April 5, 2007

Continuing Big 12 action, the Missouri softball team will put its spotless 3-0 mark on the line when they take on Oklahoma State in a two-game series beginning Friday, April 6, at 7 p.m. (CT) in Stillwater, Okla. Game two is set to begin Saturday, April 7, at 1 p.m. Live stats will be provided for both games.

The Tigers, currently on a five game win streak, are coming off of their first sweep of Texas in three seasons and only the third in program history. Junior pitcher Jen Bruck, now 11-4 on the season, was credited with both wins over the Longhorns and has won four of Missouri's last five games.

Missouri trails Oklahoma State, 53-28, in the all-time series dating back to the first meeting in 1977. The Tigers have won six of the last 10 contests with the Cowgirls but only two of the six were recorded in Stillwater.

Oklahoma State enters its sixth Big 12 game of the campaign boasting this week's USA Softball and Big 12 Player of the Week in senior catcher Courtney Totte. Totte currently owns a .433 average that includes 11 home runs and 60 RBI.

Missouri's squad travels seven members with over a .300 batting average including Amateur Softball Association (ASA) USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year finalist Amanda Renth. Averaging .347 on the season, Renth has crushed 12 home runs, scored 21 runs and notched a team-high 45 RBI.

NOTE: Missouri's Saturday, April 14 game against third-ranked Oklahoma has been rescheduled to begin at 6 p.m. (CT) on University Field.

Scouting OSU
Led by first year Head Coach Rich Wieligman, the Oklahoma State Cowgirls are 24-20 on the season, having recently won four straight games before falling to Bedlam rival Oklahoma 8-0 in Norman on Wednesday. Oklahoma State is 2-3 in conference play having taken back-to-back wins over Iowa State, 14-0 in five innings and 10-1, April 1.

Leading the Cowgirls offensively is this week's USA Softball National and Big 12 Player of the Week, Courtney Totte. Totte, a senior, is averaging .433 on the season and went 6-for-8 last week with two home runs and a single season OSU record nine RBI. OSU's starting catcher, Totte has collected 243 putouts from behind the plate, notched 15 assists and only one error for a .996 fielding percentage.

Cowgirls Anna Whiddon and Jessica Hoppock have seen the most time in the circle this season. Tallying 22 wins between the two of them, the tandem has combined for 204 strikeouts in 233.2 innings. Whiddon opened OSU's Wednesday night game against Oklahoma giving up six runs on four hits before being relieved by Hoppock. Hoppock threw 4.1 innings allowing two runs off three hits while striking out five of the 16 batters she faced.

Grand Slam Gals
Junior first baseman Amanda Renth has crushed four grand slams in her three-year Tiger career. Most recently, Renth stepped up to a bases loaded situation in Missouri's March 18 game against Western Illinois and hit a long ball over the wall in left center. To date, Renth has tallied 12 home runs this season and has shot up the Missouri home run record book to seventh place with 21. Renth leads the team with her 12 homers this season and because of her big swing has been intentionally walked on 10 ocassions.

Senior catcher Kathy Masterson has also crushed a grand slam this season, the first of her four-year career. Coming in impressive style, an extra inning game against 11th-ranked Washington at the Pac 10/Big 12 Showdown in Tucson, Ariz., Masterson lifted the Tigers ahead of the Huskies, 10-8 to win the 10 inning game.

Don't forget about senior Amanda Jo White's first inning grand slam March 16 against Columbia College. White's crush helped the Tigers take a 7-0 lead entering the bottom of the inning of game one of the third annual Tiger Invitational.

3-0 in Conference
Currently 3-0 in Big 12 play, Missouri's longest conference win streak came in 1997, the year of the Big 12 title, when the Tigers went undefeated for eight straight games. Earning two-game sweeps of Baylor, Texas Tech, Texas and Texas A&M, Oklahoma handed Missouri its first Big 12 loss, 2-1. The Tigers finished the conference season with a 15-3 mark.

Renth Recognized
Junior slugger Amanda Renth (Mascoutah, Ill.) of the Missouri softball team was named one of 25 finalists for the annual Amateur Softball Association (ASA) USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Award as announced April 4 by the ASA. Renth is one of six Big 12 players nominated and also the first Tiger in over 10 years to receive the recognition.

Averaging .347 on the season, Renth has started in all 44 contests for the Tigers and has hit a team-high 12 home runs, including her March 18 grand slam against Western Illinois. Renth leads the Tigers with a .669 slugging percentage and 30 walks, 10 intentional.

Renth's most noteworthy outing of the season came in Missouri's three-game series against then-No. 2 Arizona. Renth finished the weekend 3-for-5 at the plate, hit two round-trippers, and drove in five of Missouri's 12 runs. Averaging .600 on the weekend, Renth owned a 2.000 slugging percentage against the Wildcats and .833 on base percentage.

Currently, Renth leads the team with 45 RBI, with redshirt junior Micaela Minner a distant second at 31.

In the field, Renth has collected a team high 287 putouts from her work at first base and is also credited with 15 assists for a .987 fielding percentage.

The award, one of the top honors in college softball, is designed to recognize outstanding athletic achievement by female collegiate softball players across the country. Renth is one of only seven juniors named to the list, and one of 11 infielders. The list recognizes players from 17 different schools and six different conferences.

The list will be shortened to 10 finalists on May 10, prior to the start of post-season play, and then to the top-three on May 23rd. The winner will be announced at the 2007 NCAA Women's College World Series in Oklahoma City, Okla..

How Many Straight?
Junior ace Jen Bruck has thrown 27.2 innings of work and won four games in Missouri's last five outings. In a five-game stretch which includes three conference wins, including two over ninth-ranked Texas, and a 5-2 victory over Louisville, Bruck recorded a 1.27 ERA, struckout 20 batters and allowed only five runs.

One Over
The 2007 Missouri softball team improved on last year's win total of 26 after claiming a 1-0 victory over ninth-ranked Texas at home on April 1. Only two Tiger teams in the past five seasons have accomplished a 30-win season and this year's squad stands four wins away. Missouri's last 30+ win campaign came in 2005 when the Tigers closed out the season with a 44-15 mark. Prior to that, Missouri's last 30+ win season came in 2003, the Tigers finished one above at 31-20.

Silver Shines
A freshman from Chesterfield, Mo., Julie Silver helped the Tigers to back-to-back sweeps of Louisville and ninth-ranked Texas during the week of March 26. Averaging .364 on the week, Silver was 4-for-11 at the plate scoring three runs in four games and credited with five RBI. Playing Louisville in game two of the Wednesday doubleheader, Silver's two run home run to right field helped the Tigers take the lead and eventual win. In Missouri's Saturday game against Texas, Silver's two RBI double to left field helped lift the Tigers ahead of the Longhorns, 5-4 while her bunt single in game two drove in the game-winning run from second. Missouri's sweep of the Longhorns is its first since 2004 and only the third in program history. The win over a top-10 program is also the Tiger's first of the season.

Home Run Hitters
This season Missouri has crushed 36 home runs and junior Amanda Renth leads the Tigers with 12 on the year. Among the Big 12 schools, Missouri stands second with 36 trailing Oklahoma with 46. Individually, Renth stands second behind Oklahoma's Samanha Ricketts. The sophomore Sooner has crushed 14 homers on the season.

Conference Openers
For the second straight season the Missouri softball team opened Big 12 play with a win. Missouri held on for a 7-4 victory over Texas Tech, March 24, at Rocky Johnson Field in Lubbock, Texas. Missouri has won five of its 11 Big 12 openers since 1997 with two wins coming over the Red Raiders.

When it Matters
Twelve times this season, the Tigers have come from behind to pull out a win. Most recently, Missouri was down 4-0 to ninth-ranked Texas (March 31), and with the assistance of freshman Julie Silver's two run double took a 5-4 lead.

Eight Straight
Missouri's longest win streak this season stands at eight. Recorded between Feb. 21 and Feb. 25, the Tigers swept St. Louis and claimed the Clarion Inn Lady'Back Invitational in Fayetteville, Ark. Missouri's eight game streak is its longest since its 17 game streak in 2005.

Batting Well
The Tigers stand third in the competitive Big 12 Conference with a team batting average of .301. Only second-ranked Oklahoma (.344) and No. 11 Baylor (.318) stand ahead of Missouri. The Tigers lead the league in team doubles (72) standing 17 ahead of Oklahoma who has tallied 55. Individually, Missouri has three batters among the top-20 for highest batting average. Redshirt junior Micaela Minner leads the way for the Tigers with her .398 average that places her sixth in the league. Senior Leanne Bowers (.359) and junior Amanda Renth (.347) ranked 13th and 15th, respectively.

Close to Cracking
Several Missouri players are close to taking the top spot in various categories of the weekly Big 12 stats sheet. As mentioned earlier, junior Amanda Renth is second in the league with her 12 home runs (behind Oklahoma's Samantha Ricketts with 14) while redshirt junior Micaela Minner is two doubles away from tying Tottee's mark of 15. Senior catcher Kathy Masterson stands tied at second with her four triples on the season. Shannon Thomas of Texas leads the Big 12 with five.

Better and Better
Missouri's team .301 battng average is its highest since the 2005 season (.300) and so its its solen base percentage which stands at .802, ahead of the 2005 mark of .754. The Tigers have improved in various other categorie including on-base percentage (405) and more.

Intentional
Missouri's 11 intentional walks is the most the program has seen in over five seasons and junior Amanda Renth's 10 IBB's ranks among the top five in the nation.