COLUMBIA, Mo. — Close to two months into its season, Missouri softball is a tough nut to crack.
The Tigers entered 2025 with the goal of hosting an NCAA Tournament regional for the fourth time in the past five seasons, and really, getting beyond that to host a super regional series for the second year in a row.
Nonconference play had some highs, like beating Duke 10-3 for revenge against the team that eliminated Mizzou in last year’s super regional. But then losses started to pile up — more than were expected anyway.
MU, which only lost 14 games last regular season, sits 18-16 now with 21 games to go. The Tigers are 1-5 through two Southeastern Conference series.
That one SEC win, to this point, is a remarkable one.
Missouri beat top-ranked Oklahoma 3-1 on Saturday, handing the reigning national champion Sooners their first loss of the season. Mizzou drew a record 4,146 fans for the reunion with an old Big 12 rival.
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Madison Walker and Taylor Ebbs each homered during that win, while Taylor Pannell — the nation’s active leader in career saves — picked up her first of the season by closing out the final three innings.
While it was certainly an eye-catching upset in the softball world, it also looked like it might be the kind of win that could give the Tigers some much-needed momentum.
And then Kansas came to town Wednesday for a nationally televised Border War contest.
The Jayhawks (15-12) put two runners on base to start the game, then cleared the basepaths with a three-run homer before MU starter Cierra Harrison could register the game’s first out. That was all the evening’s scoring as KU beat Mizzou 3-0.
The Tigers had their chances, loading the bases in the first and second innings. In the remaining five frames, though, they never advanced a base runner past first base. The offensive juice needed to level the game “just didn’t materialize,†hitting coach Jeff Cottrill said.
“It’s been the story of our offense,†he said. “When we’re not going well, it’ll be good at-bat, good at-bat, bad at-bat, bad at-bat. It’s those negative at-bats that are killing us right now, that don’t allow us to either score in an inning or score multiple runs in an inning. We’ve got to eliminate the poor at-bats when people are on base.â€
Missouri sits last in the SEC with a team on-base percentage of .379 and is fourth from the bottom with a slugging percentage of .494. Only Auburn’s hitters have struck out more than the Tigers’ 165.
There’s clear potential near the top of the MU order. Catcher Julia Crenshaw, taking over the leadoff spot, has an on-base percentage of .504, and more than half her hits have gone for extra bases. Walker leads the team with 13 home runs, which is tied for second in the SEC. Kentucky transfer Ebbs had made it on base one way or another in 12 consecutive games before KU snapped that streak.
“It’s going to sound crazy because we just got shut out, but we have kids that can swing it,†Cottrill said. “Part of it’s a belief system. Part of it’s just playing without that weight on your shoulders. That’s what we just talked about in the locker room: ‘Just compete every pitch.’ Like, failure is going to happen, but failing (while) not doing what we work on in practice and executing the things that we try to do as an offense, that’s kind of frustrating.â€
Harrison, who was pulled after two innings of work Wednesday, has fanned 70 batters in 68 innings of work — but also gave up her 16th home run of the season with KU’s first-inning blast.
Sophomore Marissa McCann, who along with Harrison has started 15 games, kept the Jayhawks scoreless in her five innings in the circle. McCann is recovering from an offseason surgery but seems to be entering healthy form, which the Tigers could use.
“She’s starting to walk around like an ace,†Cottrill said, “and starting to believe that about herself.â€
Missouri hits the road this weekend for a three-game series at Mississippi. Then new No. 1 Texas — another SEC newcomer that has immediately slotted in at the top of the league — comes to Columbia from April 4-6. The Longhorns will likely be another big draw for the Tigers, who will look for another upset as they seek a midseason turnaround.
“I think we’ll get there,†Cottrill said of Mizzou’s players. “I think they got the message.â€
Mizzou football offensive coordinator Kirby Moore speaks with the media on Tuesday, March 18, 2025, as the team goes through spring practices. (Video by Mizzou Network, used with permission of Mizzou Athletics)
