COLUMBIA, Mo. — The Tigers rallied for revenge. No.
7 Missouri softball beat Omaha 5-1 on Sunday, setting up another game between the teams for which team would advance from the weekend’s NCAA Tournament regional. It took a seventh-inning comeback for Mizzou to secure a victory, tying the game by bringing a runner around before center fielder Alex Honnold hit a game-winning two-run home run. The victory was a reversal from MU’s Friday game against the Mavericks, which ended in an extra-innings upset and sent the Tigers into the consolation bracket.
The tournament is double elimination, which allowed Mizzou to battle back to Sunday’s game with elimination-game victories over both Indiana and Washington. Because both Missouri and Omaha have one loss in the tournament, they’ll play again Sunday in a decisive final game. The winner will advance to a best-of-three super regional series against another team that emerges from a regional tournament.
If MU beats Omaha again, it will host that series. The eight teams that win super regionals then advance to the Women's College World Series in Oklahoma City. Missouri left three runners on base through the first two innings, a continuation of the early struggles at stringing together hits that limited the Tigers in their Friday loss to Omaha.
Third baseman Kara Daly hit a two-out double deep into the outfield in the second inning, which right fielder Kayley Lenger followed up by taking a pitch to the body — the 20th time she�.