What to watch for: South Carolina softball begins NCAA Regional play
This was always the goal for South Carolina softball. A shot at redemption. Proving it wasn’t a pushover.
At first, it seemed like it would be an uphill battle. The Gamecocks had finished dead-last in the SEC each of the previous two years. It was going to take better play down the stretch to reach their goal.
And that’s what they did. After jumping out to a 28-5 start in non-conference play, the Gamecocks finished 9-15 in SEC play and made a big run in the conference tournament to get back to the postseason for the first time since 2019.
Starting Friday night, South Carolina will embark on what it hopes will be a long journey to the Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City.
Here are some things to watch for heading into the NCAA Tournament.
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Can South Carolina build off SEC Tournament success?
The Gamecocks went into Fayetteville in need of getting some wins to solidify themselves as a true postseason contender. It would be tough, though, as the No. 10 seed.
It started with a 1-0 win over Texas A&M in extra innings. Then they did it again the next night, pulling off an upset against No. 2 seed Georgia, winning 2-1 in eight innings. It was the first time they had won back-to-back extra inning games since 2007.
In the blink of an eye, South Carolina found itself with a chance to compete for a championship.
But it wasn’t going to be easy. The Gamecocks, trailing by a run, were down to their final out against No. 3 seed Auburn in the semifinals. Jordan Fabian was their last hope.
On a 1-1 pitch over the heart of the plate, Fabian lifted a two-run homer to lead South Carolina to a date in the championship game with Tennessee.
The Cinderella run would come to an end the next day, as the Gamecocks fell to the Volunteers. But despite the tough loss, it was an incredible week for a team that got hot at the right time.
“They now see what their hard work has done and it’s paid off,” head coach Beverly Smith said. “And they can see the little things that we’ve been talking about, the details. Sometimes the difference between a win and a loss in a ballgame. So I think it’s given them tremendous confidence.”
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Heading back to familiar territory
When South Carolina begins play on Friday, it will take place in a spot it knows all too well. It will play in the Tallahassee Regional for the fifth time since 2014.
“We were just so so excited to hear our names and we honestly don’t care where we go. We’re just ready to get going,” Fabian said.
It’ll be a full-circle moment for Fabian when she steps onto JoAnne Graf Field. She was a freshman when the Gamecocks last played in Tallahassee. In that tournament, they reached the Regional Finals before being eliminated by Florida State. Fast forward five years, she’s now a season veteran looking to help her team win.
“That was the last regional we went to. That was a heartbreaker down there my freshman year whenever we finished our season down there,” Fabian said. “But we’re super excited. It does feel like a full-circle moment because I mean, like I said, we weren’t expecting go to Tallahassee, but we’re excited for it and we’re ready to go.”
Fabian will enter the tournament in a bit of a funk. Besides the go-ahead home run, she went 0-for-12 with nine strikeouts in the SEC Tournament.
It’s been a down year offensively for her but the Gamecocks will be counting on her experience to guide them through this stretch.
“I think Jordan Fabian for us has been an outstanding leader. She’s a senior leader for us,” Smith said. “I was glad to see Jordan come up with a big hit to send us to the championship round, which was great.”
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Donnie Gobourne solidifying herself as South Carolina’s go-to pitcher
Donnie Gobourne came to South Carolina to be a piece to puzzle of the pitching staff. Her numbers at Florida Atlantic weren’t eye-popping. She was just an average pitcher.
But something clicked for her this season.
She developed a changeup with the help of Smith, something she previously didn’t have in her repertoire. It took some time for her to adjust, but once she did, she became nearly unhittable.
“I think it was definitely the LSU game,” Gobourne said about a 4-2 win over the Tigers on March 13. “It was our first SEC series and I was nervous, I didn’t think I was going to do as well. But I struck out 10 of their batters.”
Then Smith told her something that pointed her in the right direction from that point on.
“So many times, I’ve said that exact thing — This is what you’re here for,” Smith said.
Gobourne has been nothing short of fantastic in her lone season as a Gamecock. She’s pitching to a 2.15 ERA with 189 strikeouts in 120.2 innings, while throwing seven complete games.
And when her team needed her most, she delivered.
In the SEC Tournament, Gobourne pitched four times, giving up zero runs over 16.2 innings. She struck out 24 and only allowed eight hits.
“It’s so much fun,” Fabian said. “We have so much confidence in her, and she gives us so much energy on the mound. So it’s super easy to play behind somebody like Donnie.”
Once more, South Carolina will be relying on Gobourne to keep pitching the way she has to have any shot at winning.
“Last weekend showed a lot of my potential. So I’m just ready to see what we face this weekend,” Gobourne said.
What’s next
It’s shaping up to be a busy weekend for South Carolina, who will face UCF in the opening round of the Tallahassee Regional Friday night. First pitch is at 7 p.m. on ESPN2.
From there, the Gamecocks, who are the No. 3 team in the bracket, will either face the host Florida State or Marist on Saturday.
Just like in college baseball, it’s a double-elimination tournament. The winners and losers of Friday’s games will play the next day, with an elimination game coming in the last game. The championship will be played on Sunday, with the team coming out of the loser’s bracket needing to win twice.
