Why Tennessee softball coach Karen Weekly says games are lost, not won, in postseason

Tennessee softball coach Karen Weekly firmly believes that games aren't won – they're lost. Games lost can often be traced back to the team that flinched first. The team that made the errors, or gave up a free pass followed by an error.

It's especially true in the NCAA Tournament , when there may not be high-scoring games and the margin for error becomes razor thin. Tennessee is no stranger to the concept – the games it has lost this season have often come at the expense of free passes or errors. The teams that win in the postseason scrap together enough to "put up a crooked number" in an inning or two, maybe three if you're lucky, Weekly said May 13.

So, the Lady Vols have put an emphasis on defense going into the 21st consecutive NCAA regional hosted in Knoxville. "Everybody wants to talk about hitting and pitching, but if you can play clean defense and you can get an out every time the ball is put in play, you got a great chance to win," Weekly said. "So when you look at teams that statistically look pretty even, to me, that's what it comes down to, is who's going to play clean softball.

" No. 7 overall seed Tennessee (42-10) will face Northern Kentucky (26-23) to open regional play on May 15 (5:30 p. m.