May 3, 2007
It all comes down to this. The 18th-ranked Missouri softball team is set to close out its regular season in a two-game series with Nebraska beginning Saturday, May 5, at 2 p.m. (CT) with game two scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. (CT), Sunday, May 6, on University Field. Live stats and all access will be provided for both games on mutigers.com.
Special ticket prices will be in effect for the weekend, with a $10 family four pack available on Saturday and all fans allowed entrance for only $1 on Sunday.
As if this season wasn't exciting enough for Tiger fans, Missouri's final Big 12 challenge of the season is for all the marbles. A sweep of the Huskers would provide Missouri with only its second Big 12 title in school history. However, taking back-to-back wins over the Huskers is not an easy thing to accomplish. Since 1997, the year Missouri claimed its first Big 12 Championship title, Mizzou trails Nebraska 12-8 in the all-time series. In games played on University Field, Missouri and Nebraska are split at five games a piece. Missouri's last sweep of the Cornhuskers at home came in 1999 when both games were decided by a score of 1-0. Over the past 10 seasons, 10 of the Missouri-Nebraska games (20 in all) have been decided by a mere one run. History aside, its Missouri who stands tied for the Big 12 lead and Nebraska who stands fifth in the conference with a 9-7 league record. That has to count for something!
Coming off of a weekend split with seventh-ranked Baylor, the Tigers and Bears could earn the title of co-Big 12 Champions if both teams manage wins in their remaining two games. Baylor, who hosts No. 23 Texas Thursday, May 3 at 6:30 p.m. (CT) and No. 6 Texas A&M, Saturday, May 5 at 4 p.m. (CT) also owns a 12-3 mark in league games. Both Missouri and Baylor were forced to cancel a single game against the Texas Tech Red Raiders earlier in the season due to bad weather.
Don't count out No. 3 Oklahoma, who finished its Big 12 season with a 14-4 record. The Sooners could still win it all if Missouri and Baylor end up dropping a single remaining game.
For Missouri, freshman outfielder Julie Silver leads the Tigers with her .333 Big 12 batting average. In her 45 at bats, Silver has knocked three doubles and a home run while credited with seven runs and six RBI. Missouri's leader in RBI, both in Big 12 games and overall, is junior Amanda Renth with 11 against league opponents and 55 overall.
In the circle, Missouri's duo of junior Jen Bruck and freshman Jana Hainey have combined for the Tiger's 12-3 record. Both Bruck and Hainey stand among the top five pitchers in the league with Hainey's 0.00 ERA ranking first and Bruck's 1.45 mark placing her in fifth.
Scouting Nebraska
Receiving votes in the weekly ESPN.com/USA Softball national poll, the Nebraska Cornhuskers are 36-16 overall and 9-7 in the competitive Big 12 Conference. Most recently, Nebraska managed a two-game sweep of Oklahoma State, 5-2 and 9-1 in six innings.
Nebraska's top slugger entering the two-game series at Missouri is sophomore outfielder Meghan Mullin, with a .314 mark. Mullin is the only Husker to bat above .300 with six other individuals averaging .250 or better. Mullin, not necessarily a power hitter, has 50 hits, but only two for extra bases. Leading the charge with a .439 slugging percentage is sophomore Crystal Carwile who has three home runs and 13 doubles on the season. Also to her name, the infielder has been credited with 26 RBI.
Selected Big 12 Pitcher of the Week on April 17, Ashley DeBuhr will likely throw at least one game against the Tigers. Owning a 1.57 ERA, DeBuhr is 18-8 on the season with five wins coming against Big 12 opponents. DeBuhr stands third in the Big 12 with her 82 strikeouts against league opponents and leads the Big 12 by holding opponents to a .160 average. Fellow Big 12 Pitcher of the Week recipient Molly Hill has also seen time in the circle and owns a 1.05 ERA and 16-8 record. Altogether, Nebraska's pitching staff owns a 1.35 ERA and has held opponents to a 1.93 average.