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COLUMBIA, Mo. – The No. 25/23 University of Missouri Softball program (16-6) will open SEC conference play this weekend as they host No. 16/16 Kentucky (13-5-1) in a three-game series at the Mizzou Softball Stadium. First pitch on Friday is set for 4 p.m., CT. Both Saturday and Sunday’s games are scheduled for 1 p.m., CT.
The Tigers are currently ranked in three polls including No. 25 by USA Today/NFCA, No. 23 by ESPN/USA Softball, and No. 25 by Softball America.
Friday’s game will be broadcasted on SEC Network+ with Max Thoma and Brooke Wilmes on the call. Both Saturday and Sunday’s games will be featured on SEC Network with Alex Perlman and Kayla Braud on the broadcast.
Friday fans will receive a Mizzou beanie, while supplies last. Saturday is Military Appreciation Day and fans will receive a t-shirt, while supplies last. The Tigers will also be wearing specialty Military Appreciation jerseys during the contest. The series finale will be Family Funday Sunday. Postgame, fans can run the bases and get autographs from the 2023 team.
No. 16/16 Kentucky
vs. No. 25/23 Missouri
Series Information
Date: March 10-12, 2023
Venue: Mizzou Softball Stadium
Location: Columbia, Mo.
First Pitch: 4 p.m., CT Friday
1 p.m., CT Saturday and Sunday
All-Time Series: Missouri leads Kentucky, 12-10
Last Meetings: Missouri 9, No. 9/12 Kentucky 1 (Five Innings) | April 25, 2022 | Lexington, Ky.
Missouri 8, No. 9/12 Kentucky 7 | April 24, 2022 | Lexington, Ky.
Missouri 13, No. 9/12 Kentucky 0 (Five Innings) | April 23, 2022 | Lexington, Ky.
FOLLOW THE TIGERS
Video: SEC Network+ (Friday) | SEC Network (Saturday) | SEC Network (Sunday)
Live Stats: Friday | Saturday | Sunday
Twitter: @MizzouSoftball
Notes: Missouri | Kentucky
Series History
- Missouri leads the all-time series with Kentucky, 12-10.
- In 2022, the Tigers swept Kentucky in a three-game series with a pair of run-rule wins in the opener and the finale of the road series. Jordan Weber picked up wins in all three contests.
- Weber threw a complete-game shutout with seven strikeouts (five hits) in the 13-0 opener against Kentucky.
- The Tigers then fought past the Wildcats, 8-7, in game two. Mizzou registered the game winner in the top of the seventh on a RBI single from Emma Raabe.
- Mizzou then run ruled Kentucky in the 2022 finale, 9-1.
- With head coach Larissa Anderson at the helm of the program, Missouri is 6-0 against Kentucky dating back to 2019.
Last Time Out
Mizzou notched their 16th win of the season, with a decisive 11-5 decision over in-state foe Kansas City Wednesday in the Tigers home opener.
Freshman Cierra Harrison retired the first 12 batters she faced in the first home start of her collegiate career, punching out four in five innings of work to earn the win and improve to 5-0 in 2023. She allowed just one run on two hits with a walk.
Taylor Pannell, a freshman from Lee’s Summit, Missouri, picked up her third career save, allowing just two hits with a trio of strikeouts over the final two innings.
Junior left fielder Chantice Phillips hit a three-run homer, the first in her career at Mizzou, to go with a career-high four RBI.
Phillips and Payton Jackson each claimed their second multi-hit contest of the season, while Megan Moll recorded her first multi-hit game of the year.
In the Circle
Besides Cierra Harrison, Missouri’s returning starters Jordan Weber (3-3), Laurin Krings (6-3) and Megan Schumacher (2-0) have combined for an 11-6 mark in 2023.
Krings has thrown a trio of complete games to go with 33 strikeouts. She has a 2.87 ERA, having appeared in a team-high 46.1 innings. Krings was dominant in a complete-game victory over Northwestern. She also registered a season-high nine strikeouts against Long Beach State.
Weber threw a no-hitter at FIU with a season-high four strikeouts. She also pitched five innings (season best) against Oregon.
Schumacher registered a complete-game shutout, allowing just one hit as the Tigers registered a 10-0 run-rule win over Maine March 4. The start was her first of the 2023 campaign, tallying two strikeouts.
Oklahoma State/Tulsa Invitational Recap
The Tigers went 3-2 at the Oklahoma State/Tulsa Invitational with a pair of wins over Maine and a 13-1 victory over tournament co-host Tulsa to wrap the trip to Oklahoma.
At No. 3/3 Oklahoma State, Mizzou limited the Cowgirls to six hits. Julia Crenshaw posted her sixth home run of the campaign along with a double (seventh in 2023) while Alex Honnold added her fifth home run of the season.
Maddie Gallagher led the Tigers with a career-best matching three hits (3-for-3) and season-high two RBI in the win over Maine on March 4.
Cierra Harrison earned her first career complete-game win over Maine on March 3. After allowing a first inning run, Harrison settled in, allowing just two more hits (one run on three hits) the rest of the way to go with seven total strikeouts. Harrison, a freshman from Lee’s Summit, Missouri, has punched out seven or more batters in each of her four wins this season.
Laurin Krings earned the win in the circle for the Tigers in the finale with Tulsa, allowing one run on six hits with five strikeouts and a walk in six innings. With the win, she improved to 6-3 in 2023 (33-15 in her career at Mizzou).
JULIA!!
Julia Crenshaw led Mizzou at the plate, hitting .462 (.769 slugging percentage) with five runs, a double, and a home run to go with three RBI this past weekend in Oklahoma.
The sophomore from O’Fallon, Missouri, started at second and at catcher over the five games.
She has compiled nine multi-hit games in 2023 and is currently on a five-game hitting streak (12-game reached base streak). Crenshaw ranks 17th in the nation (third in the SEC) with seven doubles. Her six home runs rank 31st in the NCAA (ninth in the SEC) while her 23 RBI is 21st in the nation (sixth in the SEC).
Crenshaw most recently went 2-for-5 against Kansas City on Wednesday with a run and a RBI.
The Jeff City Kid
Kara Daly batted .333 with a .800 slugging percentage this past weekend at the Oklahoma State/Tulsa Invitational. Daly tallied 10 RBI, two home runs, and a double over the tournament in Oklahoma.
Daly went 2-for-3 with two runs and a RBI in Missouri’s second game against Maine. She then belted a pair of home runs against Tulsa to wrap March 4. For Daly, it was the second time in her career that she had hit two homers in a game. She also tallied three RBI and two hits with a walk in the first meeting with Tulsa.
Daly then concluded the Invitational with a career-best five RBI in the dominating win over Invitational co-host, Tulsa. She compiled a pair of sacrifice flies to go with a two-run double.
Daly most recently hit a base hit in the midweek win over Kansas City on Wednesday, finishing 1-for-3 with a run and a walk.
Daly ranks second in the SEC with two sacrifice flies and 10th in the conference for home runs (5).
Our CoMo Outfielder
Maddie Snider, a sophomore outfielder from Columbia, Missouri, has started in each of the last 17 games for Mizzou.
Snider matched a career-best two hits and three RBI to go with her first career home run as a Tiger against Maine on March 3. She then compiled a career-best tying three RBI on her first career triple in the series finale with Maine on March 4.
Snider is batting .324 in 2023 with an on-base plus slugging percentage of .927 with 15 RBI. She is 8-for-8 on stolen bases.
Snider is the second member of her family to don the Black and Gold as her grandfather, Ron Shy, played baseball at Mizzou in 1965.
Our Leadoff Hitter
Jenna Laird hit .412 this past weekend in Oklahoma with four runs and six RBI. She leads the Tigers in 2023 with 12 multi-hit games. In the NCAA, Laird ranks 14th (third in the SEC) with 31 hits. On the basepaths, she ranks sixth in the nation (first in the SEC) with 18 stolen bases.
She wrapped the Oklahoma State/Tulsa Invitational with five hits over the final two games with tournament co-host, Tulsa. Laird went 3-for-4 in the finale with three runs, two RBI and a walk.
Laird is second on the Tigers for batting average (.419) behind centerfielder Alex Honnold (.511, second in the SEC).
Laird most recently stole two bases against Kansas City to mark her sixth multi-steal contest of the campaign. She also she extended her RBI streak to four games with a two-run single in the fifth and matched a career-high three walks while reaching base four times overall Wednesday.
Let’s Go CHUCK!!
Freshman Katie Chester went 4-for-11 (.364) this past weekend in Oklahoma with three doubles, three RBI, two runs and a homer. She slugged .909 in Tulsa and Stillwater.
Chester hit her second career home run in the win over Maine on March 4 with a personal-best two runs scored.
She wrapped the Invitational, 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles (career best) to go with two RBI and a walk against Tulsa on March 5.
Chester has started in each of the last five games (16 in 2023) for the Tigers.
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.
Looking Ahead
Following its opening SEC weekend series, the Tigers will stay in Columbia, Missouri, for a doubleheader against Illinois on Tuesday, March 14. Mizzou then heads to Gainesville, Florida, for its first SEC road series at No. 8/12 Florida March 17-19.
FOLLOW THE TIGERS
- For all the latest on Mizzou Softball, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team @MizzouSoftball (Twitter, Instagram, Facebook).
- Single game and limited season tickets are currently on sale. Tickets can be purchased online, in-person at the Mizzou ticket office, or by calling 1 (800) CAT-PAWS.
