May 16, 2008
Iowa City, Iowa-Junior Lindsey Ubrun's (Riverside, Calif.) walk-off home run in the bottom of the eighth inning helped the Missouri softball team (45-15) to a 3-2 win over host-school Iowa (40-19) in game two of the NCAA Regional Tournament played at Bob Pearl Field in Iowa City, Iowa. Playing in front of 1,278 fans, Ubrun's 16th homer of the season gave Missouri its fifth NCAA Regional Tournament opening game win in its 12 post-season appearances. Missouri will take on No. 1 seed Long Beach State at Noon, Saturday, May 17.
Junior Stacy Delaney (Freeland, Mich.) battled her way out of the first inning stranding two runners on base, with one Hawkeye in scoring position. After allowing two hits, the Tiger righty forced back-to-back outs with a line drive and high pop fly caught by Missouri second baseman Andee Allen (Barnhart, Mo.). Delaney gave up her fourth hit of the game and first earned run of the night in the top of the second frame. With runners on first and second, Iowa leadoff batter Chelsey Carmody singled to left field driving in eight-hole hitter Quinn Morelock from second. Morelock reached base on a single up the middle and advanced to second after Lindsey Digmann was hit by pitch, Delaney's 12th hit batter of the season.
"I really felt that I improved on my pitches as the game progressed," Delaney said. "I felt both comfortable and confident going into the eighth inning."
Delaney threw her first three-up-three down inning of the game in the fifth, forcing Iowa's two, three and four-hole hitters back to the bench by groundout, fly out and pop out. With the win, Delaney, a transfer from the University of Michigan, improves to 19-3 on the season.
Iowa added to its lead in the top of the sixth. Delaney fanned leadoff batter Katie Brown, only her second strike out of the game, but gave up a single up the middle to shortstop Erin Riemersma. Out number two came on a fly ball to Tiger leftfielder Julie Silver (Chesterfield, Mo.). Riemersma scored on a fielding error by Allen.
Missouri first baseman Amanda Renth (Mascoutah, Ill.) extended her hitting streak to eight games with her clutch seventh inning, two out, game-tying single up the middle. Pinch hitter Meredith Nash (Peculiar, Mo.) led off the inning on a three-pitch strike out. Freshman Abby Vock (Morrison, Ill.) was next up to the plate and singled to left field to reach base. Returning to the top of the order, freshman Rhea Taylor, (Buford, Ga.), 2-for-4 on the evening, singled to second moving Vock up a base. Silver's groundout put both of Missouri's runners in scoring position and Renth's two out, two strike knock tied the game at two and sent it into extra innings. The second game of the day was also the second game decided in extra frames.
Ubrun, who now stands tied for third in the Missouri single season home run record book, took pitcher Brittany Weil's fourth pitch, a rise ball, deep over the left field fence for the win. The home run was Missouri's first walk-off homer of the season, snaps Ubrun's six game drought in which she failed to hit a yard ball and gives her a team-leading 58 RBI on the year.
NOTES:
Freshman Rhea Taylor (Buford, Ga.) broke the Missouri single season hits mark and now has 83 on the season. The previous record, 81 hits, was set by Mary Babb in 1995.
Taylor stole two bases in Missouri's game against Iowa and continues to lead the nation alongside Alabama's Brittany Rogers with 55 on the year. Taylor is six stolen bags shy of moving into the top-10 in the Missouri career stolen bases record book. Currently, 1999 graduate Wendy Harrison stands in 10th with 61 stolen bases.
The last time the Missouri softball team opened NCAA Regional Tournament play with a win was in 2007, 8-0 over Southern Illinois. Missouri has only won five NCAA Regional Tournament opening games in its 12 post-season appearances, 1983, 1991, 1994, 2007 and 2008.
Missouri will be the visiting team in its game against Long Beach State, Saturday, May 17 at Noon.
Missouri's 3-2 win over Iowa gives Tiger Head Coach Ehren Earleywine a 9-8 record in NCAA Regional Tournaments.
With the win, Missouri extends its lead to 11-6 in the all-time series with Iowa.
The Tiger softball team is now 3-1 in extra inning games, with its only loss coming in the fourth game of the season, 2-1 to Pittsburgh, Feb. 9.