Feb. 22, 2002
Columbus, Ga.- The University of Missouri softball team split two games on Friday on the first day of the NFCA Leadoff Classic in Columbus, Ga. Mizzou opened the day with a 1-0 win over No. 25 Massachusetts and finished the day with a tough 4-1 loss to No. 2 Stanford. Head coach Jay Miller said he was proud of the effort the Tigers gave and was pleased with the way Mizzou played at a high level commensurate with the talent they were facing.
"We faced some quality competition and proved that we can compete at a high level," Miller said. "We need to carry that momentum through the rest of the tournament and into the rest of our season."
In the Tigers opening game of the Classic, freshman Erin Kalka was brilliant pitching 7.0 innings of four-hit ball in Mizzou's 1-0 win over UMASS. Kalka struck out five and evened her record at 2-2 on the season.
The Tigers scored their run in the fifth inning. Freshman Heather Kunkel opened the inning with a single to center field. Senior Mary McGrane would then advance Kunkel to second on a sacrifice hit and reached first on a fielder's choice. With Kunkel on second and Ashley Hays on first, who pinch ran for McGrane, the Tigers would pull of a double steal and both runner would advance on an over throw by the catcher into left field which would score Kunkel. The one run lead would stand as Kalka would not allow a base runner past second and the Tigers would hold on to take the win.
Mizzou faced a very daunting task in the second game of their day. National powerhouse Stanford (11-0) posed a great challenge entering their match up with the Tigers as the No. 2 ranked team in the land according to the latest USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll.
Junior Ingrid Werner made her first start since her perfect game last Sunday against Rhode Island and picked right up where she left off. The native of Fremont, Calif., was perfect through the first three innings and had retired 29 straight batters she had faced over her past three outings heading into the bottom of the fourth.
The Tiger offense had also made a contribution in the second inning when sophomore Rachael McGinnis hit a solo shot to deep center field pacing the Tigers to a 1-0 lead after three complete innings. However, Stanford would tie the game in bottom of the fourth and would score three unearned runs in the bottom of the fifth to take a 4-1 lead. The Cardinal would hold Mizzou in check the rest of the way and hang on to the win despite a great effort from the Tigers.
Senior Heather Allister, along with McGinnis, led the Tiger offensive charge going 2-for-3. Werner continues to pitch quality innings for the Tigers. She gave up only three hits and one earned run while striking out three.
Mizzou is now 4-6 on the year and will play No. 14 Cal. State Fullerton on Saturday at 10 am EST before beginning bracket play in the afternoon at either 5 or 7:30 pm EST. For more more information on Tiger softball, log on to www.mutigers.com.