Things were firing on all cylinders early for Mizzou. Stefania Abruscato and Abby Hay each launched home runs to give the Tigers a 2-0 lead through the first inning. But the offense faded after that outburst, scoring no runs in the final six innings. South Carolina slowly chipped away at the lead, eventually taking the lead on a two-run homer in the fifth and never looked back. The Gamecocks won Game 1 of the series 5-2 and Mizzou drops back to .500 at 23-23.
“South Carolina deserved to win that game,”
head coach Larissa Anderson said. “We did not play well enough to win at all.”
Abruscato added another hit in addition to her homer, finishing the day 2-for-3. Mizzou ended the day with five hits, as Uptegrove and Cahalan each recorded one in the loss.
“Our bats need to get better throughout the course of the game, and I felt like they got worse,” Anderson said. “That’s getting outside of our plan and getting complacent and lacking discipline.”
Cierra Harrison started the game, pitching a solid first five innings. She allowed two runs on five hits while striking out three. Abby Carr came in relief, pitching two innings and was credited with the loss after allowing three runs on two hits and five walks while striking out a pair.
Here’s how the game played out:
Harrison started the game off right with two quick outs. But South Carolina responded with a two-out double to left field. Cahalan ran into the wall trying to make the play, she was shaken up on the play but stayed in the game. The Gamecocks hit another deep fly ball but Kayley Lenger snagged it with her glove to close the inning and avoid any damage.
Mizzou jumped out to a 2-0 lead at the end of the first inning. Juniors Stefania Abruscato and Abby Hay both hit solo homers that just barely scraped over the wall. There was a heavy wind that was blowing to the outfield all game, meaning any ball hit with some power had a chance to carry over the fence.
South Carolina cut the deficit to one after scoring a run in the top of the second inning. Tori Ensley led off the inning with a double, advancing to third on a groundout. She advanced home on a sacrifice fly that could’ve been much worse if Kayley Lenger didn’t make a diving catch in center field. Lenger flexed her fielding muscles once again, ranging out to left-center and sticking out her glove to avoid another extra base hit and end the inning.
The Tigers were held scoreless in the second inning despite pushing a runner into scoring position. Uptegrove led off the inning with a single but was called out on a fielder’s choice on a groundout from Cahalan. But Cahalan advanced to second on a stolen base to threaten the Gamecocks. She didn’t advance any further after back-to-back outs to end the inning.
South Carolina had a quiet third inning, record a two-out single but nothing more as Harrison continued to deal, ending the inning with her second strikeout of the game. Carr was the only baserunner in the third with a two-out walk as both pitchers seemed to settle in.
The Gamecocks tied the game with a leadoff homer from Arianna Rodi in the fourth. They were oh-so-close to taking the lead as well with a two-out single plus an Uptegrove error put runners on the corners. But the Gamecocks attempted to steal second and got into a pickle, being thrown out before the runner on third could make it home.
Mizzou couldn’t respond with any runs of its own, as Cahalan was the only baserunner with an infield single. South Carolina pitcher Jori Heard recorded her second strikeout of the game in the inning.
Carr replaced Harrison in the circle to start the fifth. South Carolina took its first lead after a walk and a two-run homer from Jamie Mackay. They continued to threaten with back-to-back walks before Carr slammed the door with two outs.
The Tigers offense continued to struggle putting together base hits. Abruscato hit a two-out single but was Mizzou’s only baserunner in the inning.
In the sixth Carr gave up a single and a walk but allowed no further damage as a groundout ended the inning. Mizzou couldn’t do anything to respond in the bottom half, going down in 1-2-3 fashion with two strikeouts.
Carr was pulled in the top of the seventh for Courtney Donahue after allowing a leadoff walk. Things only got shakier after a pair of singles to load the bases. Haidyn Sokoloski robbed a grand slam on the next batter, but the deep fly ball allowed another Gamecock runner to score. A flyout and a popout ended the inning as the Tigers trailed by three with three outs left.
But Mizzou failed to get any production from the 7-8-9 slots in their lineup, as a 1-2-3 inning handed the Gamecocks the series-opening win.
The Tigers will seek revenge in Game 2 starting at 5 p.m. Saturday at the Mizzou Softball Stadium. The game will also be available to watch on the main SEC Network channel.
