Softball wraps up fall ball with massive win

Oct 31, 2024 | Uncategorized

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Missouri softball plays Central Methodist in a fall-ball scrimmage on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024, at the Mizzou Softball Stadium. (CAL TOBIAS/ROCK M NATION)

And now we wait… February is so, so far away.

Fans who showed up to take in Mizzou Softball’s final game of the fall were treated to an offensive explosion… if they stuck around to the latter innings (sorry, Quentin).

Marissa McCann, with the medical staff’s all-clear firmly in hand (she might have pitched a bit in the B&G game last week, but I missed the first part), started the fall finale against Central Methodist and pitched the first three innings, looking much like the young phenom who wowed us in her freshman season.

On the defensive end to start the game was Julia Crenshaw (C), Abby Hay (1b), Taylor Ebbs (2b), Kara Daly (ss), Madison Walker (3b), Nevaeh Watkins (RF), Kayley Lenger (CF) and Claire Cahalan (LF), and this is how I think it will look come the regular season. While the defense changed pretty much every inning, this group has consistently been the starters, and I think will hold.

McCann was pretty sharp in her outing, allowing a double in the first sandwiched between two strikeouts (one looking) before getting out of the jam with another strikeout to end the threat. In the second, a one-out single was erased with a solid double play, and in the third M&M picked up her fourth K.

Missouri softball plays Central Methodist in a fall-ball scrimmage on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024, at the Mizzou Softball Stadium. (CAL TOBIAS/ROCK M NATION)
Sophomore Marissa McCann pitched three scoreless innings, fanning four, in the Tigers’ Fall Ball finale against Central Methodist on October 30, 2024.

Offensively, Julia Crenshaw’s solo homerun to center in the bottom of the 1st gave the Tigers an early lead, but the Tigers weren’t able to manufacture much of a sustained offensive attack until the bottom of the 5th. It wasn’t for lack of trying, however, as Madison Walker reached on a double to right in the 2nd, but strikeouts around her ended the threat, and in the 3rd, a Claire Cahalan walk and subsequent steal, followed by a Crenshaw walk put two on for Kentucky transfer Taylor Ebbs, who hit into a fielder’s choice before Abby Hay flied out to end it.

Cierra Harrison entered to pitch in the 4th inning and struck out a batter (or two), and then I have no idea what happened until the bottom of the 5th— we started talking about Halloween candy rankings in the press box, my apologies.

In the bottom of the 5th, right after my colleague Quentin Corpuel called it an evening, the dam broke. Cahalan singled between Madison Uptegrove and Crenshaw walks and then Saniya Hill smashed a two-run triple to quickly make it 4-0. Hay then followed with a two-run homer to make it 6-0. But that wasn’t all! Madison Walker followed THAT up by launching an absolute moonshot to center that basically landed on top of the hill of the berm, making it 7-0. Kadence Shepherd then added a standup triple before Stefania Abruscato teed off with a homer of her own to make it 9-0. Oklahoma State transfer Haidyn Sokoloski walked, and savvy baserunning by Watkins brought in another run to make it 10-0. Kayley Lenger would add another run before the 10-run inning finally ended.

In the bottom of the 6th, the Tigers tacked on a few more as Shepherd hit an inside-the-park homer that brought home Abbie Wilhelm and made it 13-0, and in the 8th a double by Sophie Smith and three walks (to Shepherd, Jordyn Thurman and Watkins) brought in another run to make it 14-0 before Danielle Blackstun’s sac fly made it 15-0.

It wasn’t until the top of the 9th when Central Methodist broke up the shutout with a home run off of Taylor Pannell to make it 15-1.

Missouri third baseman Saniya Hill makes a play against Central Methodist in the Tigers’ Fall Ball finale on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024, at the Mizzou Softball Stadium. (CAL TOBIAS/ROCK M NATION)

But just for good measure, the Tigers added two more in the bottom of the inning after back-to-back-to-back walks by Adi Koller, Shepherd and Smith that brought in a run on a missed double play opportunity to make it 16-1 and a fielder’s choice by Hill that brought in the final run to make it 17-1.

Lingering Questions

There’s a lot to ponder in the offseason, friends, as it’s a long time until the season tips off against the Marshall Thundering Herd on February 7 in Clearwater. And even longer until we see them back at Mizzou Softball Stadium for the SEC opener against Oklahoma on March 21.

Who is the Tigers’ DP to start the season? If Daly starts the season at short, then Walker is at 3b. If Daly is at 3b, then Walker is a DP candidate. Also in the running, Abruscato, Sokoloski, and I’d like to offer a new choice— freshman Saniya Hill.
Who is the shortstop? Daly played SS several innings on Wednesday, and while Rock M’s Matthew Gustafson is adamant that she’s too tall for a shortstop and neither Quentin, me, or Dylan Heinrich wishes for this to happen, reports make it seem like it could be a definite possibility. Uptegrove has been impressive in the lineup and done some good work at the position, and we’ve gotten glimpses of Shepherd and Smith there as well. At the end of last season, there were a group of us who really thought that we’d see Crenshaw, a natural shortstop, take over the role for the departing Jenna Laird, but she seems firmly entrenched at catcher.
The starting outfield is likely freshman Nevaeh Watkins in RF, Lenger in CF and Cahalan in LF. They’re not especially tall, but they are all quite speedy. Sokoloski is probably in line to take an OF spot should someone falter, and we also saw Jordyn Thurman and Danielle Blackstun out there as well (and probably some others I couldn’t ever figure out who they were).
What’s the rotation? Cierra Harrison and Marissa McCann are definitely your 1/2, but after that? Nathalie Touchet is in the mix, as is Lily Whitten (who was MUCH better Weds PM) and JuCo transfer Courtney Donahue. We’ve only seen Donahue in one-inning stretches thus far (I think), so I doubt she’s the mid-weeker, so that leaves Whitten, who seemingly struggled with command much of Fall Ball but is the hardest hurler of the bunch, and Touchet. Taylor Pannell is the clear closer, though she did display a propensity to give up the long ball— there were at least three that I’m aware of.

(CAL TOBIAS/ROCK M NATION)

Which of the freshmen will really stand out? Saniya Hill is fast as hell and is a good hitter but has displayed some defensive liability at 3b despite also making some great plays. Watkins IS the starting right fielder, no question. Madison Uptegrove (Father Tolton Catholic) could contend for a SS role, and I see this trio as the cream of the rookie crop, so to speak. Don’t count out Kadence Shepherd, however, as you see her name alllllllllll over this post.
Is there a role for Mya Dodge on this team? She was another one who had offseason surgery, and I did hear her name coming in as a pinch-runner on Wednesday night, but because of health issues, has been largely limited. She’s not that far removed from an extremely productive career at Northern Iowa, and I know she has more to offer than what she’s shown.

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