Alabama softball knew those first two weeks could be tough. A parade of top-10 teams and recent national champions dotted the February schedule for Patrick Murphy’s team that entered 2020 with a No. 1 ranking.

Returning home for the first weekend in renovated Rhoads Stadium, the Crimson Tide expected a little more for the wins column.

The 4-5 record includes a run-rule win over top-ranked Washington and shutout losses to UCLA and Florida State. It’s been a wild ride that included a delayed NCAA eligibility decision, a broken hand for the starting centerfielder and a sloppy start on the defensive end.

“It’s just not good enough, obviously,” Murphy said.

It all leads into the Bama Bash that runs Friday-Sunday in Tuscaloosa. Alabama, now ranked No. 10 in one poll and No. 13 in the other, faces Wichita State at 4 p.m. CT Friday in the home opener. The event also includes meetings with Penn State and Louisville.

After playing four top-14 teams over the first two weeks, the schedule is more manageable with four straight weekends in Rhoads Stadium. Scheduling strategy can be complicated when balancing winnable games with high-end competition. A less-challenging slate last year saw the Tide go deep into March before losing its first game.

“You hope you don’t go overboard because last year, obviously, we go 33-0 and every weekend we gained confidence,” Murphy said.

Either way, Murphy said Alabama made it too easy for opponents ranked that high in the first two weeks. The 12 errors matched the opposition in the first nine games. And the pitching staff hailed a national standard has 35 walks in 55.1 innings.

That includes returning ace Montana Fouts, now a sophomore coming off a breakout freshman campaign. She has a 4.88 ERA and an 0-2 record while walking 15 batters in 14 1/3 innings.

Murphy said Fouts is still finding her rhythm after taking eight weeks away from pitching in the fall. They shut her down for the fall after trials for the United States Olympic team. Avoiding the same overuse issue that led to a stress fracture last spring was the goal.

“Then she was on a pitch count over Christmas break, her and her dad and it was every other day,” Murphy said. “So, I don’t think she’s … and we told her you don’t have to be 100 percent in February. We want you to be ready to go in May and June, like 100 percent.”

Centerfielder Elissa Brown’s broken hand was more of an unexpected issue. Murphy said the injury occurred during batting practice before the season-opening event at Florida State. She still started all four games in Tallahassee and hit .444 but they decided to sit her for six weeks to let the bone on her left hand heal instead of sending her back to the plate last weekend in Clearwater.

There is, however, a chance she can see action this weekend with inspiration from another Alabama athlete.

“We’re hoping she can do a little bit like (Herbert Jones), come back and pinch run,” Murphy said. “She won’t be able to hit but she can definitely run the bases.”

Jones played the last two games with a broken wrist suffered in late January. He grabbed a career-high 17 rebounds Saturday and shot two foul shots using only his non-dominant right hand in a win over LSU.

So, could Brown step to the plate one handed?

“Maybe. She can bunt,” Murphy said. “She was doing that at Florida State, seriously. We had a slap and run, and she literally tapped it with one hand, and it was perfect because it was so slow. The pitcher couldn’t field it and we scored a run and she was safe. Her speed just helps her out so much. Shoot, she can pinch run every single game.”

Brown stole 48 bases last year in 54 attempts to lead the team.

Alabama schedule in Bama Bash

-- Friday, 4 p.m., vs. Wichita State

-- Friday, 6 p.m., vs. Penn State

-- Saturday, 1:30 p.m., vs. Louisville

-- Saturday, 4 p.m., vs. Penn State

-- Sunday, 1:30 p.m., Louisville