May 7, 2010
Complete Game Notes 
WHO: No. 9 Missouri Tigers at Nebraska Cornhuskers
WHEN: Saturday, May 8 - 12:06 p.m. CT | Sunday, May 9 - 12:05 p.m. CT
WHERE: Bowlin Stadium - Lincoln, Neb.
LIVE STATS: Saturday | Sunday
WATCH LIVE: Saturday's game will be aired on Fox Sports Net. Brenda VanLengen and Tracy Warren have the call.
The Missouri Tigers close out the 2010 regular season with one last conference series, beginning Saturday against the Nebraska Cornhuskers. Both Saturday's and Sunday's games will begin at Noon CT, with Saturday's game being aired on Fox Sports Net.
SCOUTING THE HUSKERS
Nebraska comes into this series with a 28-25 record on the season, which includes a 6-10 record in Big 12 play. The Huskers have dropped seven of their last 10 overall, getting wins over Baylor, Kansas and Creighton. Overall, Nebraska is 11-7 while playing at home in 2010. They currently place seventh in the conference after being projected to finish fourth in the preseason coaches poll. Nebraska is led by Rhonda Revelle, who is in her 18th season as head coach of the Nebraska softball team. Assisting her are Lori Sippel, Diane Miller and Sheena Lawrick.
Offensively, NU ranks eighth in the Big 12 in team batting average at .283. The top Husker performer this season is Ashley Guile, who has started all 53 games for Nebraska. She leads all batters with a .386 batting average, and gets on base at an astounding .516 clip. She has 15 doubles and 37 RBI on the year. She's also drawn 31 walks and been hit nine times, while only striking out 14 times this season. Brooke Thomason provides the power for Nebraska with her 11 home runs and 13 doubles for a .664 slugging percentage on the season.
The Huskers have struggled a bit in the circle, posting the third-highest ERA in the league at 3.31. They have two pitchers who see most of the time, Robin Mackin and Ashley Hagemann. The two have combined to start 51 of the team's 53 games this season. Mackin, a junior, leads the team with a 2.61 ERA. She's recorded 154 strikeouts and 81 walks in 142.1 innings pitched, and has a record of 12-13. The sophomore Hagemann is 13-12 this year with 193 strikeouts and 80 walks in 175.2 innings pitched. Opponents hit .237 off Hagemann, and she's allowed 30 home runs this season. Mackin has give up just 10 bombs while limiting opponents to a .202 batting average during the season.
MIZZOU VS. NEBRASKA
Missouri and Nebraska have battled 75 times in their history, with the Huskers winning the majority of those meetings. Nebraska has tallied 47 wins in the series, while Mizzou has just 28. Since head coach Ehren Earleywine took over in 2007, Mizzou and Nebraska have split each series, both winning three and losing three overall. The split last season took place in Columbia with Nebraska winning the series opener by a 6-1 final before the Tigers bounced back with a 5-0 shutout in the regular season finale.
FOLLOW THE GAMES
Live stats for both games will be provided via GameTracker at mutigers.com. Huskers.com, Nebraska's athletic website, will also provide live statistics and scoring. Saturday's game will air on Fox Sports Net.
WHAT'S NEXT?
Missouri and the rest of the Big 12 will travel to Oklahoma City, Okla., for the 2010 Big 12 Championship Tournament. Play begins on Friday, May 14, and concludes with the championship on Sunday, May 16.
FLEMING EARNS BIG 12, NATIONAL ACCOLADES
After putting up a batting average of .769 last week, sophomore Ashley Fleming was rewarded for her outstanding performance by being named the Big 12 Player of the Week and the USA Softball National Player of the Week. It is the first career Big 12 weekly award for Fleming, and she becomes just the second Tiger to ever win the USA Softball award.
The sophomore out of Silex, Mo., finished the week with 10 hits in 13 at-bats, which included three doubles and two home runs. She also scored seven times and drove in eight runs, while going a perfect 3-for-3 in stolen bases. Her on-base percentage for the week was .789, and her slugging percentage was an astounding 1.462.
Fleming is the third Tiger to win a Big 12 Player of the Week award this season. Junior Catherine Lee won the award back on April 20, while sophomore Chelsea Thomas was named Big 12 Pitcher of the Week on March 2. Janessa Roening is the only other Tiger to be named USA Softball Player of the Week, which came back in 2005.
RECORD BOOK WATCH
Numerous Tiger players have either set new records, entered the top-10 of certain categories or are closing in on the top-10 this season. Here's a rundown:
• Jana Hainey moved into 10th all-time in career appearances with 106.
• Hainey also has the second-best winning percentage in a season with her 9-1 record this year. Chelsea Thomas is first with her .923 win-loss percentage this season.
• Rhea Taylor currently sits fourth all-time in career hits with 226. There is a tie for second between Stacy Gemeinhardt and Micaela Minner for second with 231.
• With her five triples this season, Taylor is now tied for seventh all-time with 12 in her career.
• Marla Schweisberger's home run against WIU was the 17th of her career and puts her in a tie for 10th for most all-time.
• Rhea Taylor broke the school record for most runs scored against Iowa State on April 28. The old record was 164.
• Taylor also broke the career stolen base mark earlier this season against Saint Louis. The old record, held by Julie Link, stood since 1989.
• Rhea Taylor's .449 batting average this season is far and away the best in a single season at Missouri. Barring a rough next few weeks, Taylor will break Karen Williams' old record of .429 in the 2001 season. Jenna Marston is also eyeing the top-10 for a single season batting average.
• Taylor has scored 52 runs this season, the sixth-most in a season. Taylor holds the record with 64 in 2008.
• Taylor's next hit will put her in the top-10 again for most in a season. She currently holds the school record with 88 hits in 2008, and is sixth all-time with 72 hits in 2009.
• Marston has moved into 10th all-time with most RBI in a single season. She currently stands at 47.
• Taylor and Ashley Fleming are looking to have top-10 slugging percentages by the end of the year. Taylor's 2010 SLG stands at .741, which is tied for third-highest in a season, while Fleming's is .646, just outside the top-10.
• Marston and Nicole Hudson have each moved into the top-10 for most doubles in a year in just their first collegiate season. Marston has 16, the third most, while Hudson has 14, tied for seventh. The Mizzou record is 19 by Mary Babb in 1995.
• Taylor has raced for five triples this season, two shy of joining the top-10 for most in a season
• Schweisberger has nine home runs this season, Fleming has eight, and Hudson and Taylor each have seven. If any of them reach 10 this year, they'll put themselves in the top-10 for most in a season.
• Catherine Lee has drawn 26 walks this season, putting her just one shy of the top-10 for most walks in a season
• Rhea Taylor now has three entries in the top-10 for stolen bases in a season, as she's swiped 35 this year. She holds the school record with 57 in 2008, and is fifth all-time with her 36 last season.
SLUGGERS BATTLING FOR TOP SPOT
The Missouri home run hitters are battling for the most home runs on the club with the end of the season closing in. Through May 5, Marla Schweisberger has connected with nine to lead the team. Fleming sits in second with eight, while Rhea Taylor has come out of nowhere to move into second on the team with seven, joining Nicole Hudson who hit her seventh against WIU. Since April 13, Taylor has connected on five home runs to raise her total. Coming into this season, Taylor had just five career home runs in her first two seasons combined. Catherine Lee has come on strong as of late and now has six home runs in her first season as a Tiger.
STREAKING
Since dropping four out of six in early April, capped by a doubleheader sweep at the hands of Texas, the Tigers have put together 16 wins in their last 17 games, which includes a 7-1 record in conference and an 8-1 record away from University Field. Their only loss came to Texas A&M in a tough defeat that saw the Tigers score four runs in the top of the seventh to tie the game before ultimately losing in the bottom of inning. The current seven-game winning streak is the third longest of the season. Missouri won nine in a row before dropping the heartbreaker to Texas A&M a few weeks back, and won 17 straight earlier this season.
With a hit in each of game of the doubleheader against Western Illinois, Rhea Taylor increased her current hitting streak to 18 straight games, the most recorded by any Tiger dating back to 2004. It's also the seventh longest in the history of the Big 12. Nebraska's Anne Steffan hit in 25 straight back in 2005.
OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION
After struggling earlier in the year offensively, the Missouri offense has exploded as of late, so much so that they now lead the Big 12 for most runs per game this season at 6.50. In the team's last six Big 12 games, the Tigers have scored 66 runs for an average of 11 per game. Their lowest total, five against Texas A&M, came in their only loss during that six-game stretch, while they've scored nine, 11, 12, 14 and 14 in the other five. During Mizzou's current 17-game stretch that has them 16-1 overall, the Tigers have scored 8.18 runs per game in those contests. They've scored under five runs just one time during that period, coming in a 3-1 victory over Texas Tech.
TIGERS SWEEP NON-CONFERENCE FINALE
The Missouri Tigers closed out their non-conference schedule with a doubleheader sweep over Western Illinois on Wednesday, winning by scores of 5-1 and 7-1. Missouri improves to 42-9 on the season and finishes 33-3 in non-conference games.
In game one, the teams exchanged scoreless innings all the way to the fourth, when the Tigers were finally able to push three runs across the board. Nicole Hudson led off the inning with a double to the right field fence and advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt. Hudson would score on a double by Lindsey Muller, who roped a line drive over the right fielder's head, making it 1-0 Tigers. Gina Schneider followed by delivering a home run to straightaway center field, putting Missouri up 3-0. Senior Jana Hainey threw five scoreless innings for her ninth win of the season, improving her to 9-1 overall.
Game two started similarly to the first game, with both teams remaining scoreless through the first three innings. Just like game one, Mizzou pushed across three runs in the top of the fourth to take the first lead of the game. Hudson drew a leadoff walk and two batters later Shana White singled up the middle and advanced on the throw, putting runners on second and third. After a strikeout, Schweisberger delivered a home run to dead center field, giving the Tigers the 3-0 lead. Schweisberger's ninth home run of the season puts her back on top as the team leader. Missouri picked up a pair of insurance runs in the top of the sixth to extend their lead to 6-1. In the seventh, Hudson blasted her seventh bomb of the season to lead off the frame and extend the Tiger lead to 7-1. Kristin Nottelmann went the distance to improve to 17-6 on the season. The sophomore allowed just one run on four hits while striking out two.
MIZZOU WINS 40 AGAIN
For the fourth time in four years under head coach Ehren Earleywine, the Missouri softball team has once again won 40 games in a single season. The Tigers picked up win No. 40 in game one of the series against Baylor, securing the feat with a 9-2 victory. Since Earleywine arrived at Mizzou in 2007, the Tigers are 178-62 for a .742 winning percentage. Missouri was 40-24 in Earleywine's first year, 47-17 in 2008 and 50-12 last season.
TIGERS UP A SPOT IN BOTH POLLS
Missouri was rewarded for their 5-0 week overall and 4-0 week in Big 12 play by moving up a spot in each of the latest polls. The Tigers went from No. 10 to No. 9 in the USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 poll. Missouri, who also started the season at No. 9, have been in the top-10 for 11 of the 13 polls this season. Ranking in at No. 15 last week, Mizzou moved up one spot to No. 14 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll.