“We’re right there…but sometimes it doesn’t happen. And if it’s not meant to be, it’s not meant to be.”
Game 1: Mizzou 5 – Texas A&M 7
Mizzou Softball mounted a late comeback, but Texas A&M scored three in the 7th to take down the home team.
The Tigers trailed 4-1 entering the sixth inning, with only six outs remaining to find glory. Julia Crenshaw led off the inning with a double, but risked being stranded after two straight outs. The Tigers stayed patient, as Abby Hay and Stefania Abruscato both drew walks. That patience paid off for Madison Walker, who SMASHED a grand slam directly into the light post in right-center field, giving Mizzou a 5-4 lead. This was Walker’s 16th HR of the season, now tied for second in the SEC.
(MICHAEL BANIEWICZ/ROCK M)
Marissa McCann entered her sixth inning of work in the top of the 7th, coming in after Cierra Harrison pitched just 1.2 innings. She was on a roll, pitching 4.1 innings while allowing only three hits on one run entering the final inning.
That luck dissipated as A&M plated three more runs to win 7-5. After a single and an error put runners on first/second, Koko Wooley tied the game with a double to center field. Allie Enright followed up with a double of her own, scoring two more runners and helping the Aggies retake the lead. McCann was eventually replaced by Courtney Donahue, who escaped the inning with a double play; but the damage had already been done.
The bottom of the 7th started promising for Mizzou as Kayley Lenger led off the inning with a single. But the Tigers couldn’t add on, with three straight outs as Texas A&M took game one of the series.
The Aggies struck first, with three runs in the opening inning. After a hit-by-pitch and a walk to put runners on first/second. Mac Barbara cleared the fence in center field, as A&M led 3-0 only four batters into the game.
Barbara has been a thorn in the side of Mizzou for years now, hitting a similar 3-run homer last year in Mary Nutter when she was still playing at San Diego State.
Cierra Harrison continued to struggle early on the mound, allowing two runners to reach with two outs in the second inning. As a result, head coach Larissa Anderson made the switch to McCann after 1.2 innings. Harrison finished the day giving up three runs on four hits with 62 total pitches.
“I don’t want her to not be a confident player because she’s not getting the results she wants,” head coach Larissa Anderson said. “She’s a confident player because she’s done the work, she’s put in the time, she does everything she’s supposed to do, she’s prepared…so it’s just learning from those experience that every time she goes out there that she’s prepared, and that self-talk needs to be more encouraging to herself, rather than degrading herself, that she’s not getting the results that she expects to get.”
The Mizzou offense returned the favor with a run in the bottom of the 2nd, cutting the deficit to 3-1. Taylor Ebbs led off the inning with a walk, advancing to second on a sac bunt from Abby Hay. Stefania Abruscato brought Ebbs home with a single to get the Tigers on the board.
Both offenses stalled in the next two innings, combining for no runs and hits across the third and fourth. Ebbs and Hay both drew walks in the bottom of the fourth but didn’t come around to score.
Texas A&M got the run back in the fifth thanks to a walk and a pair of singles, as Wooley knocked home her first RBI of the day.
Offensively Mizzou was limited to four hits, struggling to make contact and find space out in the field. The Tigers did have success with discipline, leading to five walks in the game given out by Aggie pitcher Emiley Kennedy. Ebbs and Hay each finished with two.
(MICHAEL BANIEWICZ/ROCK M)
The two teams would meet just 40 minutes later for the second game of the doubleheader.
Game 2: Mizzou 3 – Texas A&M 4 (9 innings)
The Tigers can oh-so-close once again in Game 2 of the doubleheader, but fell in extras after 9 innings of battle.
But let’s backtrack: After six innings of action, the Tigers were down to their last three outs as they trailed 3-1.
Mizzou started off the 7th inning with some good ol’ fashioned small ball, as Lenger reached on a hit-by-pitch and Crenshaw was walked on four straight pitches. Mizzou faced two outs after a strikeout and a groundout (which allowed the runners to advance), just in time for Walker to come back to bat. Walker delivered AGAIN, this time with a single to center field, allowing both runners to make it home. She finished with 6 of Mizzou’s 8 RBI during the doubleheader.
(MICHAEL BANIEWICZ/ROCK M)
“That’s probably been something that we’ve really struggled with is with the game on the line and runners in scoring position, coming up with that quality at-bat,” Anderson said. “Being able to capitalize with the bases loaded in that first game and then game on the line with runners on second and third and having that base hit to tie it up when she did, that’s huge…she’s a sophomore, and she wasn’t an everyday player last year, so she’s learning from every single experience.”
But that excitement dipped as we headed to extras. After an uneventful 8th inning, Texas A&M outfielder Amari Harper hit a HR in the 9th to break the tie.
Taylor Pannell pitched the first 8.1 innings of the game, riding the highs and lows while allowing four runs on eight hits.
“Taylor Pannell threw an unbelievable game,” Anderson said. “I’m extremely proud of someone that was a closer to go as far as she did. Just competed her butt off the entire game.”
(MICHAEL BANIEWICZ/ROCK M)
The game came down to its last out, where Abruscato smashed a ball to DEEP left field. But it wasn’t meant to be, falling into the waiting glove of the left fielder.
Once again A&M struck first in the first inning, taking an early 1-0 lead. A walk and a fielder’s choice moved Amari Harper to 2nd so Barbara could bring her home with a single. Barbara tried heading to second as Mizzou tried throwing out Harper at home, but the Tigers pivoted and threw her out.
Texas A&M added to the lead in the third thanks to a pair of walks, allowing Wooly to knock in yet another run on a single. Wooley helped extend the lead to 3-0 in the top of the 6th, leading off the inning with a walk/stolen base combo. This allowed her advance home on a pair of outs, scoring on a groundout from KK Dement.
Mizzou got on the board in the bottom of the sixth inning, cutting the deficit to 3-1. Abruscato started the inning hot with a double out towards left center. With one out Ebbs walked, setting the stage for Abby Hay.
Hay delivered with a double to the wall, scoring the Tigers’ first run and sending Adi Koller (pinch running for Ebbs) to third. But with two runners in scoring position and only one out, the Mizzou offense failed to capitalize. Kara Daly and Madison Uptegrove both made solid contact, but made the mistake of hitting them directly to an A&M player. Mizzou finished the game stranding eight runners on the base paths. They struggled to make consistent contact, finishing with 10 K’s in the second game and a total of 19 on the day.
Both Julia Crenshaw and Kara Daly were back in the lineup after being cleared by the doctors and trainers. They were the only seniors out on the field, being able to play in front of the home crowd as we enter the final 10-or-so games of their college career.
“You don’t know how long they’re going to be in that uniform. So if the doctors say that they can play, I want them to play I want them out there, and they want to be out there, and I’m not going to stop them,” Anderson said with her eyes full of tears. “It’s the impact they’ve made on this program, and I’m extremely proud of them. It’s not even Senior Day yet and I’m crying. You never want someone’s career to end because of an injury. And you know these kids, they have a hard time getting out of bed, that’s how much their body hurst, and they’re willing to sacrifice it for their teammates and for this program. And to go out there and do what they do every single day just shows you how much they love to play and they love this program.”
“You’ll have to pry the gloves and bats out of their cold dead hands,” Rock M Olympic Sports Manager (and story editor) Karen Steger told me jokingly.
The Tigers now need to finish the season 6-1 in order to finish above .500. The series finale has been moved up to noon on Friday for the fear of weather. It will be broadcast on SECN+. Unfortunately, we will not have coverage as it’s in the middle of the day.