Tennessee softball’s 19-1 exhibition win over Northeast Alabama on Friday night offered another glimpse of how the Lady Vols’ offseason work is translating to the field.
For Gabby Leach, that progress has come through added strength and adjustments to her swing. Erin Nuwer, meanwhile, has been experimenting with new pitches and embracing a different mindset in the circle.
Both players also pointed to the team’s growing depth and the adjustments Tennessee is learning to make throughout fall competition.
Following the Lady Vols’ fourth fall exhibition, Leach and Nuwer discussed their individual development, the impact of offseason changes, and what they’re seeing from their teammates.
Here’s what both players had to say.
Gabby Leach
On what Tennessee is gaining from its fall exhibitions…
“We’ve played a lot of games so far, and it’s just been a lot of good work being put in. Getting these 10-inning games in, it’s a long time, but you get to see it all play out. It gives everyone a chance to be out here showing our skills off, getting to see the new freshmen, the newcomers in, just all of it play together and how we all play together as a team. So it’s just been really fun.”
On getting stronger during the offseason…
“I will say I’ve gotten stronger. We have a new strength coach, Rhett, and he’s been amazing. He’s really pushed us in this offseason, and it’s been so exciting to see each other grow and how much stronger we’re getting, how much faster we’re getting in the weight room. It’s been really cool, and getting to see it play out on the field has been awesome.”
On increasing exit velocity and her home run against Northeast Alabama…
“That’s been a big thing this fall, getting our exit velocities up and hitting. So just really working on that and getting stronger. I think the home run I had was 79, and I’m pushing for 80. We’re trying to get hard-hit balls every time, so swinging as hard as we can has just really been the goal.”
On the confusion surrounding her home run…
“Home runs, I feel like, are supposed to be fun. You get to jog around. I know they were having a hard time seeing if it went out or not, but I knew it went out because I heard it. But just them throwing the ball, it was a little chaotic. But it was funny. We all laughed.”
On working with Tennessee’s new hitting coach…
“It’s been really fun getting to see this new swing that he’s implementing in our hitting groups. It’s been awesome. He is really big on having competitive games. It’s a competition every time we go in there, so it’s really pushing us to play against each other, and we get to see it play out in practice as well. He’s just been really, really good at letting us keep our own swing, but he’s tweaking those little things. So it’s not like he’s changing anything major.
“That part has been really nice, that he’s working with us individually, but then making us hit better as a team by getting us on plane. We’re learning how to hit that rise ball. I know we struggled a lot with that. Last year, we had very much drop-ball swings. So he’s been really good at letting us learn how to hit these new pitches that we’re going to see later on in SEC when the competition gets higher.”
On Tennessee’s adjustments against Northeast Alabama’s starting pitcher…
“I think we were really slow to make adjustments at first, so that part we had to get on to each other. Just being about, like, if we see two pop-ups in a row, we’re hitting this next one on the ground. So just making those adjustments quicker was something that we were talking about as a team together. But just really making the adjustments pitch to pitch, at-bat to at-bat. Learning from each other is just our biggest thing going into these games against good pitching.”
On how the new hitting instruction has helped Tennessee make adjustments…
“Oh yeah. I think he’s finding a way. The terminology he’s using is just different, and it’s working different for each person. That part’s really, really exciting because you look at hitting in a new way. I’ve had multiple coaches throughout my years here, so getting to have a coach that, like, it’s just so exciting going into hitting every day and getting to learn and know myself in a different way that I never knew, but it’s working. So getting to go out here on the field and use what he’s teaching us is awesome.”
On which players have taken the biggest offensive steps forward…
“Emma’s been doing an amazing job. She’s really diving into what he is teaching us, so I’ve seen most of it from her. A few of the freshmen too. I know they didn’t have past coaches here, but they really are implementing what he is teaching, and it’s really cool to see how they’re growing as they got here.”
On freshman Avary Stockwell who has recorded three home runs over the last two exhibitions…
“Just a calm presence. She is so calm in the box. A lot of times it’s hard being a freshman coming in here, freaking out. It’s a new environment that you’re around. So she’s just been super calm, and I think she takes feedback really well. When she’s talking to [the coach], he’s giving her that feedback, and she takes it and she makes the adjustment. So I’m really proud of her in that sense.”
Erin Nuwer
On her confidence and the work she’s put in during fall ball…
“Feeling pretty confident. I’ve been working a lot this fall with Megan, just testing out new pitches and new techniques. It’s been really successful for me out there, so I’ve been liking it a lot.”
On whether she used any of those new pitches against Northeast Alabama…
“Yes, I did. It’s not perfect yet, but it’s definitely getting there.”
On the specific pitches she’s developing…
“I’m working on a hard rise ball because mine’s slow right now, and the results are OK.”
On her performance in the circle…
“It felt good. Just getting ahead was really helpful for me tonight, keeping them off balance and just not getting too deep into counts. Keeping my pitch count really low was really helpful.”
On Payton Hardenburger’s performance in relief…
“She was awesome. She’s such a competitor, and it’s really fun to watch her. Just like her missing all of fall last year, it’s been really great to just see her evolve.”
On what she’s focused on improving beyond developing new pitches…
“Just trying not to take it too serious. I feel like last year I was really serious about a lot of things, but this year I feel like I’m just kind of being like, it’s just softball at the end of the day. You never know when it’s going to stop or when it’s going to end, and just embracing every opportunity I get out there.”
On how playing with less pressure has impacted her approach…
“I think it’s really big to not put too much pressure on yourself because everybody that we play is really good. Just having fun out there, it’s easy to make games out of it and have a lot more fun.”
On Tennessee’s depth entering the upcoming season…
“I think we have a ton of depth. The freshmen have really stepped up. Some of our sophomores and just underclassmen, and then obviously our transfers have just been killing it. I feel like we’ve just been putting in a lot of work in the fall. It’s really hard. It’s long, and we practice a ton. It’s easy to get caught up in just practicing, practicing. But when we get to play, it’s really cool to see it all pay off.”
On the identity of Tennessee’s pitching staff…
“Attack, attack, attack.”
On her goals for Tennessee’s pitching staff…
“We want to be very good about our attack, like I talked about. Just competing, keeping as many people off base as possible, keeping our pitch count as low as possible, and then just once again, having fun. We all love each other so much, and we’re all really, really good friends, so it’s easy to bounce ideas off of them.”
On developing chemistry with Tennessee’s infield…
“It’s been great. Carly and Emma are all really loud, and I feel like we have really great chemistry. We make really good eye contact in between plays, and they’re really good at communicating. No matter if it’s going good, if it’s going bad, they always come up to you and they let you know they have your back, which is really important.”
On Elsa Morrison’s development behind the plate…
“You saw it tonight. She took like two balls off the knee and one off the chest. I feel like she’s super tough back there. She doesn’t even wince, and her frames are also incredible. And Avary’s also been doing really well too, learning from Elsa.”
