NCAA Super Regional: Game Two Notes
5/29/2011 12:00:00 AM | Softball
May 29, 2011
Missouri Tigers (52-8)
Missouri advances to its third consecutive Women's College World Series by virtue of its two-game sweep of Washington. Over the last three years Missouri is 6-1 in Super Regional play vs. the Pac-10 Conference, going 2-1 at UCLA in 2009, 2-0 vs. Oregon in 2010 and 2-0 vs. the Huskies in 2011.
Mizzou has now won a school record 52 games this season, improving to 52-8 overall in 2011. Over the last three years the Tigers have won 153 games, 50 in 2009 and 51 in 2010.
Missouri improved to 14-1 in postseason home contests since 2008. The Tigers finished 6-1 at home in postseason play in 2011.
#5 Missouri will face #4 Florida in the opening round of play at the Women's College World Series. The Tigers fell to the Gators 5-0 in last year's World Series.
Missouri improved to 23-7 vs. teams in the Top 50 of the RPI.
Missouri is 15-2 over its last 17 games and 25-3 over its last 28.
Missouri has hit nine home runs in postseason play and its 67 blasts for the year are second in school history.
Washington managed just one run-scoring inning off of sophomore standout Chelsea Thomas. The Huskies plated three runs in the bottom of the fifth inning, but went scoreless in 13-of-14 innings overall in the NCAA Super Regional.
Thomas scattered 10 Washington hits in the game and Missouri improved to 4-5 this season when being outhit by its opponent. Missouri also improved to 8-4 this year when mustering five or fewer hits in a game.
Thomas pitched all 14.0 innings of the Super Regional and registered 22 strikeouts compared to just four walks.
Thomas improved to 31-6 on the year. The 31 wins are second in single-season history at Mizzou, just one behind the school record of 32 set by Theresa Wilson in 1981. Thomas, Barb Wright (31 wins in 1997) and Wilson are the only Tigers to win 30 games in one season.
Missouri managed just one hit over its final 6.0 innings, a seventh-inning infield single by Ashley Fleming. Missouri did score five first-inning runs to seize control of the game, however. The Tigers improved to 45-4 this year when scoring first and 30-3 when scoring in the first inning. Missouri scored a combined six first-inning runs (one first-inning run on Saturday) in this NCAA Super Regional.
Lisa Simmons launched the big blow in the first frame, connecting on her third home run of 2011. The two-run shot pushed her season RBI total to 21.
Rhea Taylor scored a run and tied Norrelle Dickson's (Oklahoma 2004-07) Big 12 Conference record for career runs scored. Both players have crossed home plate 234 times. Taylor's next run will obviously set a new conference mark.
Taylor also stole her 43rd base of the year. She is a near-perfect 43-of-45 on the base paths this season and is a flawless 9-of-9 in stolen base opportunities this postseason.
A facility record 2,604 fans witnessed tonight's game. Missouri broke the facility record for attendance in back-to-back games. A then record 2,595 fans saw Saturday's game.
