MINNEAPOLIS – Powered by three-run homers from Jake Burger and Alex Jefferson, Missouri State broke open a one-run game by scoring seven times in the third and fourth innings en route to a 12-3 victory over Minnesota in the rubber match of the two clubs’ series at U.S. Bank Stadium Sunday afternoon.
Burger, who went 2-for-3 while matching a career high with five RBIs, belted his second and third home runs of the three-game series, including a laser-shot into the left field stands with two men aboard in the third that turned a 1-0 Bears lead into a four-run cushion. The junior third baseman went deep again the following frame, moments after Jefferson clubbed a three-run shot to right off UM starter Toby Anderson (1-2) to stretch the MSU advantage to 7-0.
Hunter Steinmetz ignited the Bears’ offense from the onset, drawing a walk to start the game before stealing second and coming all the way around on Burger’s long fly ball to center to give MSU an early one-run edge. The sophomore helped fuel MSU’s third and fourth-inning rallies as well, teaming up with Jack Duffy to set the table in each inning. The duo produced back-to-back singles ahead of Burger’s first homer in the third, then sparked a two-out threat that led to four more MSU runs in the fourth.
Jefferson delivered the key blow in the inning, lofting his second home run in as many days off the right-field baggy to give starting pitcher Doug Still and the Bears all the offense they would need to secure their first-ever series win over the three-time national champion Gophers.
With the Bears’ offense clicking in the early stages of the game, Still (2-0) held the Gophers (9-6) in check with six shutout innings to start the afternoon. The left-hander limited Minnesota to four singles until the seventh, when Toby Hanson set off a string of three-straight UM hits to break up Still’s shutout bid.
Steinmetz, who went 2-for-3 with a pair of walks and three runs scored, added to the Bears’ lead with a two-out, two-run double in the fifth that upped the margin to 10-0. MSU tacked on single tallies in the eighth and ninth thanks to run-scoring hits off the bench from Ryan Skalnik and Danny Rowley.
In all, Still permitted just one run on seven hits and a walk, while striking out a career-high eight hitters. Jake Lochner turned in a scoreless inning of relief, and Kolton Gonnerman closed out the win in his MSU debut, allowing a pair of unearned runs after a two-out throwing error extended the inning.
Up next, the Bears will conclude their six-game road swing with a pair of midweek contests against in-state rivals. MSU will travel to Saint Louis for a 4 p.m. game Tuesday (March 14), before heading south to Cape Girardeau for a 5 p.m. contest Wednesday against Southeast Missouri.
