No. 12/12 Softball to Host No. 25/25 Auburn in Home Opening Series

COLUMBIA, Mo. – The No. 12/12 University of Missouri softball team (18-2) welcomes No. 25/25 Auburn (12-2-1) to the Mizzou Softball Stadium this weekend for its 2024 home opening/SEC opening weekend series. 

Games are set for Friday (4 p.m., CT), Saturday (2 p.m., CT) and Sunday (noon, CT) for the top-25 matchup between the pair of Tiger institutions.

The three-game series will be available on SEC Network+ with Noah Reed (play-by-play), Mizzou All-American Brooke Wilmes (analyst) and Kylee Hansen (reporter) on the broadcast. 

The 18-2 start to the 2024 season is the best start for Missouri since the Tigers opened the 2013 campaign 22-2 en route to a 38-14 finish. 

Mizzou is ranked in all four polls heading into the weekend after first appearing following week one (Feb. 13). The Tigers enter the fifth week of the season #12 in both the USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll, and ESPN.com/USA Softball Poll. Mizzou is also #13 and #14 in the Softball America and D1Softball polls, respectively.

Missouri was also ranked fifth (third highest SEC school) in this week’s RPI (Ratings Power Index).

The Tigers head into SEC play riding a five-game winning streak. Mizzou opened the 2024 campaign 10-0 and notched perfect tournament weekends three out of four times. 

Friday fans will receive an #OwnIt Mug, while supplies last. Saturday attendees can receive a schedule magnet, while supplies last. Sunday is Health Care Heroes Day and the giveaway is beanies, while supplies last. 

SCHEDULE

• #12/12 Missouri vs. #25/25 Auburn, Friday, March 8 at 4 p.m., CT | Mizzou Softball Complex
• #12/12 Missouri vs. #25/25 Auburn, Saturday, March 9 at 2 p.m., CT | Mizzou Softball Complex
• #12/12 Missouri vs. #25/25 Auburn, Sunday, March 10 at 12 p.m., CT | Mizzou Softball Complex

Location: Mizzou Softball Stadium | Columbia, Mo.

Live Stats: Friday | Saturday | Sunday 

Live Video: Friday | Saturday | Sunday 

Tickets

Twitter: @MizzouSoftball
Notes: Missouri

SERIES HISTORY

• Auburn holds a slight lead in the all-time series with Mizzou, 12-11.
• The Auburn Tigers took all three meetings over the 2023 series (March 25-27, 2023) in Auburn, Alabama, (4-0, 2-1, 2-1 Auburn).
• Missouri last beat Auburn, 1-0, at the 2022 SEC Tournament on May 11, 2022.

MIDWEEK RECAP

• Mizzou picked up its first midweek win of the season with a 3-0 decision over Kansas City Wednesday afternoon.
• Cierra Harrison, a Lee’s Summit, Missouri, native, held the Roos to just two hits, allowing zero earned runs and throwing a career-best 10 strikeouts in her backyard. Harrison also recorded her second complete-game shutout of the season.
• Maddie Gallagher tallied her third career home run (first in 2024), a two-run blast, in the bottom of the sixth. 
• Julia Crenshaw was 1-for-3 with a run, an RBI, and a stolen base.  
• Mya Dodge (pinch hit, 1-for-1) and Jenna Laird (1-for-4, double) also each had a hit in the win. 

QUICK HITTERS

• The Tigers head into SEC play riding a five-game winning streak. Mizzou opened the 2024 campaign 10-0 and notched perfect tournament weekends three out of four times
• The 18-2 start to the 2024 season is the best start for Missouri since the Tigers opened the 2013 campaign 22-2 en route to a 38-14 finish. 
• Mizzou is ranked in all four polls heading into the weekend after first appearing following week one (Feb. 13). The Tigers enter the fifth week of the season #12 in both the USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll, and ESPN.com/USA Softball Poll. Mizzou is also #13 and #14 in the Softball America and D1Softball polls, respectively.
• Missouri was also ranked fifth (third highest SEC school) in this week’s RPI (Ratings Power Index).
• Alex Honnold pushed her hitting streak to 12 games with a triple (first in 2024) in the sixth Wednesday against Kansas City. She finished 1-for-2 with a run and a walk.
• Maddie Gallagher extended her reached base streak to 14 games against Kansas City. She ranks seventh in the SEC with a .556 on-base percentage to go with five doubles. 
• Jenna Laird and Julia Crenshaw are each on six-game reached base streaks.
• Cierra Harrison improved to 6-0 in 2024 after her complete-game shutout of Kansas City Wednesday. 
• Alex Honnold paces the Tigers with a .422 batting average in the two-hole to go with 19 runs, 15 RBI, nine doubles and a .688 slugging percentage. 
• Four Tigers are batting over .300 in Jenna Laird (.390, 26 runs, 11 RBI), Maddie Gallagher (.364, five doubles, 12 RBI, 15 runs), Katie Chester (.341, team-high three home runs, 17 RBI, .610 slugging percentage) and nine-hole hitter Kayley Lenger (.321, .536 slugging percentage).
• Mya Dodge is six runs away from 100 in her collegiate career.

2024 BIG RED INVITATIONAL RECAP

• Missouri finished its weekend in Nebraska with a perfect record, going 4-0 at the Big Red Invitational in Lincoln, Nebraska.
• With the victories, the Tigers improved to 17-2 on the season. 
• Mizzou opened the tournament against host-team Nebraska, taking down the Cornhuskers 10-6 behind a season-best 13 hits (March 2). The Tigers went on to claim another 5-1 victory over Nebraska on March 3. 
• Against Wichita State, the Tigers picked up their fourth run-rule win (13-3) of the season with a season-best matching 13 runs on 12 hits on March 2. 
• Missouri went on to take game two over the Shockers, 8-2, on March 3. 
• Kayley Lenger paced Mizzou batting .800 with a .923 on-base percentage and 1.200 slugging percentage. She knocked two doubles over the weekend with four funs. Lenger, the Tigers nine-hole hitter, also earned four walks and was hit by four pitches. She ranks second in the SEC for hit by pitch per game (0.40, 12th NCAA) and sixth in the league for on-base percentage (.553) in 2024.
• Leadoff hitter Jenna Laird hit .357 over the weekend while Kara Daly added four hits (.308) with four RBI. Laird is one RBI away from 100 in her career at Mizzou.

4-FOR-4 TIGERS    

• Catcher Julia Crenshaw led the way against Wichita State, posting a career-best 4-for-4 day at the plate with a season-high four RBI to go along with three runs (career high) and a stolen base on March 2. 
• Crenshaw paces Mizzou with five multi-RBI games in 2024.
• She finished the weekend, batting .438 with seven RBI and five runs.
• Crenshaw ranks third in the SEC for sacrifice flies (3) and seventh for doubles (5). 
• Katie Chester also went a career-best 4-for-4 in the Tiger’s win over Wichita on March 3, boasting a trio of RBI and a double (second in 2024).
• The contest marked Chester’s second multi-hit game of the season and fourth multi-RBI game in 2024.
• She hit .500 over the Invitational with six RBI. 
• With the performances of Crenshaw and Chester in Nebraska, four Tigers in total have gone 4-for-4 so far during the 2024 campaign, along with Alex Honnold and Kara Daly. 

HEY HONNOLD!!    

• Alex Honnold batted .462 (.769 slugging percentage and .588 on-base percentage) with seven runs, six hits, four RBI and two extra base hits over the 2024 Big Red Invitational to extend her hitting streak to 11 games. 
• Honnold registered a hit in each of the four tournament games this past weekend in Lincoln, Nebraska. Honnold also scored two or more runs in all but one game this weekend.
• She went 2-for-4 on Saturday against Nebraska, tallying two runs, two RBI, a double and a walk (March 2).
• Honnold also notched her second home run of the season, bringing her career total to 18, in Missouri’s victory over Wichita on March 3.
• She ranks 11th in the SEC with a .422 batting average. Honnold also leads the conference with nine doubles (eighth in the NCAA, 0.47 doubles/game).
• Honnold has also tallied 26 hits which ranks sixth in the league (44th in NCAA).
• She ranks fourth in the SEC as the toughest batter to strikeout (31.5).
• Honnold is four RBI away from 100 in her career at Mizzou.

MCCANN EARNS FIRST CAREER SAVE

• Freshman Marissa McCann picked up her first career save to help secure the Tigers’ win over Nebraska on March 2.
• The Surprise, Arizona, native, threw two shutout innings with one strikeout and one walk.
• She also pitched 4.1 innings in the second meeting with Wichita State on March 3, picking up the win as she scattered one run on three hits to go with a strikeout. With the win, McCann improved to 2-0 in the circle after making her third career start. 
• McCann led the Tigers at the 2024 Big Red Invitational, allowing just one run on three hits over 6.1 innings for a win and a save. She also compiled four strikeouts with a 1.11 ERA.

PHILLIPS WITH THE LONG BALL 

• Chantice Phillips led the Tigers at the plate, going 3-for-4 with two runs, an RBI, and a home run in Missouri’s first victory over Nebraska on March 2. 
• The senior from Kansas City, Missouri, notched a career-best three hits for the second time in her career. She previously posted the mark on April 2, 2023, against Alabama. 
• For Phillips, the blast marked her first home run of the season (third career homer). 
• The left fielder started in all four contests over the Big Red Invitational, hitting .308 (.615 slugging percentage).

KRINGS ON A TEAR 

• Senior ace Laurin Krings notched a complete-game victory in the circle, limiting the Cornhuskers to one run on five hits March 3.
• Krings secured her team-leading sixth complete game of the season, fanning four with a pair of walks. She also improved to 7-2 in 2024.
• Krings ranks fifth in the SEC for wins and innings pitches (51.2) this season. 
• The senior from Loveland, Colorado, is now three strikeouts away from 500 in her career. She ranks eighth in school history for strikeouts.

GALLAGHER HOT AT THE PLATE

• Maddie Gallagher batted .444 with four runs and three RBI over the Big Red Invitational. 
• Gallagher went 2-for-2 in Mizzou’s matchup with Wichita on March 2, notching a season-high three RBI.
• The senior also knocked back-to-back doubles against Nebraska (March 2) and Wichita State (March 3). 
• The second baseman from Port Washington, New York, is batting .357 this season with 14 runs, 10 RBI and five doubles. 
• She ranks seventh in the SEC with a .556 on-base percentage to go with five doubles. 

CIERRA IN THE CIRCLE

• Cierra Harrison helped propel Missouri to a win over Nebraska on March 2.
• Against the Cornhuskers, Harrison pitched 4.1 innings, allowing six runs on six hits to go with three strikeouts and a pair of walks.
• The sophomore then picked up her first career save in the victory over Wichita State on March 3, closing out the final 2.2 innings, scattering a run on one hit with three strikeouts. 
• With the trio of Ks, the Lee’s Summit, Missouri, native, officially compiled 100 career-strikeouts.
• She ranks 13th in the SEC with a 1.27 ERA and ninth in the conference with 3.59 hits allowed per seven innings. 

2023 RECAP 

• Mizzou made its 16th-straight NCAA Tournament appearance in 2023.
• The Tigers finished the 2023 season with a 35-26 mark, including a 7-17 in SEC play. With its 2023 record, Missouri has registered 35 wins in four of the last five seasons (2020 COVID-19 shortened season was the only time the Tigers didn’t meet the threshold in that span).
• During the 2023 campaign, Missouri totaled 51 home runs, while logging 75 doubles to go with 310 runs as a team. 
• On the dirt, Mizzou tallied a .978 fielding percentage. The clip ranks second in program history, after the Tigers’ surpassed their previous .976 fielding percentage from 2022. 

LOOKING AHEAD  

• Mizzou next heads to Urbana-Champaign, Illinois, for a doubleheader against Illinois on March 13. The doubleheader will commence at 1 p.m., CT. The Tigers will then continue their road trip, traveling to Knoxville, Tennessee, for a three-game series against the Vols (March 15-17).