Notebook: Rogers perfect, Lady Vols sweep doubleheader

No. 14 Tennessee had no problem taking care of business Saturday afternoon at the Lady Vol Challenge, shutting out East Carolina 8-0 before taking down UNC Greensboro 4-2 at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium. 

There were many standout performances for the Lady Vols (32-13, 11-6 SEC), but here are three takeaways from an exciting day of softball.

Rogers is officially back

Coming into the season, Lady Vol pitcher Ashley Rogers was a preseason All-American and the team's clear number one pitcher, but injuries early in the year held her back and led to Graduate senior Erin Edmoundson taking over as the teams ace. While Edmoundson is still no doubt the team’s leader in the circle with 18 wins on the year, Rogers is finally looking like the player she was projected to be. 

After not appearing in the Texas A&M series, Rogers came back Wednesday night against No. 3 Virginia Tech in relief of Edmoundson in the fourth inning. She allowed just two runs and struck out six against one of the best teams in the country, giving fans a small taste of what was to come. 

Rogers blew the high expectations away Saturday in game one against East Carolina when she pitched a five-inning perfect game. It was the 13th perfect game thrown by a Lady Vol, but the most impressive thing is that she struck out 12 of the 15 batters she faced.

“Perfect game from Ashley Rogers,” Tennessee head coach Karen Weekly said. “She just pitched a gem but what I was most impressed with was her efficiency.”

Davis impresses again

Graduate senior Ivy Davis Shined on Saturday, recording four RBIs across the two games. In game one against East Carolina, Davis slammed in a two-run home run in the second to give Tennessee a 3-0 lead, and then followed that up with an RBI single in the third that put the Lady Vols ahead 7-0. 

In fame two against UNCG, Davis didn’t record a hit, but she did have a pivotal sacrifice ground-out in the fourth that extended the Tennessee lead to 4-2. 

“It’s pretty cool being able to put someone that talented and that skilled in the nine spot," Weekly said. "It’s just such a great example of if you stick to your process and don’t let things get you down, good things eventually happen." 

Today’s results brought her RBI total on the year to 33 and her home run total to nine and continued her hot streak from the Texas A&M series where she drove in two runs in game one of the Lady Vols' win. 

Elite one-two punch in the circle

Not only did Rogers record a perfect game, her partner in crime Erin Edmoundson also played a complete game against UNCG. In seven innings, Edmoundson allowed just two runs on six hits while striking out 10 Spartan batters. 

Tennessee’s pitcher combined for 22 strike-outs on the day across the two games, further showing that when Rogers is healthy the Lady Vols have one of the very best one-two punches in the entire country.