University of Northern Iowa Athletics
University of Northern Iowa
17-12, 0
Missouri State
8-23, 0
UNI softball splits Friday doubleheader against Missouri State
4/5/2024 8:14:00 PM | Softball
Panthers, Bears wrap up series with Saturday rubber match
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa --- UNI softball opened action at Robinson-Dresser Sports Complex in 2024 with a Friday doubleheader split against Missouri State. The Panthers dominated Friday's opening game in a 12-3 victory, but the Bears bounced back with an 11-5 victory.
The Panthers now sit at 17-13 entering Saturday's series finale.
Game 1 | UNI 12 - MSU 3 (F/5)
Despite entering Friday's series with an 8-22 record, Missouri State made an early statement in the first inning of the series opener. Reigning Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Newcomer of the Week Kayla Ulrich blasted a two-run home run to left field to give the Bears a 2-0 lead.
The Panthers responded immediately. Madison Parks led off the home half of the inning with her 32nd walk of the 2024 season, then Alexis Pupillo walked to put two runners on base. Kate Lappe then put the Panthers back in front with a three-run home run to left field, giving UNI a lead it ultimately would not relinquish. The blast marked the fourth of the season for Lappe.
In the bottom of the second inning, walks led to more Panther runs. Savanna Jemilo and Daryn Lamprecht reached base via walk and, with one out in the inning, Parks laid down a sacrifice bunt that moved runners to second and third. With two outs in the frame, Pupillo ripped a double down the right field line that extended UNI's lead to 5-2.
After Samantha Heyer worked through another efficient inning in the top of the third, Addison McElrath slammed a home run to give the Panthers a four-run lead. Missouri State pulled that run back with a solo home run, but UNI blew the game open in the bottom of the fourth.
Ava Smithson led off the frame with a moonshot to left field, a home run that set the tone for an explosive inning. Lamprecht walked and Parks singled, quickly clogging the base paths back up. Pupillo then drove pinch runner Adalyn Reynolds home with an RBI single to give the Panthers a 7-3 advantage. Lappe became the fifth consecutive Panther to reach base after a fielding error by Missouri State's third baseman, which brought home another UNI run.
The Bears did record their first out of the inning, but Kylee Sanders hammered an RBI double to give the Panthers a 10-2 lead. Taylor Hogan capped the frame with a two-RBI double.
All told, the Panthers pushed six runs across in the bottom of the fourth and burned through three Missouri State pitchers. Makenzi Swick retired Jemilo and Smithson after Hogan's double to end the inning.
Leading 12-3, Heyer worked a one-two-three inning that resulted in the end of the contest due to the run rule. 12 runs marks the best offensive output for the Panthers this season, and the first time UNI has cracked double-digit runs in 2024.
Game 2 | UNI 5 - MSU 11
Missouri State started the second game of Friday's doubleheader in a similar manner to the first game. Olivia Krehbiel led the game off with a triple and, after Anna Wischnowski forced a popout, Ulrich walked to put two runners on.
That brought Annie Mueller to the plate for the Bears and, during Mueller's at-bat, Krehbiel broke for home after a wild pitch from Wischnowski. However, Jemilo pounded on the loose ball and flipped it to Wischnowski, and Wischnowski tagged Krehbiel out to keep the game scoreless. Mueller ultimately walked, and Alexis Perales brought home Ulrich with an RBI single to open the scoring.
And like Friday's first game, the Panthers immediately responded in the bottom of the inning. Pupillo legged out an infield single to shortstop with one out in the bottom of the first. Lappe then struck out, but McElrath lifted a two-out opposite field home run that appeared to put the Panthers back in front.
However, Missouri State challenged the play to see whether or not Pupillo left first base early. Replay confirmed that Pupillo indeed left first base early, which nullified McElrath's home run and resulted in the third out of the inning.
With momentum back on the visitors' side, Missouri State erupted for a six-run inning in the top of the third. A Krehbiel home run and a three-run triple from Kelsie Lewis highlighted the inning and gave the Bears a commanding 7-0 advantage.
Wischnowski left the game with two outs in the top of the third, and Kara Maiers finished the game in the circle for the Panthers.
The Panthers were in danger of losing via the run rule, as Missouri State built an 8-0 advantage entering the bottom of the fifth inning, but UNI started fashioning a late rally. Lamprecht, Parks and Pupillo recorded back-to-back-to-back RBIs, and McElrath capped the Panthers' four-run inning with an RBI groundout.
Both teams traded runs in the sixth inning, but Missouri State put the game to bed in the top of the seventh with two more runs. Missouri State starting pitcher Mackenzie Chacón finished off her complete game in the bottom of the seventh as the Bears won 11-5.
ADDITIONAL NOTES
- UNI exploded for 12 runs in the first game of Friday's doubleheader against Missouri State. 12 runs marked the Panthers' highest offensive output of the 2024 season, as well as the first time that UNI has cracked double-digits offensively.
- 12 runs marked the highest run total for the Panthers since April 15. 2023 when UNI beat Southern Illinois 18-2.
- Heyer picked up her 100th strikeout of the 2024 season on Friday against Missouri State.
- Lappe made another mark in her career-best season on Friday. Her four home runs and 20 RBIs are both career-high totals through 30 appearances in 2024. Additionally, the first game of Friday's doubleheader marked the second career four-RBI game of Lappe's collegiate career. Lappe also had four RBIs against Illinois on March 26.
- Smithson hit her second home run of the 2024 season in the first game of Friday's doubleheader against Missouri State. She recorded an RBI in back-to-back contests, which marked the first time in her UNI career that she has recorded an RBI in consecutive games.
- Parks, who entered the weekend ranked second nationally with 1.21 walks per game, picked up one walk against the Bears on Friday. She now has 32 walks for the 2024 season, and remains well within striking distance to crack UNI softball's single-season leaderboard for most walks recorded.
- Maiers pitched a career-high 5.0 innings in the second game of Friday's doubleheader against Missouri State.
- This weekend's series marked the first meeting between UNI and Missouri State since 2022.
- Saturday's rubber match will place an impressive streak on the line for Panther softball. UNI has not lost an MVC series since 2021, when Missouri State took two out of three games from UNI in a series that ran from March 20-21.
UP NEXT
The Panthers round out their series against the Bears at 1 p.m. on Saturday from Robinson-Dresser Sports Complex. The game can be streamed on ESPN+.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Heyer, Samantha (8-5)
L: Gracie Johnston (1-13)
Batting:
HR: Kayla Ulrich 1 ; Annie Mueller 1
RBI: Kayla Ulrich 2 ; Annie Mueller 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Olivia Krehbiel 1 ; Kayla Ulrich 1 ; Annie Mueller 1
SB: Olivia Krehbiel 1 ; Kelsie Lewis 1
Batting:
2B: Pupillo, Alexis 1 ; Sanders, Kylee 1 ; Hogan, Taylor 1
HR: Lappe, Kate 1 ; McElrath, Addison 1 ; Smithson, Ava 1
RBI: Pupillo, Alexis 3 ; Lappe, Kate 4 ; McElrath, Addison 1 ; Sanders, Kylee 1 ; Hogan, Taylor 2 ; Smithson, Ava 1
SH: Parks, Madison 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Parks, Madison 2 ; Pupillo, Alexis 2 ; Lappe, Kate 2 ; McElrath, Addison 1 ; Sanders, Kylee 1 ; Kuper, Makenna 1 ; Smithson, Ava 1 ; Lamprecht, Daryn 1 ; Reynolds, Adalyn 1
CS: Peterson, Paige 1 ; Hogan, Taylor 1
