Despite a historic day on the mound from Sam Horn, the Mizzou Tigers (13-33, 0-23) couldn’t provide enough run support, falling 5-3 to No. 9 Georgia in the second game of the series. Missouri held strong until the top of the fifth, when things began to unravel.
Sophomore Sam Horn got the start for the Tigers, making just his third appearance of the season and his first career start at Taylor Stadium. He gave the home crowd plenty to cheer about, setting a career high with five strikeouts and exiting with a 2-0 lead after holding the Bulldogs hitless through the first three innings.
“I wouldn't necessarily say that he had his best stuff or best control, but I think who he is as a competitor allowed him to be successful,” head coach Kerrick Jackson said of Horn after the game.
In addition to his strikeout total, Horn also tied his career high in innings pitched — and set a new personal best for innings in a start. He had previously thrown three innings in his debut as a Tiger, though that outing came out of the bullpen.
Sam Horn’s final line: 3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K, 50-32 (Total Pitches-Strikes)
After Horn exited, the Tigers’ bullpen initially followed his lead but eventually faltered. Tony Neubeck was the first arm out, making his sixth appearance of the season, and kept the momentum going with a strong outing.
“Obviously with Tony, you're still dealing with a guy coming off Tommy John, so you're rehabbing him and integrating him into games at the same time,” Jackson said of Neubeck. “As we try to get more length out of him, his stuff can start to fall off a bit with a higher pitch count. That’s why we brought PJ in for that situation — he’s been effective for us all year.”
After a clean first inning from Neubeck — in which Georgia recorded its first hit of the game — the Bulldogs broke through in the following frame. Back-to-back doubles brought in their first run, trimming Missouri’s lead to 2-1.
An inning later, the Bulldogs showed why they’re ranked in the top 10, jumping in front with a two-run home run that gave them their first lead of the game.
Georgia added two more runs later in the inning, both coming on bases-loaded walks issued by Mizzou pitcher PJ Green. The first came after Green was called for a pitch clock violation for stepping off too many times during an at-bat, extending the Bulldogs’ lead to 5-2.
Despite the loss, the Tigers scored first in a conference game for just the fifth time this season. After a one-out single from Kaden Peer in the bottom of the first, Cayden Nicoletto stepped up and — with some help from the wind — lifted a two-run homer over the right-field fence to give Missouri an early 2-0 lead.
After the first inning, the Tigers’ bats went cold, failing to record another hit over the next five innings. During that stretch, only two batters reached base — a two-out walk to Mateo Serna in the fifth and a leadoff walk to Jackson Lovich in the sixth.
The Tigers couldn’t generate any offense the rest of the way, with their best chance coming in the eighth after a leadoff double from Serna — but he was left stranded. Trailing by three in the ninth, Missouri went down in order, falling 5-3.
Both teams finished with just four hits apiece, but the difference came in free passes. Missouri issued 10 free bases — between walks and hit batters — which helped fuel Georgia’s three-run advantage.
Outside of Horn, the best performance of the day came from Mizzou’s Brock Lucas, the fourth pitcher used in the game. Entering with the bases loaded and two outs in the sixth, Lucas shut the door and went on to toss 3.1 innings of no-hit baseball. He struck out five Bulldogs and didn’t issue a single walk — one of his best outings of the season.
“It’s probably one of the best ones he’s had,” Jackson said postgame about Lucas’ outing. “We’ve made some adjustments with his delivery to improve his fastball profile, and it’s helped stretch him out and really sharpen his stuff.”
Between Horn and Lucas, the Tigers got more than six innings of no-hit baseball, combining for 10 strikeouts and just one walk.
The loss marked Missouri’s 10th straight, tying the program’s longest losing streak since 2021, and extended their SEC skid to 23 games — both reaching historic lows. Still winless in conference play, the Tigers will look to snap both streaks in the series finale against Georgia.
Neubeck (0-3) took the loss, while Georgia’s Kolten Smith (4-2) earned the win and Zach Harris recorded his first save of the season.
The Tigers and Bulldogs will wrap up the series Sunday with a 1 p.m. first pitch at Taylor Stadium. The game will be available to stream on ESPN+.
“I thought we finally pitched it pretty well and put ourselves in a position to win a game,” Jackson said after the game. “Obviously, the sixth inning was where the game was lost. But we just didn’t answer the bell offensively.”