clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

EEEEEK. That was close.

Mizzou Links for April 19

By Karen Steger
/ new

If you buy something from an SB Nation link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.

What a Relief.

That.was.a.close.one. Missouri wrapped up their two-game series with in-state foe Missouri State with a come-from-behind walk-off win on Tuesday night. Down 6-5 in the bottom of the 9th, the Tigers loaded the bases on a walk, Trevor Austin single, and hit by pitch before an RBI single by Arkansas transfer Dylan Leach brought home the victory.

How did they get here? Let’s go back to the beginning.

A two-out wild pitch in the 1st by Tiger starter Logan Lunceford gave the Bears the early lead, 1-0. In the 2nd, Mizzou responded as Hank Zeisler singled and swiped 2B before advancing to 3B on a fly out to CF and scoring on a balk. Missouri State got two on in the 3rd, but couldn’t convert, and the Tigers had similar troubles in their half of the inning. They got two on with back-to-back singles by Ty Wilmsmeyer and Luke Mann, but were unable to bring a runner home.

Missouri State took a 3-1 lead in the fourth on a two-out, two-run homer before Dylan Leach — he was on fire Tuesday night — launched a two-run shot of his own to tie it up 3-3. Carlos Pena then followed him with a solo shot, his first of the season, to regain the lead 4-3.

The topsy-turvyness of the game wasn’t over though, as the Bears tied it up again in the 5th with a two-out RBI single off Potthoff, who relieved Lunceford to start the inning, before Mizzou went back in front on a Zeisler sac fly in the bottom of the inning that brought in Wilmsmeyer, who had earlier reached on a throwing error and then swiped 2B. The Bears tied it up AGAIN in the top of the 6th after back-to-back doubles, making it 5-5 and driving Potthoff out of the game in favor of Lucas. The Tigers had no answers in the bottom of the 6th, despite getting two more runners aboard via fielding error and hit by pitch.

NOTE: If you’re keeping track, the Tigers left an alarming amount of people on base, and had it turned out differently, that would be one thing to point to.

Neither team did anything in the 7th, but Missouri State reclaimed the lead in the 8th on a solo homer to left to make it 6-5 before a pair of Lucas strikeouts ended the inning. Mizzou stranded a pair of baserunners — Pena, on with a single, and Chick, on with a walk — in the bottom of the inning, and would be down to three final outs.

NOTE: I was thinking at this point about how I’m tired of thinking and writing about losses (still finishing up my softball recap, sorrrrrry) and that I really needed some diamond sports-related happiness.

The Tigers must’ve heard my thoughts, because OMG, they did it. After Zach Franklin worked a scoreless 9th (he entered for Lucas after a leadoff single), the heart of Mizzou’s order was up to try and steal this thing: Mann | Austin | Zeisler. If I’m trying to come back and win a game (nevermind that it’s a rival they have no business losing to) that’s who I’d want up.

And we’re back to where I started. Leach — God Bless him — got it done and kept the Tigers’ midweek undefeated streak alive, and this writer from having a meltdown!

The Stats

  • Ty Wilmsmeyer: 1-4 | R | BB | K | 4 LOB | SB
  • Luke Mann: 1-4 | R | BB | K | SB
  • Trevor Austin: 1-4 | R | HBP | 2 LOB | SB
  • Hank Zeisler: 1-2 | R | RBI | BB | HBP | Sac Fly | SB
  • Dalton Bargo: 0-3 | R | RBI | K | HBP | Sac Fly | 2 LOB
  • Dylan Leach: 2-5 | R | 3 RBI | HR
  • Carlos Pena: 2-4 | R | RBI | HR | K

Overall Hitting: 7 R | 8 H | 6 RBI | 2 HR | 4 BB | 5 K | 4 HBP | 2 SF | 8 LOB (ew) | 4 SB | .250 BA | .200 w/ 2 outs | .100 RISP | .556 Lead Off

  • Logan Lunceford: 4 IP | 5 H | 3 ER | 3 K | 2 WP | 17 BF | 2 XBH | 64 pitches
  • Kyle Pothoff: 1.1 IP | 5 H | 2 ER | K | 9 BF | 2 XBH | 26 pitches
  • Brock Lucas: 2.2 IP | 2 H | ER | 3 K | WP | 10 BF | XBH | 31 pitches
  • Zach Franklin: 1.0 IP | K | 3 BF | 12 pitches

Overall Pitching: 12 H | 6 ER | 8 K | 3 WP | 3 2B | 2 HR | .308 OppBA | .167 w/ 2 outs | .143 RISP | .667 Lead Off

As for the other diamond sportsters, tonight at 6pm the Missouri Softball team (25-20), will try to get back into the win column and defend their undefeated midweek stretch against that team from the west (20-19, 2-7 Big 12). When we last saw them, they took the first game of the three game set against Ole Miss. Recap still incoming…

Missouri leads the overall series against kansas, 70-45. Their last meeting was a bad one, taking place in Lawrence, where kU knocked off the #24/25 Tigers 11-7.

They’re giving away shirts. They look cool. You should go. The weather looks good. And if you can’t, watch it on SEC+. (More info at MUTigers.com)

On to the Links! M-I-Z!

Yesterday at Rock M

More Links:

Hoops

Football

Other Mizzou Sports

Mizzou in the Pros

  • BLAINE GABBERT TO THE CHIEFS! We love to see it.

If you’re looking to sign up for ESPN+, Rock M Nation now has an affiliate link: click Here for ESPN+ Now!

If you’re looking to sign up for a new streaming service, you can try FuboTV: click HERE for FuboTV access — FuboTV now has ESPN, CBS, FS1 and more sports channels.
(** RockMNation has affiliate partnerships. These do not influence editorial content, though RockMNation may earn commissions for products purchased via affiliate links.**)

Next Up In Links

Loading comments...