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COLUMBIA, Mo. – The No. 24/23 University of Missouri Softball program (12-4) ventures to Stillwater and Tulsa, Oklahoma, this weekend to compete in the Oklahoma State/Tulsa Invitational, the Tigers final non-conference tournament of the season.
Mizzou will begin the Invitational with a pair of games Friday in Stillwater, starting with a contest against Maine (4-5) at noon, CT, before a top-25 clash against No. 3/3 Oklahoma State (13-1) at 5 p.m., CT. On Saturday, the Invitational will shift to Tulsa, where the Tigers will face Maine for a second time at noon, CT, and Tulsa (7-8) at 2:30 p.m., CT. The weekend will round out with another matchup against Tulsa, Sunday with a 1 p.m., CT first pitch.
The Tigers are currently ranked in four polls including No. 24 by USA Today/NFCA, No. 23 by ESPN/USA Softball, No. 23 by Softball America, and No. 24 by D1 Softball.
Tigers Assistant Coach Jeff Cottrill will return to Oklahoma State this weekend at the Invitational. Prior to joining Mizzou this past June, Cottrill spent seven seasons with the Cowgirls. He helped OSU to three Women’s College World Series appearances and a Big 12 Tournament title. After serving as the Director of Operations for two seasons, Cottrill served as the Cowgirls’ pitching coach for 2018 and 2019 before taking over the hitters in 2020.
Oklahoma State/Tulsa Invitational
• Locations: Stillwater, Okla. (Cowgirl Stadium)
Tulsa, Okla. (Collins Family Softball Complex)
Schedule
Stillwater, Okla.
· No. 24/23 Missouri vs. Maine (4-5), Friday, March 3, 12 p.m., CT, Cowgirl Stadium
· No. 24/23 Missouri at No. 3/3 Oklahoma State (13-1), 5 p.m., CT, Cowgirl Stadium
Tulsa, Okla.
· No. 24/23 Missouri vs. Maine (4-5), Saturday, March 4, 12 p.m., CT, Collins Family Softball Complex
· No. 24/23 Missouri at Tulsa (7-8), Saturday, March 4, 2:30 p.m., CT, Collins Family Softball Complex
· No. 24/23 Missouri at Tulsa (7-8), Sunday, March 5, 1 p.m., CT, Collins Family Softball Complex
FOLLOW THE TIGERS
ESPN+ Video: Oklahoma State | Tulsa | Tulsa
Video: Maine
Live Stats: Maine | Oklahoma State | Maine | Tulsa | Tulsa
Twitter: @MizzouSoftball
Notes: Missouri | Oklahoma State
Series History
· Mizzou will face Maine for the first-time in program history this weekend in Oklahoma.
· The Tigers are 6-1 in the all-time series against Tulsa.
· Missouri last faced Tulsa in the 2018 Oklahoma Regional in Norman, Oklahoma. The Hurricane won the initial meeting at the Regional, 9-1, before The Tigers overcame Tulsa, 6-5.
· Oklahoma State leads the all-time series with Missouri, 58-44.
· The Tigers most recently edged then No. 16 Oklahoma State at the 2020 ESPN St. Pete/Clearwater Invite on Valentine’s Day (Feb. 14).
Last Time Out
The Tigers finished the Mary Nutter Cathedral City Collegiate Classic with a 3-2 record, earning three run-rule decisions over Cal Poly, BYU, and Long Beach State, while falling in close matchups against Oregon State and No. 22/24 Oregon.
Kara Daly’s grand slam punctuated a five-run third inning that catapulted Mizzou into the lead in a 9-1 run-rule victory over Cal Poly to open the weekend. Megan Schumacher picked up the win in relief, hurling 2.1 innings without allowing a baserunner, while Jenna Laird added three RBI out of the leadoff spot.
An offensive outburst in the fourth inning broke a tie ballgame and powered the Tigers to an 11-3 run-rule triumph over BYU to close out the first day. Riley Frizell mashed a two-run home run to open the frame, then Julia Crenshaw blasted a three-run dinger for her second of the contest to put the game out of reach.
After dropping contests against Oregon and Oregon State, Mizzou ended its weekend on a high note, shutting down Long Beach State in a 9-0 run-rule win. The Tigers exploded for seven runs in the sixth inning, with Kara Daly’s three-run shot providing the exclamation point on a dominant performance. In the circle, Laurin Krings picked up her fifth win of the season, notching a complete-game shutout, allowing just three hits with a season-best nine strikeouts.
Krings went 1-1 on the weekend with a 1.70 ERA and 14 strikeouts over 12.1 innings.
Jordan Weber also went 1-1, registering six strikeouts over 9.0 innings (3.11 ERA).
Honnold in Cathedral City
Alex Honnold led the Tigers this past weekend at the 2023 Mary Nutter Cathedral City Collegiate Classic, hitting .643 with a .706 on-base percentage and a 1.143 slugging percentage. She hit safely in each game this weekend including 3-for-3 against BYU with a home run and a double to go with three RBI. Honnold went 2-for-3 against No. 22/24 Oregon with a double, run, and a RBI. She then was 2-for-4 against Long Beach State in the tournament finale, with a run.
Honnold is currently on an eight-game hitting streak and reached base streak of 14 games. She ranks 10th in the nation with a .538 batting average and is fourth in the country with an on-base percentage of .667.
Grand Salami
Kara Daly registered a career-best four RBI with her first career grand slam against Cal Poly. The Tigers last recorded a grand slam on April 25, 2022, when Kimberly Wert notched one against Kentucky.
Daly added a three-run shot in the win over Long Beach State and finished the weekend with seven RBI.
JULIA!!
Julia Crenshaw was second on the team in Cathedral City this past week behind Alex Honnold, batting .500 with two round trippers, two doubles, seven RBI and four runs.
In the win over BYU, Crenshaw hit a career-best matching 3-for-3 at the plate with two home runs and a career-high five RBI. She added a pair of doubles against Oregon State.
Crenshaw and Honnold registered back-to-back jacks against BYU which marked the second time the feat had happened in 2023.
In 2023, Crenshaw, a sophomore second baseman from O’Fallon, Missouri, is hitting .354 with five home runs (22nd nationally, sixth in the SEC) and six doubles (17th nationally, fifth in the SEC) to go with 20 RBI.
Frizzy
First baseman Riley Frizell posted a .357 batting average with four runs, a double, a triple, two home runs, and three RBI this past weekend. She has now matched her career-best season total of home runs (3) from 2021.
Frizell notched a hit in each of the final four Mary Nutter Cathedral City Collegiate Classic games. She was 2-for-3 with a home run against Oregon and tallied a triple against Oregon State.
Our CoMo Outfielder
Maddie Snider, a sophomore leftfielder from Columbia, Missouri, has started in each of the last 11 games for the Tigers. The Rock Bridge High School alum hit .286 at the Mary Nutter Cathedral City Collegiate Classic with a .583 on-base percentage.
This season, Snider is hitting .409 with nine runs, seven RBI, seven stolen bases and an on-base percentage of .567.
Our Leadoff Hitter
Jenna Laird is batting .418 in 2023 with a .564 slugging percentage and 15 RBI. The junior shortstop from East Meadow, New York, is currently on a 16-game reached base streak.
Laird ranks 12th in the NCAA with 23 hits and paces the conference (11th nationally) with 11 stolen bases (0.69 stolen bases/game).
She is also second in the SEC (17th in the NCAA) with two triples.
Wilmes Signs Professional Contract with Smash It Sports Vipers
Former Missouri standout Brooke Wilmes signed a professional contract with the Smash It Sports Vipers of Women’s Professional Fastpitch.
Wilmes, a centerfielder from Johnston, Iowa, earned 2021 NFCA Third Team All-American honors and led the Tigers at the dish in 2019 and 2022. She was named to four All-SEC teams and was awarded three NFCA All-Region laurels over her career as a Tiger.
Over five seasons with Missouri, Wilmes appeared in 263 games with 259 starts. She registered a .345 career batting average with a .314 on-base percentage and a .575 slugging percentage (10th all-time at Missouri).
Wilmes ranks first all-time in Mizzou program history with 828 at bats and 59 doubles, and second overall with 286 hits and 206 runs.
2023 Preseason SEC Poll
Missouri Softball was selected to finish eighth in the Southeastern Conference in 2023, the league announced Jan. 26. The Tigers received 63 points in the annual preseason poll voted on by the conference’s 13 head coaches.
Jenna Laird Preseason Accolades
Missouri Softball junior shortstop Jenna Laird has been named to five 2023 preseason lists ahead of the season. She was named to the 2023 Preseason All-SEC Team on Feb. 2, to the Top 50 Watch List for the 2023 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year on Jan. 25 and has also been named to D1Softball’s Preseason D100 Players, Extra Inning Softball’s Extra Elite 100 College Player Rankings and Softball America’s 2023 Preseason Top 100.
Laird led the Tigers in 2022 for batting average (.338), doubles (11), triples (3), runs scored (44) and stolen bases (22) as she garnered 2022 NFCA Third Team All-Region honors.
The East Meadow, New York, native, was named to the 2022 SEC All-Tournament Team after she led the Tigers to the Championship Final, batting .500 over the four games. She was also selected to the 2022 All-SEC Second Team after posting a hitting line of .291/.519/.341 in conference play.
In the field, Laird was tabbed a 2022 Rawlings Gold Glove recipient for her play at shortstop. She posted a .975 fielding percentage, turning 10 double plays in total over 163 chances.
Newcomers
The 2023 roster features five freshmen in infielder Katie Chester, righthanded pitcher Cierra Harrison, righthanded pitcher Lilly Whitten, lefthanded pitcher Taylor Pannell and first baseman/utility player Kayley Lenger.
Junior outfielder Payton Jackson and junior infielder Maddie Gallagher both transferred to Mizzou ahead of the 2023 campaign.
Jackson, a Missouri City, Texas, native, started in all 46 games at Texas Tech in 2022 and led the Red Raiders in batting average (.336), OPS (1.032), triples (3), extra base hits (19), total bases (73), walks (22) and slugging percentage (.598).
Gallagher, a Port Washington, New York, native, competed in 97 games (82 starts) over two seasons at South Carolina. In 2022, she started and played in all 56 games, mostly at second base for the Gamecocks. Gallagher hit .292 and was tied for second on the team with 47 hits. She led the team with four triples.
2022 Recap
Mizzou enters the 2023 season after they hosted an NCAA Regional for the second-consecutive year and made the SEC Tournament Championship game for the second time in program history. In 2023, the Tigers look to stretch their run of 15-straight NCAA Tournament appearances.
Missouri posted a 38-22 mark in 2022 including a 12-11 record in the SEC. The Tigers concluded the season seventh in the SEC during the regular season.
In SEC play, the Tigers posted three-game sweeps of South Carolina (4/1-4/3), No. 9/12 Kentucky (4/23-25) and Texas A&M (4/29-5/1). The Tigers have taken each of the last six games and eight of the last nine meetings against South Carolina. Missouri’s sweep of Kentucky in 2022 was the Tigers first since 2019 when Mizzou won all three games in Lexington, Kentucky, during Larissa Anderson‘s first season at the helm.
The Tigers totaled 86 home runs in 2022 which ranks second all-time in program history behind 91 homers, set in 2021.In the field, Missouri recorded a .976 fielding percentage which ranks tied for second behind 2021’s .979 clip.
Looking Ahead
Following the Oklahoma State/Tulsa Invitational, Mizzou will host in-state foe Kansas City in its home opener Wednesday, March 8 at Mizzou Softball Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m. CT.
