Missouri softball extends win streak to 11

Less experienced players have progressed to aid team success.

By Zach Mink

Published March 12, 2010

The Missouri softball team extended its winning streak to 11 games Wednesday with a 3-0 victory over Northern Iowa.

Senior pitcher Jana Hainey earned the victory for the No. 3 Tigers, improving her record to 2-0 on the year. Hainey went two innings, allowing no runs, no hits and striking out three in relief.

Assistant coach Pete D'Amour said Hainey, who struggled early this season, did a good job getting ahead of the Panther hitters.

"Jana got her changeup over for strikes and got ahead of hitters," D'Amour said. "When Jana doesn't get ahead of batters, she has to lay the ball in there, and she doesn't have the velocity that the other two (starters) have, so she can't get away with throwing it down the middle."

Hainey relieved sophomore Chelsea Thomas, who was on a 45-pitch limit due to soreness in her forearm. Thomas, who has carried the Tigers with a 7-1 record this year, did not feel any problems after pitching.

Coach Ehren Earleywine expressed his relief at Thomas' injury-free outing.

"Typically, I probably would have thrown Chelsea the whole game to get her endurance up for the postseason, but we limited her to 45 pitches, and there was no pain," Earleywine said. "Even if we lost the game today that would have been a victory because she is the one that's going to get us there."

The offense again struck early, with freshman third baseman Nicole Hudson scoring two with a home run in the first inning. The home run brought her total to three on the year, tied for the team lead with junior left fielder Marla Schweisberger, who also homered in the game.

Hudson, who is still learning to play third base after originally being an outfielder, said she is progressing this season.

"I'm still learning, and I feel like I'm getting better every day," Hudson said. "There's going to obviously be some growing pains, but I just have to keep working at it. I tend to get flustered a bit in the field, but I'm just trying to settle down and make good throws."

Hudson is batting .364 on the year with 11 RBIs. Earleywine said the freshman will play a vital role in the team's success over the next four years.

"The ball just jumps off her bat," Earleywine said. "She's probably batting above .300, but if you were to ask her right now, she'd say she's totally frustrated and playing bad. We are going to see some amazing things from Nicole in the future, and she's going to be very special."

The Tigers host their second of three tournaments in a row this weekend. The Children's Hospital Invitational will feature games against five different teams.

In a busy weekend, Earleywine said he told the girls to "Be ready because everyone is going to get an opportunity."

The Tigers (13-2, 0-0) hope to get a boost to their offense from junior outfielder Kathryn Poet, who is finishing rehabilitation for a knee injury. Poet, who played a large role in Missouri's postseason run last season, is scheduled to return to the lineup sometime within the next two weeks.

The Tigers begin the tournament Friday with a 1 p.m. game against New Mexico.