ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Doug Still blanked New Mexico on five hits over a complete-game performance to lift Missouri State to an 8-0 victory over the Lobos Saturday afternoon at Santa Ana Star Field. Led by Jeremy Eierman’s four-hit day, the Bears’ offense clicked in the series finale as well, scoring in seven of their nine turns at bat to pull away for a road win over a top 40 RPI club.
Still was masterful in logging the first complete-game shutout by a Missouri State pitcher since 2014, retiring 18 of the final 21 batters he faced to finish off the sixth shutout by the Bears staff this season.
After surrendering a single to Danny Collier to start the game, Still locked in and dominated the potent New Mexico (20-14-1) lineup that totaled 26 runs in taking the first two games of the series. He would not face more than four hitters in any inning and permitted just three Lobo baserunners to reach scoring position.
Still received a boost from his defense, which registered rally-killing double plays in the second and third frames to preserve an early Bears lead. Catcher Drew Millas picked a Lobo baserunner off second to end the sixth with two aboard and UNM cleanup hitter Carl Stajduhar at the plate, and Jack Duffy complemented another fine showing at the plate by turning in two highlight-reel catches in right field.
Duffy capped a three-game series in which he totaled eight hits with a 2-for-4 day that included one of the Bears’ four two-out, run-scoring hits. Eierman starred for MSU at the dish with a season-high four hits. The sophomore opened the scoring with a two-out double off the wall in left-center, then doubled MSU’s lead in the third with his 13th home run of the season—a two-run shot to left that followed a two-out walk to Jake Burger.
Blake Graham powered up as well, connecting with a Johnathon Tripp (2-1) offering for his second home run of the series and his fourth of the season in the top of the second. Missouri State kept the pressure on the Lobos another two-out rally in the fifth, as Justin Paulsen singled to kick off a string of four consecutive Bear hitters reaching safely. A Burger double and an intentional walk to Eierman set the stage for a bases-loaded walk to Meyer that pushed home the fifth MSU run of the game.
Ryan Skalnik continued the run of two-out productivity for the Bears in the seventh, lining his sixth pinch hit of the season into right to plate Burger. A Hunter Steinmetz sac fly brought Drew Millas home in the eighth, before Burger scored his third run of the day in the ninth on Duffy’s base hit.
Still recorded 14 outs on ground balls and issued just one walk in the first MSU complete-game shutout since Jon Harris blanked Northern Illinois on the very same field on Feb. 22, 2014.
Tripp suffered the loss for UNM after allowing five runs on six hits and five walks over 6.0 innings. Collier and Luis Gonzalez turned in two-hit games to account for four of the Lobos’ five hits in the game.
The Bears (22-13) return to the Show-Me State next week to renew in-state rivalries with Saint Louis and Missouri. MSU and SLU will meet Monday (April 17) evening at 6 p.m. at Billiken Sports Center in St. Louis, before the Bears travel to Columbia Tuesday for a 6:30 p.m. contest.
