Softball wins home opener over in-state foe

Missouri started off a five-game home stand the right way on Wednesday afternoon, staving off a late rally from Kansas City to win 11-5. The Tigers were led by dominant offensive performances from Chantice Phillips and Jenna Laird.

The Tigers relied heavily on starter Cierra Harrison in the first five innings, with the freshman starter giving up just one run on two hits while striking out four on 72 pitches, including a perfect first four innings. The Tigers scored a quick four runs in the first two innings, and seemed well on their way to a clear-cut victory.

“We are gonna have to rely on her,” head coach Larissa Anderson said. “She kept them off balance and threw to both sides of the plate, so that was really, really good to see.”

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The rumblings of a KC rally started in the fifth inning. After retiring the first 12 batters she faced on 50 pitches, Harrison got a bit unsettled in the top of the fifth, walking the leadoff hitter and then allowing a single and a double to end the shutout.

"My defense had my back the whole time, they made a lot of good plays,” Harrison said. “I'm feeling good, putting in a lot of work. It takes a lot of time and just trusting my teammates to come out, do what they're gonna do and then I do what I'm gonna do.”

Though she settled back in to finish the inning and compartmentalized the damage to maintain the Tigers’ lead, it was all the Roos needed to spark their offense.

Kansas City surged back into the game, rallying in the top of the sixth for five runs and cutting the lead from six runs to just one against Missouri’s relief corps.

Megan Schumacher, who started the fifth inning for the Tigers, couldn’t register an out as the five batters she faced collected four hits and four runs in a table-turning sixth inning rally.

Kansas City’s offense was a committee effort from the heart of its order, scoring its four sixth inning runs on six straight batters reached base, including five singles. No KC batter finished with more than one RBI, and only third baseman Lexy Smith collected more than one hit.

Although Missouri (16-6) received a pair of valuable performances from Laird and Phillips, the rest of the offense remained relatively quiet until the later innings. Phillips got the scoring started early for the Tigers with a two-out, three-run home run, the first of her career, but the Tigers couldn’t get anything going after the second inning.

“We got caught in between pitches, and when that changeup floats in there sometimes you try to do a little bit too much, you don’t stay through the ball the way you’re supposed to,” Anderson said.

But between then and the bottom of the sixth, the Tigers were 1-9 with runners in scoring position, that lone hit a two-out, two-RBI single from Laird in the bottom of the fifth.

The Tigers’ offense left nine runners on base and hit 4-14 with runners in scoring position by the end of the game.

Phillips capped off her day later in the game with an insurance RBI, finishing her afternoon 2-4 and four runs driven in.

“I just tried to execute a good swing and the result is the result,” Phillips explained.

Laird dominated at the plate and on the base paths, going 1-2 with three walks and a run driven in while scoring three runs and stealing two bases.

“We have a lot of speed to be able to put some runners in motion. It really starts with that lead off batter,” Anderson said. "When you have someone like Jenna Laird on the bases, it changes pitch calling, it changes the defensive system. We're gonna continue to run her because she puts so much pressure on the defense.”

Missouri reliever Taylor Pannell closed the door, throwing two innings while allowing one hit and striking out three batters in order to secure the win in the home opener. She shut down the Roos’ rally in the sixth, then remained perfect in the top of the seventh. Harrison picked up her fifth win of the season. The Tigers picked up a bit of momentum going into their first SEC series against Kentucky this weekend.