Live Wire Blog

Big weekend for Mizzou softball, baseball teams

Posted on May 26, 2009 by Ryan Gavin

Lindsey Ubrun, pictured against DePaul in the NCAA Regional, was dominant at the plate in Sunday’s College Word Series qualifier. She went 3-for-3 and drove in six RBI in the 9-1 victory. Photo by Shane Epping.

During Memorial Day weekend, the Mizzou softball team advanced to the College World Series, while the baseball team finished second in the Big 12 Tournament and earned a seventh consecutive trip to the NCAA tournament.

Softball

The softball team was in Westwood, Calif., playing UCLA in one of eight Super Regionals. Winning two of three games qualified the team for the CWS.

In the first game, the Tigers won a pitchers’ duel 2-1 on the arm of freshman Chelsea Thomas (16-4). It was Mizzou’s first win against the Bruins, snapping UCLA’s nine-game win streak while extending Mizzou’s to eight games.

The Bruins struck back in the second game, surviving a seventh-inning rally by the Tigers to win 5-2. The final game, in which a trip to Oklahoma City for the CWS was on the line, was hardly dramatic. Mizzou crushed UCLA 9-1 in six innings; the game ended early because of the run rule. (The run rule is invoked when a team leads by at least eight runs at the end of an inning.)

Senior pitcher Stacey Delaney got the start and win, allowing two hits and striking out four in the complete game effort. But the bats were just as hot; three Tigers went 3-for-3 in the game. Left fielder Kathryn Poet (three runs scored), third baseman Gina Schneider (home run, four runs) and first baseman Lindsey Ubrun (six RBI) made Mizzou an unstoppable force.

In the CWS for the first time since 1994, the Tigers (50-10) first play No. 10 seed Arizona State at 2 p.m. Thursday in a game to be broadcast on ESPN. For the full CWS bracket, visit the NCAA site.

Baseball

For the seventh consecutive season, the Mizzou baseball team has made the NCAA tournament. After finishing second in the Big 12 Tournament, the Tigers (34-25) had a strong NCAA résumé. Eight Big 12 schools made the tournament.

Mizzou is the No. 2 seed in the Oxford, Miss., Regional and first faces Western Kentucky at 3 p.m. Friday. Ole Miss, the host of the regional, plays Monmouth at 7 p.m. Check out the full bracket.

Each of the 16 regionals features four teams playing a double-elimination format. The regionals are scheduled to take place Friday to Monday (if necessary). Selection of the eight super-regional hosts will be announced at approximately 10 p.m. Central time Monday on ncaa.com.

The 63rd Men’s College World Series begins play Saturday, June 13, at Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha, Neb.