University of Missouri
Northern Colorado
No. 3 Tigers Win Two by Run-Rule
3/20/2010 12:00:00 AM | Softball
March 20, 2010
Game One Box Score | Game Two Box Score
COLUMBIA, Mo. - After losing their first game in over a month, the No. 3 Missouri (21-3) softball team bounced back in impressive fashion on Saturday, run-ruling both Eastern Michigan and Northern Colorado. The Tigers knocked off the EMU Eagles 9-0 in six innings, backed by sophomore Chelsea Thomas' second no-hitter of the season. In game two, Missouri beat Northern Colorado by an 8-0 score in five innings.
Thomas (11-1) went all six innings, striking out 10 batters while walking just three. The no-hitter is the fourth of her short two-year career. The sophomore from Pleasantville, Iowa, battled out of a tough first inning and coasted to her 11th win of the season.
Mizzou plated the first run of the game in the first inning. Playing as the visiting team in this game, the Tiger offense got started with a leadoff single by junior Rhea Taylor. Taylor then swiped second, the 108th stolen base of her career, and scored on an RBI single by freshman Jenna Marston.
In the Eagle half of the first, Eastern Michigan put their first two runners on via walks, and had runners on the corners after a wild pitch. However, Thomas struck out the third batter of the inning, while junior Megan Christopher threw out the runner trying to steal second. On the play, the runner on third took off for home, and Marston fired a strike back to the plate, with Christopher planting the tag for a triple play to end the threat.
With two on and one out in the top of the second, senior Gina Schneider blasted a ball over the left field fence for her second home run of the season while giving Mizzou a 4-0 lead. Later in the inning, Taylor stole her 109th career base in the second, leaving her just one stolen base shy of tying the school record.
Missouri tacked on three more in the next inning, extending their lead to 7-0. With one out, junior Kathryn Poet reached via error, and moved to second on freshman Princess Krebs' single. After Schneider walked to load the bases, Taylor smacked a two-run single up the middle, plating Krebs and Poet. Schneider would then score after a balk for the third run of the frame.
The Tigers pushed across their final run of the game in the top of the sixth. With runners on second and third, Marston hit a ground-rule double over the center field wall, plating junior Lisa Simmons.
Taylor finished a perfect 3-for-3 with two RBIs and a run scored. Marston went 2-for-3, also with two runs batted in.
Game two was more of the same for Mizzou, as sophomore Kristin Nottelmann held the Bears to just two hits in five innings of work. Nottelmann's record now stands at 6-2 on the year.
Just like game one, the Tigers pushed across a run in the first. Playing as the home team in this game, Mizzou scored a run on an error to lead 1-0.
The Tigers were able to push across four in the third. The first run scored with runners on second and third, who then both advanced one base on an illegal pitch by the UNC pitcher. After freshman Nicole Hudson walked, she stole second base. Sophomore Ashley Fleming, who was on third at the time, took off for home and scored to extend the Tiger lead. Later in the inning, junior Abby Vock doubled into left field to score two Tiger runners, pushing the lead to 5-0.
Mizzou ended the game with three runs in the bottom of the fifth inning, putting the run-rule into effect. After Hudson led off the inning with a walk, junior Marla Schweisberger hit a two-run blast to put the Tigers up 7-0. The home run was Schweisberger's fourth of the season, tying her for the team-high. The Tigers then loaded the bases for redshirt sophomore Katy Koontz, who drove in the winning run on her first hit of the season.
Due to the inclement weather, the schedule for Sunday's action at the Demarini Invitational is still to be determined. Stay tuned to mutigers.com for updates.
