Missouri’s softball season came to a crushing end with a 7-2 loss to James Madison in the deciding game of their best-of-three Super Regional on Sunday in Columbia.
The Tigers got a pair of solo home runs, including Brooke Wilmes’ shot to open the first inning. But the bats went largely silent against the Dukes’ Odicci Alexander, who started for the third time in the series.
Jenna Laird provided Missouri’s other run with her homer in the fifth to slice the Mizzou deficit to 3-2. But James Madison got the run back and more in a four-run seventh to put away the game.
So it will be unseeded James Madison (39-2) making its first appearance in the Women’s College World Series. Eighth-seeded Missouri (42-17) was seeking its seventh appearance and first since 2011.
Missouri errors factored into the Dukes’ scoring innings. A terrific diving stop by third baseman Kim Wert on Madison Naujokas’ smash turned sour when her throw across the diamond pulled first baseman Emma Raabe off the bag. That put runners at first and third and a a sacrifice fly tied it at 1-1.
The Dukes, who had led for only one inning in the first two games, took the lead in the fifth. Two singles around a sacrifice bunt scored one. On the second hit, the throw to the plate from Wilmes in center field sailed over the head of catcher Hatti Moore, allowing Sara Jubas to motor to third.
That proved important when Alexander’s infield single allowed Jubas to score and make it 3-1.
But the Dukes were just getting started on offense. They finished with 12 hits off a Missouri staff that hadn’t yielded more than two runs in an NCAA game until Sunday.
The Tigers had forced the third game with a 7-1 victory on Saturday, an outcome powered by a pair of home runs by Cayla Kessinger and a three-run blast by Wilmes.