EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – Fueled by Matt Garcia’s three-hit performance, Missouri baseball scored seven times over a three-inning stretch to pull away for an 8-3 nonconference victory over SIUE Wednesday evening at Roy E. Lee Field.
Mizzou broke up a scoreless tie with a four-run fourth, before adding a run in the fifth and two more in the sixth to build a 7-0 cushion. Garcia led the way, going 3-for-4 with three RBIs, including a back-breaking two-run double in the sixth, after Hank Zeisler’s two-run double highlighted the game’s key rally in the fourth.
With the victory, the Tigers (24-16) extended their midweek win streak to nine-straight victories and improved to 19-3 this season against nonconference foes.
The Tiger pitching staff turned in a dominant effort as well, combining to hold the Cougars scoreless for the first five innings. Javyn Pimental, Brock Lucas and Kyle Potthoff combined to allow just six hits through seven innings, before Jacob Hasty and Nic Smith finished off the win by working an inning apiece.
In his first start since Feb. 25, Pimental worked around multiple SIUE baserunners in each of his two innings to keep the Cougars off the scoreboard. A hit batsman and a walk started the SIUE first, but Pimental recovered to strike out Brady Bunten, then induced an inning-ending double-play liner to first.
SIUE rallied with two out in the second, using a John Stallcup single and an error to put two more runners aboard. But Pimental fanned Josh Ohl for the final out of the inning and his fourth punchout of the night.
SIUE pitchers Teague Conrad and Zeus Ponder enjoyed early success as well, combining to strike out five straight Tiger hitters in the second and third frames. The duo retired seven consecutive batters following a two-out Trevor Austin single in the opening inning.
Mizzou would not put another man on base until the fourth, when Ross Lovich was hit by a Spencer Smith (0-2) offering to start the inning. The first of three walks issued to Austin and a Cougar error loaded the bases, before Zeisler drove a double to left to bring in the first two runs of the game.
The Tigers tacked on two more in the fourth, scoring a third run on Dylan Leach’s grounder to second and a one-out wild pitch to establish a 4-0 lead.
Garcia played key roles in Mizzou scoring rallies in both the fifth and sixth innings. The senior infielder singled to start the fifth, before stealing second and moving to third on a wild pitch. Lovich brought him home with a run-scoring bouncer to second, stretching the margin to five runs.
In the sixth, Leach walked to open the inning, and Jackson Lovich lined a one-out single to left-center to set up Garcia’s biggest blow of the night. On a 2-2 pitch from Dimitri Ivetic, Garcia laced a two-run double into the gap in right-center to hand the Tigers a 7-0 lead.
The Cougars ended Mizzou’s shutout bid with a run in the home half of the sixth after a leadoff triple by Avery Owusu-Asiedu. Another triple in the seventh led to a second Cougar run, as Logan Smith’s sacrifice fly brought in Ohl to trim the MU advantage to five runs.
In addition to Garcia’s big night, Austin reached base safely in each of his first four trips to the plate, going 1-for-2 with three walks to help set the table for Mizzou.
Lucas (3-0) picked up his third victory after allowing two hits in 2.0 scoreless innings.
TIGER NOTEBOOK
- Mizzou improved to 20-5 all-time vs. SIUE with its sixth straight win in the series
- MU also improved to 11-10 in road/neutral-site games this season, including a 3-0 season mark in games played in the St. Louis metropolitan area
- The Tigers improved to 19-3 against nonconference opponents this season and 37-6 in such games since the start of the 2022 season
- Garcia’s three hits and three RBIs represent Mizzou career highs for the senior transfer
- Pimental matched a Mizzou career high with four strikeouts in his 2.0 innings
- Potthoff’s three strikeouts matched a season high (achieved two previous times)
- Leach extended his on-base streak to 14 consecutive games with his sixth-inning walk
- The Tigers improved to 21-2 when scoring six runs or more this season
- Lucas’s win marked the 10th mound victory for a Mizzou freshman pitcher
UP NEXT
The Tigers will open a three-game Southeastern Conference series with Florida Friday (April 28) evening at 6 p.m. (CDT) in Gainesville.
