University of Missouri
Illinois State
No. 18 Mizzou Softball Sweeps Illinois State Doubleheader
3/19/2014 12:00:00 AM | Softball
March 19, 2014
|
No. 18 Mizzou 4, Illinois State 2 |
Time: 1:44 Att.: -- |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | F | |
| Illinois State | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| MIZZOU | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | X | 4 |
| Pitching | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
| W - Finucane (8-3) | 7.0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 9 |
| L - Romshek (7-7) | 6.0 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 2 |
| Hitting Leaders | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | HR |
| MIZ - Roth (2-for-3) | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| MIZ - Stephens (2-for-2) | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
|
#18 Mizzou 5, Illinois State 0 |
Time: 1:42 Att.: 351 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | F | |
| Illinois State | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| MIZZOU | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | X | 5 |
| Pitching | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
| W - Stangel (8-4) | 7.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| L - Baxter (1-10) | 5.2 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 2 |
| Hitting Leaders | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | HR |
| MIZ - Fleming (2-for-3) | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| MIZ - Genovese (3-for-3) | 3 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
COLUMBIA, Mo.- Despite windy and cold temperatures, No. 18 Mizzou Softball swept Illinois State in Tuesday's doubleheader, winning 4-2 and 5-0 to improve to 18-7 overall. Freshman P Tori Finucane (Germantown, Md.) and redshirt sophomore 2B Ashtin Stephens (Blue Springs, Mo.) led the Tigers in the first game with a season-best nine strikeouts and a 3-for-3 batting performance, respectively. It was a similar set of outings in the second game, as freshman P Casey Stangel (Coeur d'Alene, Idaho) dominated from the circle and junior IF Corrin Genovese (East Amherst, N.Y.) provided run support.
Game One
Finucane was in the circle for the Tigers in the initial game and quickly registered four strikeouts in the first two innings on her way to a season-high nine strikeouts. The freshman Tiger worked all 7.0 innings, her sixth complete game of the season, to improve to 8-3 on the year while giving up only four hits and two walks.
Stephens, who entered the game with zero RBI and no extra base hits, had a career day. She batted in all four of Mizzou's runs to earn a career-high for RBI (4). It started in the second with a single to center to bring in junior 1B Kelsea Roth (Yorba Linda, Calif.). Roth went 2-for-3 on the day with her second double of the season. In the fourth inning, Stephens launched her first extra base hit of the season, a double over the left fielder's head that brought in two runs to give the Tigers a 3-1 lead.
Illinois State pitcher Regan Romshek hit a home run to left field to bring the Redbirds within one. Romshek also pitched 6.0 innings, giving up four runs on six hits and four walks. Another Stephens RBI, this time on a sacrifice fly in the sixth, added an insurance run for the Tigers as they finished off the Redbirds, 4-2.
Game Two
With Stangel in the circle for the second game of the doubleheader, the Tigers cruised through the top half of each inning. Stangel had an impressive outing, pitching 7.0 innings to earn her seventh complete game of the season and her second shutout win (8-4) on the season. She gave up only two hits and zero walks.
Freshman 3B/2B Natalie Fleming (Silex, Mo.) scorched her first career home run over the left field wall in the second inning to give the Tigers an early lead. She finished the second game batting 2-for-3. Later in the inning after walk by freshman IF/OF Kelli Schkade (Albany, Texas) and following steal, Genovese singled to left to bring in Schkade and give the Tigers a 2-0 cushion.
In the fifth inning, redshirt sophomore OF Taylor Gadbois (Maryville, Mo.) extended her program-best hitting streak to 21 games. With Genovese and Gadbois on base, sophomore 2B/OF Emily Crane (Troy, Mo.) ripped a ball down the left field line and Genovese slid past a tag at the plate to increase Mizzou's lead to 3-0.
Genovese did not stop there, adding a two-run double to the left center gap in the bottom of the sixth to stretch the Tiger lead to 5-0. She finished the game hitting 3-for-3 with three RBI, which doubled her season total.
Head coach Ehren Earleywine's squad is back in action with the Mizzou Tournament, running all weekend at University Field, Friday, March 21-Sunday, March 23. The Tigers get started on Friday with Ball State at 4:30 p.m.
