On April 2, the Missouri Tigers squared off against their instate rival, Missouri State, and obtained the win 7-2.
Junior pitcher Cierra Harrison pitched the first five innings, earning eight strikeouts and allowing one hit with no runs. Her shutout performance was enough to earn her ninth win of the season.
The bottom half of the lineup led the way in the scoring department. Junior Kayley Lenger was at the helm, earning two RBIs and scoring herself, going 3-for-3 from the plate.
“Everything was working well,” Harrison said in regards to the team’s flow on the field. “I feel like we’ve been working on just some different things and have continued to drill, drill, drill. A lot was working well tonight.”
Missouri erupted and grew a 7-0 lead in the second inning with a home run from sophomore center fielder Stefania Abruscato. Lenger notched a hit to center field, sending freshman infielders Madison Uptegrove and Sophie Smith home.
Senior outfielder Mya Dodge then hit her first home run of the season sending Lenger home to score as well. Senior infielder Taylor Ebbs followed up with another home run for the Tigers, scoring senior catcher Julia Crenshaw with her.
Sophomore first baseman Abby Hay is still absent from the field after sustaining a minor back injury during the Illinois faceoff on March 18. Sophomore infielder Madison Walker slid over to first base to fill in for Hay’s absence and notched herself a hit.
Missouri State picked up two runs in the sixth inning due to a home run from freshman Lauren Rowland, scoring sophomore second baseman Emily Gerardy with her. Despite the late-game effort, the Tigers held the Bears off and took home the win 7-2.
Junior pitcher Courtney Donahue pitched the sixth inning with one strikeout allowing two hits and two runs. Sophomore pitcher Natalie Touchet took the mound following her and allowed no runs to finish the game.
The Tigers stayed home to host Texas at 10 a.m. on April 4 at the Mizzou Softball Stadium where they lost 8-0.
Edited by Killian Wright | kwright@themaneater.com
Copy edited by Natalie Kientzy | nkientzy@themaneater.com
Edited by Annie Goodykoontz | agoodykoontz@themaneater.com
