COLUMBIA, Mo. – No. 16 Oklahoma plated the go-ahead run on Easton Carmichael’s two-out single in the fifth inning, before putting the game out of reach with a pair of late scoring rallies en route to a 17-4 victory over University of Missouri baseball in the opening game of the two clubs’ Southeastern Conference series Thursday evening at Taylor Stadium.
Moments after the Tigers battled back from a 3-1 deficit to tie the game on Jedier Hernandez’s fly ball to right that fell in to chase home a pair of MU baserunners, Carmichael came through with what would prove to be the game-winning base hit off Brock Lucas with two out in the fifth.
The Sooners (27-10, 8-8 SEC) piled on five runs in the sixth inning, using Trey Gambill’s second home run of the night and a two-run double by Drew Dickerson to stretch their lead to 9-3. Gambill, who also homered in the third to hand OU a three-run lead, added a three-run double as part of the Sooners’ six-run rally in the eighth. He finished the night 3-for-5 with six RBIs and three runs scored to lead OU’s 15-hit attack.
Dickerson also turned in a three-hit performance, tallying three RBIs, including the first run-scoring hit of the game with his two-out single in the second. Dawson Willis added an RBI single to give OU the early two-run lead, before Gambill led off the third with the first of his two round-trippers for a 3-0 advantage.
Mizzou (13-24, 0-16 SEC) chipped away at the three-run deficit, using singles by Tyler Macon and Peyton Basler to set up a Jackson Lovich two-out, RBI single that pulled the Tigers within 3-1 in the third. With two out in the fourth, Hernandez lofted a long fly to right that was misplayed into a two-run error, drawing the Tigers even at 3-3.
But Oklahoma rebounded in the fifth, using a leadoff single and steal of second by Willis to spark the go-ahead rally. Lucas (1-4) retired Gambill and Jaxon Willits for the first two outs of the inning, but Carmichael lined a 2-0 pitch to left to chase home Willis for a 4-3 OU edge.
The game’s tipping point followed in the sixth, as the Sooners put their first four batters aboard, with Dayton Tockey opening the scoring with his RBI single, before Dickerson plated two more with a double to left-center and Gambill belted his two-run shot to right.
After Lovich drove in his second run of the night with a sacrifice fly in the seventh, OU would send 10 hitters to the plate in its six-run eighth that extended the margin to 13 runs.
The Tigers benefited from a strong start from freshman left-hander Brady Kehlenbrink, who limited the Sooners to three runs on three hits over his career-best 4.0-inning stint. Additionally, Pierre Seals reached base safely in two of his three trips to the plate, extending his career-best hit streak to seven games with his fourth-inning single.
TIGER NOTEBOOK
- Kehlenbrink completed 4.0 innings for the first time in his five collegiate starts and recorded at least three strikeouts for the fifth time in 10 appearances.
- Lovich finished with his team-leading 14th multi-RBI performance of the season, going 1-for-3 with two RBIs.
- Keegan Knutson recorded his first triple as a Tiger in the seventh, giving Mizzou 12 as a team this season.
- Seals extended his hitting streak to a career-best seven games with a 1-for-2 night at the plate.
- Patterson’s career-best seven-game hit streak ended with his 0-for-4 night.
- With its victory Oklahoma improved to 155-110-1 all-time vs. Missouri.
- The Tigers dropped to 8-11 at Taylor Stadium this season.
UP NEXT
With inclement weather in the forecast throughout the weekend, the Tigers and Sooners have adjusted their schedule to now conclude the series Friday with a doubleheader beginning at Noon. Single-game tickets for all 2025 Mizzou baseball home contests are available by calling the ticket office at 1-800-CAT-PAWS or by visiting MUTigers.com.
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