Junior Danielle Pieroni vividly remembers the turning point in her collegiate softball career.

"I came up with the bases loaded in the (College) World Series,'' Pieroni said with a faraway look in her eyes, reflecting on a sixth- inning at-bat in the decisive third game against Arizona last June. "And I struck out.

"That at-bat showed me the potential I had to help my team, and what it would mean to become the athlete I can and should be.''

Pieroni's World Series failure led to her rededicating herself to the game.

The results from months of hard work are beginning to come to fruition as No. 14 Tennessee (46-13, 14-12) opens the SEC softball tournament at noon today in Baton Rouge, La., against Georgia (43-21, 14-14).

The Lady Vols swept the Bulldogs in Knoxville on April 5-6, just as Pieroni's performance started to turn a corner.

"We've grown up a lot since we've played Tennessee,'' Georgia coach Lu-Harris Champer said. "We're looking forward to playing them again.''

The Lady Vols are looking forward to competing, too, and with Pieroni beginning to peak have another weapon at their disposal.

Pieroni is batting .286 with a double and two RBIs since April 12, and she threw eight innings against No. 1-ranked Florida last weekend, allowing just two runs.

Ralph Weekly, who along with his wife, Karen, serves as UT's co-head coach, said Pieroni could be the X-factor the Lady Vols need to provide a postseason spark.

"Danielle Pieroni is a tremendous athlete with great potential as a hitter, pitcher and fielder,'' said Weekly, who signed Pieroni, a two-time Gatorade Player of the Year in Tennessee, out of Goodpasture High School.

"She's probably the best pure outfielder on the team,'' Weekly said, "and her performance the past three weeks has demonstrated she's ready to take the mound and compete with the best teams in the country.''

Pieroni said she's learned from the slow start she got off to at Tennessee.

Toe surgery on both feet slowed her during her freshman year, and her sophomore year she admits she just "didn't work hard enough'' over the offseason.

"Things had gotten harder in college, and I'd gone from where I was always the No. 1 pitcher to doing something I'd never done my whole life,'' said Pieroni, referring to her role as a backup behind All-American Monica Abbott. "My mindset is that whatever this team needs me to do, I'll do it.''

Weekly said he'll use Pieroni along with the season's co-No. 1 pitchers, senior Megan Rhodes and freshman Ashton Ward, in the SEC tournament and perhaps into regional and super regional action.

"I watched Danielle Pieroni in the 2005 Gold Nationals in Salinas, Calif., one-hit the California Cruisers and beat the Worth Firecrackers, two of the best travel teams in the country,'' Weekly said. "You don't do that unless you've got something to you. I've challenged Danielle to become a leader on the team the rest of the season and next year.''

Pieroni's pitching glory came with the Nashville Nighthawks travel team when she was pitching at a level she believes she has yet to get back at.

"I could make excuses and say I haven't pitched a lot this season,'' said Pieroni, a left-hander who features a nasty curve and effective change-up. "But I know I can pitch better.''

Pieroni showed that against the best team in the world when she came on in relief and pitched out of a jam in one inning before setting the U.S. Olympic team down in order the next frame.

"I thought I would be nervous, but I wasn't,'' Pieroni said. "I got confidence from that.''

Weekly said it was an eye-opener for him, too.

"Danielle has had flashes of brilliance throughout her career,'' he said. "She had a grand slam against Kentucky her freshman year, and she came on against LSU and delivered a double in a nationally televised game.

"We've used her in so many roles, she's valuable.''

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