April 15, 2014
| Opponent | Location | Day/Time | Media |
|---|---|---|---|
| at Iowa | Iowa City, Iowa | Wed./3 p.m. | Twitter | Stats | Video (BTDN) | Audio |
| at Iowa | Iowa City, Iowa | Wed./5 p.m. | Twitter | Stats | Video (BTDN) | Audio |
|
Video - Big Ten Digital Network (More info) |
TIGER TALES - No. 13 Mizzou Softball (32-10, 9-6 SEC) heads to Iowa for a midweek doubleheader on Wednesday, April 16, after the team won its third-straight Southeastern Conference series and posted a 5-0 week. The Tigers were perfect with a sweep of a non-conference doubleheader vs. Western Illinois (April 9) and its three wins at No. 20 Auburn (April 11-13). The three wins over the ranked AU squad brought Mizzou's season total for wins over ranked opponents to eight.
• Head coach Ehren Earleywine's squad has meet Iowa once already in 2014, when weather conditions in the South diverted Mizzou's opening weekend of action to Baylor's Getterman Classic in Waco, Texas. The Tigers, in just their second game of the season (Feb. 14), defeated the Hawkeyes by a 2-1 score. Iowa's lone run came a drifting home run to right field that found the other side of the fence.
• Stop, thief! Redshirt sophomore OF Taylor Gadbois leads the SEC in stolen bases with her 34 swipes in 2014. Her 0.85 stolen bases per game ranks seventh in the nation. Her success on the base paths this season now ranks in Mizzou's single-season Top 10 for stolen bases at ninth.
• Several individuals stood out as the Tigers swept Auburn in their three-game series in Auburn, Ala., from Friday, April 11-Sunday, April 13. The initial, 4-2 win of the series on Friday saw junior 3B/C Angela Randazzo's two-run home run prove to be the difference in the win. Redshirt sophomore SS Sami Fagan recorded two RBI in the victory. Freshman P Tori Finucane did not allow an earned run in her win (6.0 IP) in the circle (14-5), scattering six hits with three strikeouts. Freshman P/1B/OF Casey Stangel earned the Tigers' first save of the season to close out the game.
• April 12 belonged to Mizzou's seniors. Senior OF Mackenzie Sykes set career highs in home runs (2) and RBI (6) in a 3-for-4 batting day to power Mizzou to an 8-7 win. Fellow senior P Alora Marble entered in relief, throwing 3.2 innings and shutting down Auburn over the final two innings with zero hits allowed and a game-ending strikeout. The win was Marble's first career SEC win, but not her last of the weekend.
• A group effort of home runs sealed the sweep for Mizzou on April 13, a 7-6 Tiger win over Auburn. Junior 1B Kelsea Roth got Mizzou out to a 4-0 lead with one swing, her first grand slam of 2014 and fourth of her career. The game tightened, but the bats remained hot, as both junior IF Corrin Genovese and freshman IF/OF Kelli Schkade hit solo home runs in the top of the seventh to help the Tigers maintain their advantage. Marble appeared in relief for a second consecutive day to earn the win (5-0), pitching 3.0 innings with just one earned run allowed.
• Calling Mizzou a hot-hitting squad is an understatement. Three Tigers are currently having seasons at the plate the rank among the best in program history. The team leader in batting average, Gadbois has compiled a .440 mark, which currently ranks second only to former Mizzou star and three-time All-American Rhea Taylor's .452 average from 2010. Sophomore 2B/OF Emily Crane has stood with a .411 batting average since being sidelined with her leg injury. Genovese's .397 season average at the plate also currently resides inside the program's Top 10.
• Genovese also continued her top-notch conference hitting into a third league series, batting 7-for-11 (.636) in Mizzou's three wins at Auburn, including a 3-for-3 game to start the series. The Tiger infielder, once known exclusively for her glove, sits atop the conference with a .462 batting average in SEC games.
• Schkade was named SEC Freshman of the Week (April 14), showing a clutch bat for Mizzou in the sweep-clinching, 7-6 win at No. 20 Auburn (April 13), as she launched a solo home run to left center field with two outs in the top of the seventh inning to put her squad up 7-5. The home run was just one swing of an overall 6-for-16 (.375) week to help Mizzou record a perfect 5-0 record. The midweek doubleheader vs. WIU (April 9) included a superb performance by Schkade, as she went 3-for-4 at the plate with a single, double and triple in the 5-0 nightcap win.
THE OPPOSITION - IOWA - Iowa (10-23, 5-9 Big Ten) played Mizzou tough at the beginning of the season, but has found it just as tough against the rest of its opponents in the months since. The Hawkeyes have been outscored 157-89 in 33 games.
• Megan Blank leads Iowa with a .351 batting average and is the team-leader with 33 hits. Blank is joined above the .300 mark by Brianna Luna, who has hit .333 thus far in 2014.
• Kayla Massey held Mizzou to just four hits in her Feb. 14, 2-1 setback to the Tigers and has pitched a team-leading 124.1 innings for Iowa this season. Massey has compiled a 2.59 ERA with a 6-12 record. Opposing batters have posted a .248 average against her.
SEC CHAMPIONSHIP TICKETS - Tiger fans! Tickets for the 2014 Southeastern Conference Softball Tournament (May 7-10) in Columbia, S.C., are on sale through host school, South Carolina.
• On sale are all-session booklets covering the four-day tournament. Reserved chairback seats are $60 per all-session booklet, while standing-room only passes are $40. Broken down by session, each ticket covers Wednesday's opening-round games, the midday and evening quarterfinal sessions on Thursday, Friday's semifinals and Saturday's finals.
• Fans may purchase tickets online at gamecocksonline.com/tickets, or by calling the South Carolina Athletic Ticket Office at 1-800-4SC-FANS (1-800-472-3267).