The Maryland softball team led, 1-0, heading into the sixth inning of its game against No. 24 Missouri on Sunday. But the Tigers’ seven-run sixth inning seemed to put the game out of reach.
Then, the Terps followed up with a six-run seventh inning to tie the contest at seven and force extra innings.
The back-and-forth final four innings finished with Maryland topping Missouri, 9-8, for the Terps’ third win of the year and second over a ranked foe.
Pitcher Madison Martin threw eight innings to earn her second win of the season, and the Terps notched 12 hits from eight different players.
After four scoreless innings, infielder Juli Strange hit an infield single in the fifth. Missouri catcher Kirsten Mack threw behind Strange at first and Strange advanced to third as the ball dribbled into the right field corner. Outfielder Kassidy Cross took advantage with a sacrifice fly to right field.
Missouri broke the game open with a seven-run sixth inning. After four hits from the Tigers through the first five innings, seven runs on four hits seemed to seal the game.
Martin got into trouble after a leadoff double. She fielded the next ground ball, but her throws to get pinch runner Lexi Rampetsreiter out at second was too late. Pitcher Hannah Dewey replaced Martin after an RBI single tied the game, and two sacrifice fly balls gave the Tigers a 3-1 advantage.
Outfielder Natalie Fleming hit a three-run bomb to left field, and another single after three walks from Dewey in the inning pushed it to 7-1.
Then, Maryland saw 11 batters to the plate, with six hits in the inning, to tie the game at seven. With two outs in the seventh, shortstop Skylynne Ellazar reached base on an error, scoring Dewey from third. The Terps took advantage of another Tigers mistake when catcher Kristina Dillard crushed a two-RBI double to left center field, and singles from Martin and Strange knotted the contest.
To speed the game up in extra innings, both teams started with a runner on second base. After Dewey bunted Cross to third to start the inning, coach Julie Wright noticed an unreported substitution by Missouri. The violation took the out off the board and put Dewey on first. After an infield single by outfielder Destiney Henderson, Ellazar hit a sacrifice fly to give the Terps an 8-7 lead.
Missouri tied the game at eight with a single, but Cross singled in the ninth inning to put the Terps up, 9-8.
Missouri elected not to bunt over its runner from second base to start the bottom of the ninth. With its third hitter at bat, infielder Braxton Burnside swung away, but popped the first pitch up to first base. To move the runner, the Tigers tried to have infielder Jolie Duffner steal third, but Dillard threw the runner out for the second out. Martin sealed the victory by forcing a fly out to deep center field.
