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COLUMBIA, Mo. – University of Missouri baseball ended an offensive drought by scoring in six different innings to pull away for a 13-3, run-rule victory over UT Martin in eight innings Tuesday evening at Taylor Stadium. Led by Brock Daniels’ career-best five RBIs, the Tigers outhit the Skyhawks by a 12-5 margin, as five different Mizzou batters recorded multi-hit performances.
Daniels drove in runs in four Mizzou scoring rallies, including a two-run homer in the seventh. Matt Garcia matched season highs with three hits and three runs batted-in, while Jackson Beaman went 2-for-4 with a home run, three runs scored and two stolen bases.
The Mizzou pitching staff registered a strong performance as well, with Brock Lucas (3-0) and Jacob Peaden combining for 4.0 innings of one-hit relief to close out the victory, after Daniel Wissler kept the Skyhawks (11-18) in check through the first four frames.
The victory for the Tigers (11-18) halted a five-game skid that saw MU score just 11 runs and record double-digit hits in just one contest. Mizzou showed no lingering effects from that dry spell early in Tuesday’s game, answering the Skyhawks first-inning run with two runs of its own to seize a lead it would not relinquish. Jeric Curtis and Beaman started the rally with back-to-back singles to open the inning, then pulled off a double steal, with Curtis swiping home for the first Tigers run of the game.
Moments later, Beaman successfully stole third, before easily trotting home on an errant throw for a 2-1 Mizzou lead.
The Tigers used the running game to add to their lead with three additional runs in the third. Kaden Peer drew a one-out walk, stole second and scored on Trevor Austin’s base hit to right. Daniels drove home his second run of the night with a base hit to left-center, before scooting into scoring position with the Tigers’ fifth steal of the game. Garcia followed with a run-scoring single to right-center, hiking the MU lead to 5-1.
Wissler faced his biggest challenge on the mound in the top of the fourth, when Andrew Fernandez and Blaze Bell each went deep for solo shots that cut the Tigers lead in half. A walk to Jackson Cooke, a Hunter McLean single and a wild pitch put two Skyhawks in scoring position, but Wissler squashed the threat with back-to-back strikeouts to end the inning.
From there, Lucas dispatched all six UT Martin hitters he faced — three via strikeouts — over 2.0 perfect innings.
Mizzou’s offense kept the pressure on the Skyhawks staff, striking for two more runs in the fifth on the first of Daniels’ two sacrifice flies and another Garcia RBI single. Beaman added another tally with his fifth home run of the season — a solo shot to deep left-center — in the sixth. Daniels drove in three of MU’s final five runs, belting a two-run blast to right in the seventh, before aiding the Tigers’ three-run, game-clinching rally in the eighth with another sac fly.
Peaden worked around leadoff baserunners in the seventh and eighth frames to keep UT Martin off the scoreboard. The right-hander retired three straight hitters in the seventh, before striking out a pair in the eighth to strand two runners in scoring position. In all, the three Mizzou hurlers combined to strike out 12 Skyhawks, with Wissler recording a career-best six punchouts.
Curtis finished 2-for-4 with two runs scored and his team-leading ninth steal of the year, while freshman shortstop Drew Culbertson added a 2-for-4 effort to help spur Mizzou’s best offensive output since its 20-2 victory over Purdue Fort Wayne on March 10.
TIGER NOTEBOOK
- Missouri now leads the series with UT Martin, 2-0.
- MU is now 90-28 all-time against the Ohio Valley Conference’s current membership, including a 2-1 mark this season.
- The Mizzou offense amassed 10+ runs for the sixth time this season.
- The Tigers tallied a season-high five stolen bases in the contest, all of which came in the first three innings. That effort marked MU’s first five-steal performance since April 11, 2023 at Missouri State.
- Lucas threw just 21 pitches in 2.0 innings, allowing no hits and striking out three hitters.
- Beaman turned in his fourth multi-hit game of the season. His two steals not only marked a personal best, but also represented the first two steals of his collegiate career.
- Daniels also clipped his second longball of the campaign, while registering a career high for runs scored (2) in addition to his personal high for RBIs.
- Austin matched a career high with three runs scored — the seventh time in his Mizzou career he has achieved the feat.
- Garcia notched his third game this season of at least two RBIs, as well as his third multi-hit game on the year.
- Culbertson logged his fourth multi-hit game as a Tiger in just 22 career contests.
- Curtis delivered his second-career multi-run performance, having previously accomplished the feat at Cal Poly on February 17.
UP NEXT
The Tigers and Skyhawks will conclude their two-game series Wednesday (April 3) afternoon with a 3 p.m. (CDT) contest.
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