Returning to Taylor Stadium for the first time this season, the Missouri Tigers put on a show for the fans, securing a 14-10 win over the Lindenwood Lions on Tuesday in Columbia.
Lindenwood got off to a hot start, putting up four runs in the first inning. Starting pitcher Victor Christal struggled early, loading the bases with a hit, an error, and a walk. Two consecutive bases-loaded walks, followed by a two-RBI single, gave the Lions a 4-0 lead just in the top of the first.
“We didn’t have a lot of options,” head coach Kerrick Jackson said when asked about why Christal got the start. “We’ve got some guys that are down, and after the weekend we came off of, there were some guys who would have been short-rested, and I didn’t want to necessarily do that with them.”
This didn't faze the Tigers, though. After transfer Cayden Nicoletto led off the bottom of the second with a double, freshman Brady Picarelli sent a ball over the left-center wall for a two-run shot, his second of the year.
He doubled down just a couple of innings later, sending a ball over the right-field fence for his second home run of the game, bringing the Tigers back within one. Picarelli now has seven RBIs on the season in just five at-bats.
This hitting was backed by a fantastic outing from senior Kaden Jacobi, who relieved Christal after just ⅓ of an inning. Jacobi went on to pitch a career-high five and a third innings, recording a career-high eight strikeouts and issuing just two walks.
It wasn't until the bottom of the fifth that the Tigers took control and gained their first lead of the game. After a leadoff triple from transfer Cameron Benson, followed by a walk and a hit by pitch to load the bases, a wild pitch tied the game at 4-4. Then, Picarelli stepped up to the plate once again.
For his third hit of the game, Picarelli delivered a two-RBI single up the middle and into center, giving the Tigers their first lead of the game at 6-4.
“The biggest thing for me is just mentally preparing,” Picarelli said after the game. “I know everyone here, not just me, has a good enough swing; that’s why they’re here. So I’ve done all that preparing and just stayed ready for my opportunity.”
It was in the top of the sixth when the Lions finally started to get something going. After Jacobi gave up a two-run double and a walk, he was replaced by graduate James Vaughn, who was making his fourth outing of the season. This is when the Lions began to build some momentum.
After Vaughn walked the leadoff batter, a two-RBI single over the center fielder’s head tied the game at 6 in the top of the sixth, adding two runs to what had been a clean outing for Jacobi. However, the tie lasted only half an inning, as the Tigers responded in the bottom of the sixth. They put runners on the corners and took the lead on a sac-fly from catcher Mateo Serna, putting Mizzou up 7-6.
The Tigers kept adding to their lead in the seventh, starting with a leadoff bomb from freshman Tyler Macon, marking his first hit of his career. Another walk and a double from Picarelli, his sixth consecutive hit, put runners on second and third for Brock Daniels, who followed with an RBI sac-fly for the first out of the inning.
“He will give you quality at-bats,” Jackson said about Macon. “He’s done that all fall, and we need to put guys in who are going to buy into that and be able to help us out in those situations.”
The Tigers added two more runs in the seventh, starting with an RBI-double from Peyton Basler and an RBI-single from Benson, who left the game with an injury after his hit. This brought up Serna, who recorded his first hit of the game with an RBI-single up the middle, extending the Tigers' lead to 12-6.
The Lions threatened in the top of the eighth after the Tigers turned to their fourth pitcher, Xavier Lovett. After loading the bases, a double down the line scored two, and a groundout to second plated another, bringing the Lions within three. But with Picarelli at the plate, that momentum quickly shifted again.
For his fifth hit of the game, Picarelli sent a single into center for another RBI, giving the Tigers a 14-9 lead. This hit brought him to six on the day and extended his streak to seven consecutive hits. He became the first Tiger with a five-hit game since the 2018 season, and the team's 17 hits marked their most in a game since their matchup against Purdue Fort Wayne in March of last year.
Nearly four hours later, Lovett returned for his second inning of work. After giving up three singles and a walk, which scored one and brought the tying run to the plate, he closed out the game for the Tigers, securing the 14-10 win.
They also displayed another layer of dominance over the Lions on the basepaths, stealing a season-high five bases.
Vaughn (1-0) was credited with the win, while Lindenwood’s Tanner Paschke (0-2) was charged with the loss.
“It’s not realistic to do that every night,” Picarelli said. “I just said it was a blessing.”
The bats will look to continue this level of dominance when they face Evansville this weekend, starting on Friday at 5 p.m. at Taylor Stadium.