Kentucky Softball swept by unranked Missouri in Lexington
Another brutal day for the Kentucky Softball (30-14; 9-9 SEC) team has come and gone. Unranked Missouri (28-17; 8-9 SEC) finished off the series sweep against the Wildcats on Monday night in five innings, winning 9-1. The Tigers became the first team to sweep Kentucky in an SEC series in three years.
‘Cats swept in Lexington as regular-season inches to a close
Game 3 started just a little late thanks to rain in the area. But Mizzou was ready once the first pitch was finally thrown. Brooke Wilmes crushed a solo shot to right-center to put the Tigers up 1-0 early. It was her second home run in as many at-bats.
Kentucky’s Erin Coffel wanted to prove she could do the same in the bottom half of the first inning. Coffel hit a solo homer of her own, tying the game at 1-1. The home run marked her 15th of the season. The sophomore’s performance thus far this season has earned her a spot as a finalist for the 2022 Softball National Player of the Year.
Missouri threatened again in the top of the second, but an impressive UK double play ended the inning with no further damage. The same cannot be said about the third inning, however.
Wilmes hit a two-RBI double through a right-field gap as Mizzou took a 3-1 lead. Kim Wert hit a grand slam just minutes later to make it 7-1 Tigers. It was Wert’s fourth homer of the weekend and her second grand slam.
Graduate student Kendall Bailey hit yet another long shot for the Tigers in the fifth, making it 8-1 Mizzou before her team tacked on another run to make it 9-1. The ‘Cats couldn’t make any ground up in the bottom of the inning, ending the night short. Kentucky has not beaten Mizzou since 2017.
UK will play again at John Cropp Stadium on Tuesday night vs. NKU at 7 p.m. You can watch on the SEC Network+.
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