AUBURN, Ala. – The fifth seeded No. 11/12 University of Missouri softball team (43-15) fell to second seeded No. 8/7 Florida (46-12), 6-1, Saturday afternoon at Jane B. Moore Field in the 2024 SEC Tournament Championship game.
Mizzou made its third SEC Tournament Championship appearance in program history Saturday and second appearance in three seasons.
Following the game seniors Maddie Gallagher, Laurin Krings, and Jenna Laird were named to the 2024 SEC Softball All-Tournament Team.
For Laird and Krings, it marked their second career appearance on the All-Tournament Team as the duo also appeared on the list in 2022. The honor marked the first career postseason SEC honor for Gallagher. Laird has now earned eight SEC postseason honors (four-time All-SEC player) while it was the second career postseason SEC honor for Krings who was also named to the 2024 SEC All-Defensive Team.
Julia Crenshaw paced Mizzou Saturday, going 2-for-3 with a double.
The Gators jumped out to a 3-0 lead on a three-run homer from Mia Williams in the second.
Florida then increased its advantage to 4-0 on a Mizzou miscue in the third.
The Tigers scratched across a run in the fourth on an RBI sacrifice fly from Stefania Abruscato to trim the deficit to 4-1.
Florida then widened the gap to 6-1 on a two-run homer from Skylar Wallace in the fifth.
Krings, Mizzou's ace from Loveland, Colorado, made her third start of the week, allowing just one earned run on three hits over two innings.
Marissa McCann came on in relief for the final four innings, letting up two earned runs on three hits with a strikeout.
GAME NOTES
Florida
Korbe Otis
Keagan Rothrock
Skylar Wallace
Mia Williams
Most Valuable Player: Skylar Wallace, Florida
Missouri
Maddie Gallagher
Laurin Krings
Jenna Laird
LSU
Sydney Berzon
Taylor Pleasants
Texas A&M
Kennedy Powell
Koko Wooley
Mizzou made its third SEC Tournament Championship appearance in program history Saturday and second appearance in three seasons.
Following the game seniors Maddie Gallagher, Laurin Krings, and Jenna Laird were named to the 2024 SEC Softball All-Tournament Team.
For Laird and Krings, it marked their second career appearance on the All-Tournament Team as the duo also appeared on the list in 2022. The honor marked the first career postseason SEC honor for Gallagher. Laird has now earned eight SEC postseason honors (four-time All-SEC player) while it was the second career postseason SEC honor for Krings who was also named to the 2024 SEC All-Defensive Team.
Julia Crenshaw paced Mizzou Saturday, going 2-for-3 with a double.
The Gators jumped out to a 3-0 lead on a three-run homer from Mia Williams in the second.
Florida then increased its advantage to 4-0 on a Mizzou miscue in the third.
The Tigers scratched across a run in the fourth on an RBI sacrifice fly from Stefania Abruscato to trim the deficit to 4-1.
Florida then widened the gap to 6-1 on a two-run homer from Skylar Wallace in the fifth.
Krings, Mizzou's ace from Loveland, Colorado, made her third start of the week, allowing just one earned run on three hits over two innings.
Marissa McCann came on in relief for the final four innings, letting up two earned runs on three hits with a strikeout.
GAME NOTES
- Julia Crenshaw paced Mizzou Saturday, going 2-for-3 with a double (ninth of the season).
- Julia Crenshaw tallied her sixth multi-hit game of the season.
- Jenna Laird posted her 12th double of the campaign, finishing 1-for-3 with a walk.
- Jenna Laird extended her hitting streak to four games while Maddie Gallagher (five-game hitting streak) and Julia Crenshaw have hit safely in each of the last three.
- Maddie Gallagher (1-for-3, a run), Claire Cahalan (1-for-3), and Kayley Lenger (1-for-2, HBP) each added a hit Saturday.
- Stefania Abruscato notched her first career sacrifice fly.
- Kayley Lenger, Abby Hay, and Julia Crenshaw are all currently on seven-game reached base streaks.
- Laurin Krings made her third start of the week, allowing just one earned run on three hits over two innings.
- Marissa McCann came on in relief for the final four innings, letting up two earned runs on three hits with a strikeout.
- Mizzou made its third SEC Tournament Championship appearance in program history (2024, 2022, 2013) Saturday and second appearance in three seasons.
- Following the game seniors Maddie Gallagher, Laurin Krings, and Jenna Laird were named to the 2024 SEC Softball All-Tournament Team.
- For Jenna Laird and Laurin Krings, it marked their second career appearance on the SEC All-Tournament Team as the duo also appeared on the list in 2022.
- The honor marked the first career postseason SEC honor for Maddie Gallagher.
- Jenna Laird has now earned eight SEC postseason honors (four-time All-SEC player) while it was the second career postseason SEC honor for Laurin Krings who was also named to the 2024 SEC All-Defensive Team.
- Head coach Larissa Anderson is now 8-5 at the SEC Tournament.
- Missouri is now 11-10 overall at the SEC Tournament (7-3 in the past three tournaments).
- Mizzou went 3-1 this week at the 2024 SEC Tournament. The Tigers also went 6-1 over its extended road trip to Columbia, South Carolina, and Auburn, Alabama.
- Mizzou is three wins away from 1,500 program wins.
- Mizzou surpassed its win total from 2021 (42-17) earning 43 ahead of NCAA Regional play.
- Mizzou's 43 wins in 2024 is the most since 2014 (43-18). Mizzou last surpassed 43 wins in 2012 (47-14).
- Five Tigers earned 2024 All-SEC honors on Friday. Jenna Laird, Alex Honnold and Abby Hay were named to the All-SEC Second Team while pitcher Laurin Krings and right fielder Kayley Lenger nabbed spots on the SEC All-Defensive Team.
- For Mizzou, it's the most All-SEC selections since eight in 2021 (also had three All-SEC selections and two SEC All-Defensive Team picks that season).
- Mizzou will next await its NCAA postseason fate as the Tigers will watch the 2024 College Softball Selection Show which is slated for Sunday at 6 p.m., CT on ESPN2.
- For all the latest on Mizzou Softball, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team @MizzouSoftball (Twitter, Instagram, Facebook).
Florida
Korbe Otis
Keagan Rothrock
Skylar Wallace
Mia Williams
Most Valuable Player: Skylar Wallace, Florida
Missouri
Maddie Gallagher
Laurin Krings
Jenna Laird
LSU
Sydney Berzon
Taylor Pleasants
Texas A&M
Kennedy Powell
Koko Wooley
