COLUMBIA, Mo. – Missouri stopped a seven-game losing streak with a 17-9 victory over Missouri State Tuesday evening at Taylor Stadium, as the Tigers scored 10 times in the first four innings en route to handing the Bears their fourth loss in five games.
The Tigers, who recorded season highs for hits and runs scored, tallied at least two runs in six different innings in their most lopsided win over MSU since 1986.
After incurring a 16-1 setback to the Bears in the two clubs’ first meeting of the season on April 12, the Tigers turned the tables on MSU with back-to-back three-run rallies in the second and third innings, then broke the game wide open with a four-spot in the fourth to claim a 10-1 lead. In all, Mizzou pounded out 17 hits to halt its own four-game skid vs. the Bears, who had won seven consecutive contests against Division I teams from the state of Missouri dating back to the 2014 season.
Zach Lavy went 3-for-3 and came within a triple of hitting for the cycle, while combining with Shane Benes (3-for-5) to drive in 11 of the Tigers’ 17 runs. Cole Bartlett (3-4) tossed 5.0 strong innings to earn the victory, allowing just one run on two hits while striking out four MSU hitters.
Mizzou took advantage of the early control issues of MSU starting pitcher Andy Cheray (1-2) to put the game’s first runs on the board in the bottom of the second. Cheray, who beaned Lavy before promptly picking him off first, handed out three walks in the inning to fuel the MU rally. The senior left-hander struck out Benes for the second out and worked the count to two strikes against Marquise Doherty before the freshman bounced an RBI single through the right side of the infield to drive home Trey Harris. After walking No. 9 hitter Jack Klages to load the bases, Cheray once again worked a two-strike count to Connor Brumfield before yielding a two-run single to right for a 3-0 MU lead.
In the third, Ryan Howard drew a leadoff walk to chase Cheray from the contest, and Lavy drove home the runner with a double to right off Ryan Dunne. Benes then delivered a one-out single to plate Lavy, before Doherty made it a 6-0 game with his second two-out, RBI single in as many innings.
Spencer Johnson momentarily cut into the Tiger lead in the top of the fourth, lifting his 14th home run of the season over the wall in left to draw MSU back to within five runs.
But the Tigers would answer in the home half, scoring four times on five hits to push the margin to nine runs. Back-to-back one-out hits by Jake Ring and Howard set the stage, with each stealing a base before Lavy drove home his second run of the night with a sacrifice fly to left. Harris followed with a run-scoring single, and Benes launched a two-run homer to left to bring in the sixth and seventh two-out runs for MU in the contest.
Missouri State mounted a charge of its own in the sixth, as the first five Bears reached base safely as part of a four-run rally that cut the deficit to 10-5. After a leadoff walk and a Hunter Steinmetz triple that resulted in Ryan Mantle being gunned down at the plate, Johnson drew a free pass to set up back-to-back RBI singles from Jake Burger and Justin Paulsen. Jeremy Eierman then countered the Tigers’ two-out magic with a clutch single to right-center to chase home two more MSU runners.
MSU would hand the Tigers three of those runs right back in the bottom half of the inning, as three errors would bring in three unearned runs to allow the home club to reclaim an eight-run advantage. The duo of Benes and Doherty struck again, combining to drive home all three MU runs in the frame, before Lavy’s two-run homer in the seventh stretched the MU lead to 15-5.
Two more Tiger runs in the eighth made it an 11-run game before Burger’s two-out single scored Mantle and Paulsen’s two-run homer accounted for the final margin.
Burger paced MSU’s 11-hit attack with three RBIs on a 3-for-5 night, while Paulsen and Eierman each turned in two-hit performances and combined to drive in five runs.
In addition to big games from Lavy and Benes, the Tigers (21-21) got a career-best 2-for-4 night from Doherty, while Howard scored four times.
Up next, the Bears (28-11) travel to Terre Haute, Ind., where they will meet Indiana State for a three-game Missouri Valley Conference series at Bob Warn Field. Game one of the series is slated for a 5:30 p.m. (Central) first pitch on Friday (April 29).
