SEC Player of the Year Bailey Hemphill hammers three home runs in SEC Tournament, breaking Alabama

By: Brett Greenberg

TUSCALOOSA, AL. - Alabama softball's Bailey Hemphill, the 2021 SEC Player of the Year, hit two home runs in the quarterfinal round of the SEC Tournament against Kentucky on Thursday and added another on Friday in the semifinal round against the Tennessee Volunteers.

The three long balls puts Hemphill in sole possession of first place with 61 career homeruns. .

The first home run was a solo shot to left field in the first inning to kick off the scoring for the Crimson Tide.

The second home run was a two-run shot against the Wildcats that came in the bottom of the fifth inning to extend the Crimson Tide’s lead to 5-1.

The third one and record-breaking home run was a two-run shot that came in the bottom of the sixth inning to give the Crimson Tide the lead, 6-5 over Tennessee.

More: 2021 Southeastern Conference Softball Tournament bracket, schedule, game times, TV info More: Alabama softball: Tough non-conference series against Louisiana a piece of scheduling puzzle

The three home runs bring her season total to 11 and also gives her the SEC record for most home runs in an entire SEC Tournament.

The fifth-year senior from Lafayette, Louisiana, leads the SEC in hitting at .483, RBIs with 25, slugging percentage at .897, on-base percentage at .652 (130 points higher than No. 2) and walks with 27. She also struck out only one time in conference play.