April 9, 2005
Lubbock, Texas. -- Playing in 25 mph winds that blew straight out to left field, the 17th-ranked Missouri softball team dropped Texas Tech, 8-0 in five innings at Rocky Johnson Field in Lubbock, Texas. With the win, the Tigers improve to 30-6 on the season and 4-3 in Big 12 play, while the Red Raiders fall to 22-12 and 2-3. Senior pitcher Erin Kalka (Chandler, Okla.) was credited with her third win of the season after tossing four innings of work and striking out three batters.
Sophomore Leanne Bowers (Arnold, Mo.) drove in Missouri's first two runs of the game in the top of the third inning after crushing her fifth homer of the season over the fence in left center (200). With one out and sophomore Sarah Stringer (Auxvasse, Mo.) reaching first on a walk by Texas Tech pitcher Erin Crawford, Bowers brought up the top of the order and pounded her 11th career yard ball. With the crush, Bowers moved to ninth in the Missouri career home run record book. Junior left fielder Janessa Roening (Port Angeles, Wash.) was up next for the Tigers and ripped her first triple of the season into left field. Roening advanced home as redshirt freshman Micaela Minner (Sanger, Texas) reached first on a bobbled error by Red Raider first baseman Jennifer Corkin. The inning came to an end after freshman Amanda Renth (Mascoutah, Ill.) grounded out to shortstop and senior Heather Kunkel (Oak Forest, Ill.) flew out to second base.
After giving up three hits in three innings, Texas Tech Head Coach Teresa Wilson went to the bull pen and called in freshman righty Sarah Losleben for relief in the top of the fourth. The Tigers scored three runs off two hits with Losleben on the mound to jump ahead, 5-0. Missouri opened the fifth inning with a fly ball to right field and followed with a one-out walk that brought Renth to first base. Freshman Amy Henke (Florissant, Mo.) entered the game as pinch runner for Renth. After Kunkel grounded out to second and freshman Jen Bruck (St. Peters, Mo.) walked, sophomore catcher Kathy Masterson punched her second triple of the season to left field bringing Henke and Bruck home while Masterson also scored on the throw from the field. With the bases cleared, sophomore A.J. White (Tallmadge, Ohio) entered the game as a pinch hitter and walked to first forcing Texas Tech to bring in Keely Tucker to toss the remaining 1.1 innings of action. Stringer notched MU's final out of the inning after grounding out to Tucker.
The Tigers closed down the game in the top of the sixth inning when Roening swatted a one-out double to right center, bringing up Minner who launched her 13th homer of the season over the right field wall. The bomb was Minner's third moonshot in three games and puts her three blasts shy of tying current MU season home run record holder Mary Babb (16).
Bruck and sophomore lefty Erica Peterson both entered the game at pitcher for Missouri. Bruck tossed one complete inning of action and struckout one, while Peterson closed the game facing four batters in the bottom of the sixth.
To date, all of Missouri's Big 12 victories have been wrapped up in under seven innings.
The Tigers will close the two-game series with Texas Tech in Lubbock, tomorrow, April 10, at 1 p.m. (CT), on Rocky Johnson Field.