed just one hit while striking out two in 1.1 innings of relief. Carson Ozmer took the baseball in the final inning, leaving the bases loaded to notch his 17th save of the season.
Justin Lebron reached base in all four of his plate appearances, finishing 1-for-1 with an RBI single and three walks. Kade Snellalso produced an RBI knock as part of a two-run fourth, as his run-scoring single gave the Tide its first lead of the afternoon. Will Hodo was 0-for-2, though the senior worked a walk and lifted an important sacrifice fly in the seventh. Brady Neal was one of two Alabama players to contribute multiple hits, going 2-for-4 with a solo home run. Brennen Norton also managed two hits in the nine-hole, closing his day 2-for-4.
From Head Coach Rob Vaughn
I thought Tyler Fay was absolutely outstanding today. That was the story of the day because we didn't have a lot going off (Sam) Horn. (Justin Lebron) gets a huge two-out hit to get us on the board. Kade (Snell) follows it up with another one, but you don't get that unless you have Tyler Fay do what he did right there, which is go out and just pound the strike zone, execute pitches on short rest. What an unbelievable year (Fay's) had up to this point, started in the pen, was kind of moved into the rotation on short rest at LSU and turned in an unbelievable start there. And every time he touches the baseball, he gives us a chance to win, and I know our team is very comfortable playing behind him. He keeps getting better. He's a competitor, he's tough, he's all those things you look for out of a starting pitcher. Proud of how we executed today, proud of how we grinded that game out. It was a game of attrition. You're just fighting to get to the next day. And we got Tennessee tomorrow morning, so we'll get rested up and get ready to go for a good one tomorrow.
How It Happened
- T4 | Missouri opened the scoring with a one-out solo home run (1-0, Missouri)
- B4 | With two outs, Brennen Norton singled and Bryce Fowler worked a walk before consecutive RBI singles by Justin Lebron and Kade Snell gave the Tide its first lead of the day. (2-1, Alabama)
- B7 | Snell reached base on a fielder's choice, later advancing to third after a single and a wild pitch. Will Hodo took advantage of the scoring chance, lifting a sacrifice fly to left. (3-1, Alabama)
- B8 | Brady Neal led off the inning with a solo home run to straightaway center. (4-1, Alabama)
- The Crimson Tide improved to 20-19 all-time in the opening round of SEC postseason play
- Justin Lebron's RBI single in the fourth stands as his 70th RBI of the season, the most by a shortstop in a single season in program history, surpassing the previous record of 69 set by Josh Rutledge in 2010
- Lebron also matched his career-high with three walks, the third time in his career and the second occasion this season he's earned three walks
- Lebron extended his hitting streak to six consecutive games, batting .429 (9-for-21), with two doubles, two home runs, eight RBI, five walks and seven runs scored in that span
- Kade Snell increased his team-leading hit total to 75 while also reaching base for the 50th time out of his 55 games this season
- Richie Bonomolo Jr. drew two walks on Tuesday, as he now has 40 walks this season
- Bonomolo Jr. has now reached base in 52 of 56 games so far in 2025
- Bryce Fowler increased his on-base streak to nine games
- Alabama will turn around and play No. 8 seed Tennessee in the second round of the SEC Tournament on Wednesday, May 21
- First pitch between the Crimson Tide and Volunteers is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. CT, airing on SEC Network
-UA-
RTR,
Diamond Tide
