The Missouri Tigers rallied from a four-run hole to clip the Kentucky Wildcats 10-8 in extra innings thanks to Brooke Wilmes two-RBI double in the 8th inning Friday night at John Cropp Stadium.
Missouri (14-12, 2-4) pounded out seven extra-base hits and had 10 as a team as they ended the Cats 12-game winning streak.
Kentucky (21-8, 6-1) had 14 hits as a team but also left 14 runners on base; something that did not sit well with head coach Rachel Lawson.
"We did a great job putting people on base, and then when they got there we didn't do a very good job getting out of it," said Lawson.
The Cats inability to push runs across the plate late hurt them the most in the 7th inning. With the bases loaded, senior Katie Reed uncorked a monster shot to left field that couldn't quite clear the fence.
Lawson said that the Cats let the game get away by "not playing Kentucky softball," which means being patient at the plate and waiting for the right pitch.
The result of that?
"We ended up popping up, whatever the case was, instead of coming up with a timely hit," she said.
A spectacular play by Missouri's centerfielder Callie Martin in the bottom of the 2nd also ended up coming back to haunt the Cats.
Martin's grab at the wall robbed Cats senior Abbey Cheek of UK's career home-run record and three runs that would have given Kentucky a comfortable lead.
Senior Sarah Rainwater was the bright spot for Kentucky on a disappointing evening.
The Kentucky native came into the game hitting .125 but notched two hits in four attempts at the plate to go along with three RBI.
Fellow senior Katie Reed also had two hits, as did sophomore Mallory Peyton and senior Jenny Schaper.
The Tigers jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning when Kim Wert took UK starter Autumn Humes deep to center field.
The Cats got on the board in the bottom of the same inning with Rainwater's first RBI. A batter later, sophomore Lauren Johnson gave the Cats a 3-2 lead with her third homer of the year.
Mizzou reclaimed the lead, 4-3, thanks to a two-run bomb by Jazmyn Rollins in the top of the 3rd.
Kentucky hung three more runs on the board in the bottom of the frame to retake the lead 6-4. With two already aboard, pinch hitter senior Kelsee Henson smoked a two-RBI double into center field. Schaper tripled in a runner one batter later.
Rainwater drove home another run in the bottom of the 4th during a two-run rally that extended Kentucky's lead to 8-4. Reed plated the Wildcats other run of the inning with a single to left field.
The Tigers evened things at 8-all with four runs in the top of the 5th via two two-out doubles. Missouri chased Humes from the circle during the rally, in which six Tigers reached base one out shy of being retired from their turn at bat.
Humes gave up eight hits in 4.2 innings of work and walked three batters. The junior from Arkansas entered the game having allowed only one run in her previous 20 innings of work.
Grace Baalman (5-4) didn't fare much better against the Tigers. The sophomore gave up the winning runs in the top of the 8th and struggled to end Mizzou at-bats, allowing four walks in all during her 2.1 innings in the circle.
The Cats look to even the series tomorrow with at 2 p.m.
