On Wednesday, the Yellow Jackets (18-7), led by Morales and riding a 15-game winning streak, head to Athens for a showdown with rival Georgia. The Bulldogs (20-3) are projected to be ranked No. 6 in the national poll. Somewhat unexpectedly, Tech entered the Softball America Top 25 this week at No. 25.
This is the first time in 12 years that a jacket has been ranked.
“Do I think they're performing and playing at a very high level right now? Absolutely. I think our swing, pitching and play right now is pretty solid,” Morales said. “Do you think the skills and players we have (in the ranks) are what we can do?” Yes. Did you think they would hit the momentum that we have now? That may not necessarily be the case.
“It's great to see them play so well together and play really good team softball. It's been fun and it's been fun to coach them when they're on the right side for a lot of games. ”
Morales, in his seventh season leading the Jackets, brought on three new assistant coaches (including Buford High graduate Kelsey Bennett) in the offseason to take the team to another level. Tech University advanced to the NCAA Regionals in 2022, but withdrew from the postseason in 2023 due to injuries and poor health.
But with the return of a good core of Tech's team, Morales crammed into the front of Tech's schedule. Morales said this tactic was done intentionally to challenge the team against the always tough ACC. The Jackets started 3-7 with losses to Alabama (twice), Stanford, LSU, and Northwestern.
However, on February 21st, Tech defeated Georgia State at home, ending the losing streak at four. The Jackets haven't lost since. The 15-game winning streak includes conference wins over Pittsburgh at home and North Carolina State on the road.
Morales attributed much of the success to chemistry and the players' acceptance to do what's best for the team every day.
“I think they've done a great job of being accepted and being supportive and being great teammates, no matter what their role was that day. I think that was huge,” she said. “It's not just one person. It's a whole team effort and they're really embracing their team identity with it. It's been so fun to see different people show up and rise up and be great at different times. It was.”
Tech relies on a quartet of arms from the circle who have at least 10 appearances and at least four wins. Junior Kinsey Norton has a 2.12 ERA, junior Sophia Boyles has held opponents to a .215 average, senior Blake Neleman has struck out a team-high 38 batters, and senior Chandler Dennis has 3. Recording saves.
Tech's offense is led by senior Mallory Black's .434 batting average, junior Madison Dobbins' 34 RBIs and senior Sarah Beth Allen's .910 slugging percentage. Black, Dobbins and Allen each have nine home runs. But Morales said perhaps the team's unsung offensive hero was junior leadoff hitter Ella Edgmon, who had a .521 on-base percentage and eight stolen bases.
All of this led to the second-longest winning streak in program history (the Jackets won 19 straight in 2007) and their first national ranking since 2012. Whether or not that winning streak continues this week, Tech still has its primary mission remaining.
“Our goal is to compete for a conference championship. At the end of the day, that's the number one goal,” Morales said. “With six more weeks of conference play, can we continue to find different ways to win? Can we continue to be successful when faced with different offenses and weapons? Obviously. The goal is always to get to the postseason and beyond. But it's early in the season and we're just getting better each time we play.”
After Wednesday's game against Georgia at 6 p.m., Tech will host Notre Dame in a three-game series, before playing Charleston Southern, Coastal Carolina, North Carolina, Kennesaw State, and Syracuse. Nine consecutive games will continue until the end of the month.
But before that, the Jackets have a rivalry to watch, and the 2024 rivalry has a little more momentum than past seasons.
“How cool would it be to have a top 25 matchup in our state?” Morales said. “And how big is it for our state to be able to compete at that level?”
