April 26, 2014
Gainesville, Fla. - The 15th-ranked Missouri Tiger softball team scored four runs in the first inning Saturday afternoon, but got shut down from there, and it wasn't enough to hold off the 3rd-ranked Florida Gators, who rallied for a 9-4 win to even the best-of-three series at one game apiece. Sunday's series deciding game is set for a 10 a.m. (central time) start.
Mizzou (37-13 overall, 13-7 in Southeastern Conference play) chased Florida's starting pitcher right away, after its first four batters reached to start the game. The Tigers would get a single from sophomore OF Taylor Gadbois (Maryville, Mo.), followed by a hit-by-pitch for sophomore C Sami Fagan (Dunnellon, Fla.). Sophomore Emily Crane (Troy, Mo.) singled in Gadbois for a 1-0 lead, and a wild pitch later would score Fagan from third to make it 2-0. After the Gators changed pitchers, senior OF Mackenzie Sykes (Blue Springs, Mo.) laced a two-run single to right field for a 4-0 lead.
But that was all the Tiger offensive attack could muster, even though they had two base runners on three different times in subsequent innings. Holding a 4-1 lead in the top of the third, a golden opportunity went awry when Mizzou loaded the bases with two outs, but a groundout to third ended the scoring threat. The Gators capitalized on that momentum with a five-run bottom of the third to take their first lead of the series, at 6-4. After Mizzou went down in order in the fourth, the Gators got a two-out, three-run homer to extend the lead to 9-4. The Tigers would strand eight runners in all on the day.
That's the way it would stay as the Gators improved to 42-9 overall and 12-8 in SEC play. Mizzou equaled Florida in the hit category, with eight hits apiece, but Florida was more efficient, as seven of their nine runs scored via their three home runs. Seven of Mizzou's eight hits were singles, with Crane's leadoff double in the third representing MU's only extra base hit of the day. Crane and Sykes both had two hits apiece Saturday to lead the pace, and Sykes made a couple of outstanding plays in left field to rob Florida of additional extra base hits.
Sunday's winner-take-all game will be available as an online radio broadcast for subscribers to the Mizzou Network at www.MizzouNetwork.com.