COLUMBIA, Mo. – Mizzou Softball (19-13, 2-4 SEC) opened its home Southeastern Conference weekend series on a high note Friday evening, tallying a 2-0 shutout victory over No. 9 Alabama. Tonight's win marked the Tigers' third triumph over a top 10 ranked opponent this season.
Senior Cheyenne Baxter (Norborne, Mo.) concluded her fantastic month of March with a complete game shutout gem over the Crimson Tide. Baxter scattered six hits, while striking out five batters en route to her seventh win of the year.
With March coming to a close Friday evening, Baxter's performance put an exclamation point on her outstanding month. The tall Tiger RHP accumulated a 6-1 record over 11 appearances (eight starts) in the circle with a sparkling 1.77 ERA, five complete games and two shutouts.
Freshman Cayla Kessinger (Saugus, Calif.) opened the game's scoring with a solo home run to right field in the second inning. Kessinger's fourth blast this season was only one of two run-producing at bats for the Tigers on Friday inside Mizzou Stadium, but ultimately was enough behind Baxter's outstanding work.
Sophomore Kolby Romaine (Chino Hills, Calif.) knocked in her ninth run of the season with a fourth inning sacrifice fly, adding a key insurance run midway through the contest.
Sophomores Regan Nash (Camden Point, Mo.) and Rylee Pierce (Visalia, Calif.) were responsible for the Tigers' other hits against Alabama pitching, highlighted by Nash's sixth multi-hit game this season. Nash also extended her career-high hitting streak to eight games Friday evening, rounding out a fantastic .386 (17-for-44) average over the month of March.
Redshirt junior Anna Reed (Lonedell, Mo.) starred defensively in right field for the Tigers, highlighted by a first inning double play and game-clinching diving grab in the seventh.
Hear From the Tigers
Baxter on Mizzou's timely defense tonight…
"Anytime you get great plays like we did tonight, it gets you excited. It's nice to see them succeed defensively."
Baxter on starting the weekend on a high note…
"It feels great. That's what we want to do every Friday of an SEC series. We want to come out and compete and start off the series right. We need to keep it going and ultimately win this series."
Kessinger on her solo home run…
"Honestly, I just wanted to go up there relaxed and stay confident. I want to get the best pitch I can get. Obviously, she (Alabama's Alexis Osorio) is a good pitcher. She spins the ball well. I took a couple pitches that I probably shouldn't have, but then swung at one that was a bit over my head. That's ok though since I stayed on top of it and barreled it up."
Up Next
Game two of this weekend's series is scheduled for a 5 p.m. (CT) first pitch on Saturday, April 1. The Tigers and Crimson Tide's matchup will air live on SEC Network.
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