March 2, 2009

The 12th ranked Tiger softball team heads into their doubleheader Wednesday against SIUE on the heels of a 9-0 five inning shutout of San Diego. The Tigers are 13-2 on the season and look to build on their 2-0 home record against the 10-3 Cougars. This is the first meeting between the schools. The afternoon doubleheader is set to begin at 2 p.m. (CT) on University Field, with first pitch of game two scheduled for 4 p.m. (CT).

The Tigers are spreading the wealth on offense. Four players are batting at or above .400 on the season led by sophomore Shana White, .467 with 30 at bats. White and senior Andee Allen lead the team in hits with 14, while senior Micaela Minner has 16 RBI for the Tigers.

The Mizzou pitching staff has a collective 0.92 ERA, with junior Jana Hainey leading the way with a 4-0 record and 0.32 ERA. Freshman Kristin Nottelman is 3-0 this season with an ERA of 0.89 while fellow freshman Chelsea Thomas is 5-2 with a 1.11 ERA. Rounding out the Tiger pitching staff is senior Stacy Delaney who is 1-0 with an ERA of 1.26.

The Cougars are coming off a second place finish in Mississippi Tournament nearly two weeks ago. The Tiger pitching staff will have its hands full with the Cougars' top hitter Lauren Zembruski. She is batting .394 this season and leads the team in runs (12), hits (13), doubles (2), triples (1), homeruns (2), RBI (15) and slugging percentage (.758). On defense, the Cougars are led by pitcher Erika Taylor. Taylor is 7-1 on the season with a 1.23 ERA.