3/23/2024 other sports Edit

Mizzou softball slugs its way to win over No. 2 LSU

Trevon Bobo

Intern

No. 15 Mizzou softball defeated No. 2 LSU in an offensive slugfest on Friday night 10-9. Mizzou(24-6, 3-4 SEC) earned its third SEC win of the season and made up a game in the league standings on LSU (24-3, 4-3 SEC).

Mizzou was led offensively by Alex Honnold in the win. She finished the day 2-4 with four RBIs, two doubles and two runs scored. Honnold is hitting a team high .409 on the season through 30 games. Head coach Larissa Anderson attributed Honnold’s strong performance to her discipline at the plate.

“She doesn't try to do too much, that's the great thing about Alex," Anderson said. "They’ll throw her borderline pitches and she just gets the bat on the ball. She has that ability to be able to see the ball extremely well. She's got great hand eye coordination, but she's not trying to do too much with it.”

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Mizzou ace Laurin Krings (8-4) got the start for the Tigers, appearing in her 16th game of the season. Krings got off to a rough start, allowing three runs on four hits in the first inning. It was a sign of things to come on both sides. Krings finished the game allowing nine hits, seven earned runs, two walks and two strikeouts in three innings pitched.

Weather was a large factor in the game, with temperatures in the low 40s, that affected both teams' pitchers.

“It's really tough to throw in these conditions," Anderson said. "You have a big ball, cold fingers, you can't spin the ball and I thought our pitchers really battled. For Krings, it's not her typical outing, she didn't have her change up. That's the difference for her, when she has her change up she's really tough, but when she doesn't ,she gets hit a little bit harder. But she battled and got some key outs for us."

Mizzou wasted no time in responding after LSU's opening outburts. Jenna Laird reached first on a dropped third strike and scored on a Honnold double. Kara Daly followed later in the inning with a double to left field to score Honnold. Katie Chester tied the game on a single to left field to score Daly.

In the second inning the Mizzou bats remained hot. The Tigers followed their three-run first inning, with a four-run second. Honnold drove in three runs with a double to left field to put Mizzou up 7-3.

LSU found its rhythm at the plate in the third, using a three-run inning to cut the Mizzou lead to one. In the fourth the LSU offense stayed hot, highlighted by a two-run blast to center field from Gutierrez. LSU led Mizzou 9-7 in the fourth.

Freshman pitcher Marrissa McCann replaced Krings with one out in the fourth. McCann picked up her first career SEC win, allowing just one hit in 2 2/3 innings pitched.

“It’s a really good matchup for McCann," Anderson said. "I wouldn't be surprised if we see her in game two or three because they are a left-handed dominant offensive squad. She competed. I was glad to see she got some key outs in those situations. The one thing is she needs to finish batters. She got behind, and then she battled back, she got two outs and then she had a walk. She’s in control and just needs to finish the innings”.

Julia Crenshaw got Mizzou back on track in the bottom of the fourth inning with a solo homer to left field, her second of the season. Chester tied the game at nine with a single to left field that scored Daly from second.

Mizzou took the lead 10-9 in the bottom of the sixth inning after Madison Walker singled to right field to score Maddie Gallagher. Taylor Pannell shut the door for the Tigers in the seventh inning, locking down the win.

McCann received the credit for the win and Pannell with the save as Mizzou handed LSU its third consecutive loss.

“Going into the game I knew it just had to be like a shut them down mindset," McCann said. "A step on their throat type of mindset and it had to be all positive self talk because negative self talk was gonna do me no good” McCann said. “It feels really cool. I still can't believe I'm playing in the SEC. Little me would be screaming and crying out of excitement so it's really cool.”

Coming Up

Mizzou will face LSU in two more games of the series, on Saturday and Sunday. After the LSU series Mizzou will face four non-conference opponents in a row, including a double header with Fordham and Hofstra, Anderson's former school, on Tuesday in New York.