Brett Greenberg
The Tuscaloosa News
Alabama softball's Bailey Dowling is out for the season after the freshman middle infielder and Crimson Tide home run leader tore the ACL and MCL in her left knee, an MRI revealed Monday.
"It stinks, it really does," said Alabama coach Patrick Murphy. "It's sports, injuries happen, but she'll play a different role now and learn a lot about herself and her teammates."
Dowling suffered a non-contact injury to her left knee while trying to cover first base in Saturday's game against Tennessee. Sophomore Savannah Woodard has stepped into the starting role at second base.
The two-time Illinois Gatorade Player of the Year started every game for the Crimson Tide at either second base or shortstop and leads the team in home runs (six) and RBIs (25).
"She (Dowling) makes plays that you lose games on," said Murphy. "She has great body awareness on the field and it only takes her one time to fix what we ask her to fix."
On Tuesday morning, Murphy talked about the support the Dowling family has received since the injury.
"The amount of people who have reached out to Bailey, her family and the coaching staff is special," he added.
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