Montana Fouts 'beyond words' to get win No. 100

Alabama‘s 3-2 win over Northwestern in their winner-take-all final at the Tuscaloosa Super Regional not only signified the Crimson Tide returning to the Women’s College World Series, but also a major career milestone for one of their biggest stars. In a rare relief appearance, pitcher Montana Fouts secured the her 100th career win for Alabama, adding yet another achievement to her storied five-year career in Tuscaloosa.

The news of Fouts reaching No. 100 was new news to her head coach Patrick Murphy and teammate Jenna Johnson, who both expressed joy when Fouts was asked about the significance of the milestone.

“Well, they told me that outside I had no idea,” Fouts admitted.

Murphy joked about the lead being buried on the news, which the trio laughed about at the team’s post-game press conference. But Fouts establishing herself as one of the greatest pitchers in program history is old news, which has now only been further confirmed by her most recent achievement.

Fouts joins just Shelley Laird and Kelsi Dunne as the only pitchers in Alabama’s school history to reach the 100-win mark along with 1,000 career strikeouts, currently sitting at 100 wins and 1,177 strikeouts. She burst onto the scene immediately when she arrived on Alabama’s campus, earning the SEC Freshman of the Year award in 2019 along with First Team All-SEC honors.

Fouts would go on to win three more First Team selections along with three NFCA All-American selections. She has been a consistent force on the mound for Alabama for a multitude of seasons, and has placed herself in rarified air in Alabama’s history books. But the milestone pales in comparison to helping bring the Crimson Tide back to the Women’s College World Series.

“Like I think Murph said, I would love a story on this and just the faith, the trust, and the way things have just fallen and I’m beyond words to be honest with you,” Fouts said. “Like Jenna said, we could’ve lost today and I’ve already won.”

Fouts had yet another monster season for the Crimson Tide, leading the nation in strikeouts. But when she suffered a knee injury on May 11 versus Arkansas in the team’s semifinal matchup of the SEC Tournament, the future of herself and the Crimson Tide in the postseason seemed uncertain.

Fouts was out for the remainder of the SEC Tournament and the team’s regional games, but battled back and returned for their Super Regional matchup series versus Northwestern where she split time on the mound with Jaala Torrence.

The duo got the job done in Tuscaloosa, and if they can make it happen again in Oklahoma City, the Crimson could find themselves back in the national championship for the first time since 2012. Where a win would put an even bigger cherry on top of Fouts’ storybook career for Alabama.