Former Duke softball star Jala Wright joining Tennessee as a graduate assistant

Jala Wright, last season’s ACC Pitcher of the Year, revealed on Tuesday that she’ll serve as a graduate assistant for Tennessee.

Former Duke softball star [autotag]Jala Wright[/autotag] isn’t giving up the college game quite yet.

Wright announced through social media on Tuesday that she would join the Tennessee program as a graduate assistant for the upcoming season. She paired the announcement on X (the social media platform formerly known as Twitter) with a screenshot of her acceptance into the school’s graduate program.

“This game I love continues to bless me in more ways than one,” Wright wrote. “Grateful to give back to the game in a different way!”

Wright authored one of the best pitching seasons in Duke history as a senior this past year, finishing the season with a 19-3 record and a 1.50 ERA. She averaged 8.6 strikeouts per seven innings in the circle and tossed eight complete games, and she earned ACC Pitcher of the Year honors for her work. She also contributed to Duke’s first trip to the Women’s College World Series.

Wright has also kept Duke fans updated on her new professional career with the Texas Smoke, posting about her first practice and other updates.

Duke softball adds Claire Davidson, Jala Wright, and Aminah Vega to the stadium wall

Duke’s best softball season featured career years from three Blue Devils, and the All-Americans were immortalized at Duke Softball Stadium on Sunday.

The three biggest pieces from Duke’s historic 2024 season will forever be a part of program history.

The team revealed that Claire Davidson, Jala Wright, and Aminah Vega each got an image of their jersey up on the Duke Softball Stadium wall after they each earned All-American honors last season.

Only four Duke softball players made the wall as All-Americans before this season, but each member of the 2024 trio made both the D1Softball and NFCA All-American squads.

Davidson, a senior right fielder, hit a team-high 18 home runs and set school records with 20 doubles and 67 runs batted in. The sophomore Vega, who played second base, hit 12 home runs, 18 doubles, and 52 RBIs, one of the best offensive seasons in school history aside from Davidson’s campaign.

Wright, a senior pitcher, appeared in 34 of Duke’s 61 games. She struck out 189 batters in 154.1 innings in the circle, and she tossed eight complete games. Wright finished the season with a 19-3 record and a 1.50 ERA.

Each player who earned their way onto the wall brought home some ACC hardware, too. Davidson was named the conference’s Player of the Year while Wright took ACC Pitcher of the Year honors and Vega earned the ACC Defensive Player of the Year award.

Former Duke softball star Jala Wright shares social media post about first pro practice

Jala Wright, the 2024 ACC Pitcher of the Year, began her professional career with the Texas Smoke on Wednesday.

Former Duke softball star [autotag]Jala Wright[/autotag] began the next chapter of her career on Wednesday.

Wright, the 2024 ACC Pitcher of the Year, posted on X (the social media platform formerly known as Twitter) that she started her first professional practice with the Texas Smoke of the Women’s Professional Fastpitch league.

The senior star had her best collegiate season in 2024 while helping the Blue Devils to their first Women’s College World Series appearance. She finished with a 19-3 record and a 1.50 ERA after 34 appearances. She pitched eight complete games and struck out 189 batters in 154.1 innings of work.

Wright didn’t earn a run in 18 of her 34 trips to the circle, including five shutout appearances in a row from February 23 to March 8. She compiled at least 14 strikeouts in three different games, including a 14-strikeout game against Michigan State in February and another game against Virginia.

She also took down 17 Boston College batters in just 10 innings during the ACC Tournament, earning her NCAA Pitcher of the Week honors.

Wright also spent two hours signing autographs after the Blue Devils were eliminated from the WCWS. The former Duke star will surely have Blue Devils cheering her on at the next level.

Duke softball star Gisele Tapia writes emotional reflection as collegiate softball career ends

Duke’s Gisele Tapia, who wrapped up her collegiate career at the Women’s College World Series last week, penned an emotional goodbye to the sport.

Duke softball star Gisele Tapia couldn’t leave the sport without saying goodbye.

After her collegiate career came to an end in Oklahoma City last week, Tapia wrote a ‘Dear Softball’ letter and narrated it for the NCAA account.

Tapia, a graduate student who spent the last five seasons with the Blue Devils, played in more than 250 games with Duke. She batted .362 in 2023, her first senior season (she earned an extra year of eligibility because of the COVID-19 extension in 2020). She also set career-highs with 12 doubles and 50 RBIs that season, and she finished her career with 17 home runs.

Tapia also watched the rise of Duke’s softball program. Her freshman season in 2020 was the third season in program history. Two years later, Duke reached its first Super Regional in school history, and this past year, she helped lead the Blue Devils to their first Women’s College World Series berth.

“I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart,” Tapia told the sport in her letter. “I truly couldn’t have imagined this life without this sport.”

Watch Tapia’s entire goodbye message to her college sport below.

Top photos from Alabama softball’s win over No. 10 Duke in WCWS elimination game

Alabama softball’s 2024 season stays alive after the Crimson Tide defeated No. 10 Duke in a Women’s College World Series elimination game.

Despite a rocky 2024 regular season, the Alabama Crimson Tide softball team has made it to Oklahoma City for the Women’s College World Series. After falling to the UCLA Bruins in the opening round, the Crimson Tide fought hard to take down the No. 10 Duke Blue Devils in a win-or-go-home elimination game with a final score of 2-1.

Alabama’s lack of offense throughout the season has resulted in the Crimson Tide being comfortable in low-scoring contests, relying heavily on defense and consistent pitching.

A late solo home run by Marlie Giles was the difference-maker that broke the tie and put Alabama up by one run.

Alabama will next play on Sunday against the loser of the Florida Gators vs. the Texas Longhorns in another must-win game that will end one team’s season.

Before looking ahead to the next game, relive the excitement from the Crimson Tide’s win over Duke.

Photos from Alabama softball’s win over Duke in the WCWS

The best photos from Duke softball’s Women’s College World Series games

The Blue Devils only got to play two games in Oklahoma City, but they made plenty of memories. Check out some of the team’s best WCWS photos here.

Duke softball’s first trip to the Women’s College World Series only lasted two games, but the Blue Devils still broke down program barriers all year in 2024.

The Blue Devils won 52 games this season, including their first two Super Regional victories in school history, to reach the final bracket. However, a brutal draw against an Oklahoma Sooners team with seven losses over the past two seasons led to a rough opening outing.

The Blue Devils took the field again one day later, this time needing to fend off the Alabama Crimson Tide in order to avoid elimination. Star sophomore Cassidy Curd held them to one run through the first five innings and Ana Gold mashed Duke’s second home run of the tournament, but a solo shot from Alabama catcher Marlie Giles in the sixth inning proved to be too much to overcome.

Check out the best photos from Duke’s first trip to the sport’s biggest stage below.

Duke softball star Jala Wright stays for hours after WCWS elimination to sign autographs

ACC Pitcher of the Year Jala Wright stayed for hours after Duke got eliminated from the Women’s College World Series to interact with fans.

Friday surely didn’t go how Duke softball and star pitcher Jala Wright wanted it to go, but the senior didn’t let that affect the way she treated the Oklahoma City fans.

The Blue Devils got eliminated from the Women’s College World Series after a second consecutive loss, falling 2-1 to Alabama one day after losing to Oklahoma in the opener.

After 52 wins, ACC titles in both the regular season and the conference tournament, and a Super Regional victory, Wright’s senior season came to an end at roughly 9:15 p.m. Eastern time.

At 11:00 p.m., nearly two hours after the dust settled, the ACC Pitcher of the Year was still signing autographs and talking to fans. NCAA Softball’s social media account shared a video of Wright standing before dozens of eager young fans with memorabilia in hand, and the Duke star looked determined to make time for each and every one of them.

Wright’s 2024 season ended with a 19-3 record and a 1.50 ERA in 34 appearances. She went the distance for eight complete games, and she struck out 189 batters in 154.1 innings.

She also earned two saves, and opposing batters only managed a .181 average against her for the season.

Alabama softball survives WCWS elimination, defeats No. 10 Duke

Alabama softball takes down Duke in a Women’s College World Series elimination game.

The No. 14 Alabama Crimson Tide softball team took down the No. 10 Duke Blue Devils in a Women’s College World Series elimination game with a final score of 2-1, thanks to a sixth-inning home run by Marlie Giles.

A low-scoring contest is not unusual for the Crimson Tide, as the team’s bats have been inconsistent throughout the season, but the pitching has kept them in the game.

Patrick Murphy’s squad managed to hold on to the late lead and will now wait for the Texas Longhorns and the Florida Gators to play on Saturday. On Sunday, the Crimson Tide will face the loser.

The next loss will end Alabama’s 2024 season. It’s win or go home from here on out.

Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow Alabama softball as they look to extend their run in the Women’s College World Series.

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow AJ Spurr on X @SpurrFM. 

Duke softball eliminated from Women’s College World Series in close Alabama loss

The Blue Devils held Alabama to two runs in a Women’s College World Series elimination game, but Duke could only muster one run in the loss.

After the best season in program history, the 2024 Duke softball season came to an end in Oklahoma City on Friday night.

After an opening loss to Oklahoma, the three-time defending national champions, the Blue Devils needed to beat Alabama in an elimination game in order to advance in the double-elimination bracket.

Duke couldn’t have turned to a more reliable pitcher in the circle. Cassidy Curd got the start, her fifth appearance in Duke’s last five games. After a stellar weekend at the Columbia Super Regional to help the Blue Devils advance, she held the Sooners scoreless for the first two innings of Thursday’s opening game before a hit chased her from the circle to start the third.

Curd kept her exceptional form going on Friday. The Crimson Tide got on her early for a run, a double from catcher Marlie Giles to bring a teammate around, but the Blue Devils sophomore held Alabama in each of the next four innings to give her offense every chance.

Ana Gold, the program’s all-time home run leader, took advantage of one of those chances in the second inning with a game-tying solo shot. Her piercing line drive rattled off the scaffolding over center field, loudly announcing Duke’s rally.

Or so the offense thought.

The Duke couldn’t get off the ground for the rest of the game. The Blue Devils picked up just two baserunners for the rest of the game, one walk in the third inning and a single in the fourth. Otherwise, Alabama’s pitching duo of Jocelyn Briski and Kayla Beaver kept the Blue Devils guessing.

Even an exciting home-run robbery from freshman outfielder Amiah Burgess couldn’t give Duke a jumpstart.

Curd kept dealing and dealing, willing Duke to remain tied, but she could only play with fire for so long. Giles struck again in the top of the sixth, a solo home run of her own to push the Crimson Tide ahead.

Duke entered the bottom of the seventh down one run after managing just five hits in the first six frames. Beaver never gave the Blue Devils a chance, never throwing a single ball.

Gold made great contact on a line drive up the first-base line, but a leaping catch from Lauren Esman halted the rally before it could start with the first out. A groundout and a strikeout later, and the season ended.

Duke finished the season with a 52-9 record, the most wins in a single season in school history.

How to watch Alabama softball vs. Duke softball in WCWS elimination game on Friday

Alabama softball is in a must-win situation at the Women’s College World Series

The No. 14 Alabama Crimson Tide softball team dropped its first game in the 2024 Women’s College World Series 4-1 to the UCLA Bruins on Thursday afternoon in Oklahoma City. Now [autotag]Patrick Murphy[/autotag] and the Crimson Tide will play in an elimination game on Friday night against the No. 10 Duke Blue Devils that took a 9-1 loss to the Oklahoma Sooners.

The winner of Friday night’s matchup will advance to play the loser of the Game 8 matchup between the No. 1 Texas Longhorns and the No. 4 Florida Gators. The loser on the other hand will have their season and dreams of winning a national championship come to an end.

Here is how can watch Friday night’s action between the Tide and Blue Devils!

How to watch Alabama softball vs. Duke softball in Women’s College World Series

  • Date: Friday, May 31, 2024
  • Location: Devon Park, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
  • Time: 6 p.m. CT
  • TV Channel: ESPN
  • Live Stream: FuboTV (Watch Here)

Roll Tide Wire will continue to cover the Alabama softball team as the postseason progresses.

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on X (Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Stacey Blackwood on X (Twitter) @Blackwood89.