No. 11 Softball Falls to Southeast Missouri Wednesday

COLUMBIA, Mo. – The No. 11 University of Missouri softball team (29-8, 4-5 SEC) fell to Southeast Missouri (13-20), 1-0, Wednesday at the Mizzou Softball Stadium.

In a pitching duel between the two squads, Paytience Holman notched a complete-game shutout, limiting the Tigers to three hits for the win. Holman also added a trio of strikeouts.

Laurin Krings and Marissa McCann combined to allow one run on five hits and recorded nine strikeouts.

With the game scoreless, Brittany Affolter knocked an RBI double in the fourth to provide the Redhawks a 1-0 advantage.

After a scoreless top of the first, Missouri had an opportunity to take the lead early in the contest. The Tigers had runners on first and second after a walk from Jenna Laird and a single from Alex Honnold. However, Holman worked out of the jam by retiring the next three Mizzou batters.

Despite a lead-off double from Aubrie Shore in the second frame, Krings bounced back, retiring two Redhawk batters via strikeout to go with a pop out to keep the game scoreless.

In the third, SEMO had another opportunity to take an advantage with two runners in scoring position. However, Krings worked out of the jam by punching out Shore to keep things squared at 0-0.

In the bottom of the frame, Mizzou loaded the bases with one out, following two hit-by-pitches and a single from Laird. Holman responded by retiring the next two batters to end the inning.

Holman went on to close out the shutout as she kept Missouri hitless through the last three innings.

McCann, the reigning two-time SEC Freshman of the Week, pitched three scoreless innings out of the bullpen, notching a career-best matching five strikeouts while scattering a hit.

NOTES

• Jenna Laird led Mizzou at the plate, going 1-for-2 with a walk. She has now reached base in each of the last 11 games.
• Maddie Gallagher has reached base in the last five contests with a hit-by-pitch in the game.
• Alex Honnold pushed her reached-base streak to six games, after tallying a single. She finished 1-for-3 Wednesday.
• Abby Hay made her fourth career start and earned her fourth career hit with a single in the third inning. She was 1-for-3 at the plate.
• Kayley Lenger extended her reached-base streak to five games with an HBP.
• Laurin Krings pitched 4.0 innings, allowing no earned runs (one run) on four hits. Krings recorded four strikeouts to mark her first appearance since Auburn (March 8) with four or more punchouts.
• Marissa McCann pitched three scoreless innings and matched a career-best five strikeouts in the contest. She let up just one hit in the relief appearance.
• Mizzou falls to 28-5 in the all-time series with SEMO.
• Head Coach Larissa Anderson is now 2-1 against the Redhawks in her career.

LOOKING AHEAD  

• Mizzou next concludes its week on the road in Fayetteville, Arkansas, facing the No. 19 Razorbacks (26-9, 5-4 SEC). The three-game series opens on Friday at 5 p.m., CT from Bogle Park. The Tigers continue play on Saturday at noon, followed by a 2 p.m. Sunday finale.
• The Tigers then head to Des Moines, Iowa, to face Drake at Blue Field on April 10. First pitch is set for 4 p.m., CT.
• Missouri then resumes SEC play with a weekend series at home against Florida April 12-14.

FOLLOW THE TIGERS

• For all the latest on Mizzou Softball, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team @MizzouSoftball (Twitter, Instagram, Facebook).