After a late-game pushback from the Cougars due to poor fielding by the Tigers, Mizzou baseball (12-20, 0-12) managed to pull off an 11-8 win over SIUE on Tuesday night, thanks to a late-game homer from Cayden Nicoletto.
The Tigers' offense continued what it has done all year, putting up runs in each of the first four innings of the game.
In the top of the first, the Tigers set the tone with a two-run homer from senior Pierre Seals. They followed that up with two runs in the second off the bat of Keegan Knutson, courtesy of an error, and another two in the third from freshman Chris Patterson, who hit a two-RBI double.
Seals ended the scoring for the Tigers with a two-out, two-RBI single in the fourth, giving Mizzou eight runs on the board through the first four innings and putting the Tigers up 8-5 in the bottom of the fourth.
The Cougars got their runs in the first two innings off Mizzou starter Wil Libbert, with only one run earned. The lone earned run came in the bottom of the first when the leadoff batter singled and later scored the first of two runs for the Cougars in the inning, with the other run being unearned.
The other three runs came in the second inning when a two-out error scored two, and another run scored on a single from the next batter. Entering the third inning down 5-4, the Tigers put up another four runs over the next two innings to support their starting pitcher, bringing the score to 8-5.
Libbert final line:
5.0 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 KK, 93-66 (Total pitches-Strikes)
The first runs to cross after the fourth inning came in the bottom of the seventh when the Cougars capitalized on three Mizzou errors to plate a run, bringing them back within two runs. The Cougars then scored again in the next inning when Knutson’s fourth error of the game allowed one run to score, and an RBI single tied the game at eight.
The tie didn’t last long, though, as the Tigers jumped back in front after a leadoff single from Tyler Macon set up a two-run bomb for Cayden Nicoletto, giving Mizzou an 11-8 win.
The Cougars were shut down in the back half of the game, thanks entirely to Mizzou reliever Kadden Drew. After coming in for Libbert in the sixth, Drew delivered one of his best outings of the year, going four innings and allowing four hits and three runs (none earned), while striking out six.
Seals was the hero of the game for the Tigers, finishing with his second three-hit game of the season, going 3-4 with a walk and four RBIs. Knutson also extended his hit streak to five games with his double in the third.
Defensively, the Tigers have struggled to play error-free all season, and this game was no exception. Of the eight runs the Tigers gave up to the Cougars, only one was earned, with the rest resulting from Missouri’s eight errors, bringing their SEC-leading total to 47 on the season.
The Tigers, still in search of their first conference win, head to Gainesville, Florida, following this game to take on the Florida Gators in a three-game series. The first game will start at 6 p.m. on Friday and will be available to watch on ESPN+.