Mizzou baseball takes abbreviated opening series (2024)

After a rough opener on Friday, in which Missouri fell 3-2 to Cal Poly, the Tigers righted the ship in Friday’s nightcap and on Saturday to take their opening series and start the Kerrick Jackson era off on a positive note. The series was originally meant to be four games, but the weather in San Luis Obispo, CA resulted in the cancelation of the final game.

Friday’s doubleheader and Saturday’s eventual rubber match couldn’t have been more different brands of baseball. On Friday, the two teams combined for just nine runs in two games, but on Saturday, they exploded for 20 in a game Missouri took 12-8.

Pitching reigns in doubleheader

Missouri called upon Bryce Mayer as its Opening Day starter Friday. It was the Marthasville native’s first appearance in black and gold after missing his entire 2023 season with injury following his transfer from St. Charles CC. Mayer tossed 4+ innings allowing 4 hits and 3 runs, only 2 earned. He left the game after facing one batter in the fifth.

Nic Smith relieved Mayer in the fifth inning, but it was Ian Lohse who kept the Tigers in the game with 3 shutout innings out of the bullpen. He allowed just two hits.

Unfortunately for Missouri, despite a strong showing on the mound, the bats never got going. Trevor Austin grounded into an RBI-fielder’s choice in the 3rd inning, and Jedier Hernandez did the same in the 8th, but that was all the offense the Tigers mustered.

MU seemed to have some momentum in the 9th inning when freshman Tucker Moore hit a leadoff double, but back-to-back strikeouts and a flyout ended the game and Missouri’s chances at a comeback.

Just a couple of hours later, though, the Tigers and Mustangs ran it back, and Missouri got its revenge in a 3-1 win.

Carter Rustad started on the mound and was nothing short of fantastic. He tossed 5 scoreless innings, allowing just 1 hit and striking out 6. Thomas Curry provided all the run support Missouri pitchers needed in the 5th inning on a 2-run home run to left center.

Curry’s homer was the lone blemish on what was otherwise a spectacular outing from Cal Poly starter Steven Brooks. He threw 7 innings, allowed 3 hits, 2 earned runs, and struck out 12 Mizzou batters.

A sac fly in the 7th from Cal Poly cut Missouri’s lead to 2-1, but Jackson Lovich delivered some insurance in the ninth with an RBI double that scored Hernandez. Ryan Magdic and Jacob Peaden each threw two innings out of the bullpen in relief of Rustad to shut the door on the first win of the Jackson era. Neither Magdic or Peaden allowed a hit.

The bats wake up

Saturday was a new day, and it was definitely a new story with pitching taking a backseat to some explosive offense in a 12-8 Missouri win.

The Tigers and Mustangs exchanged runs early on, and Mizzou entered the 4th inning trailing 4-3. But that didn’t last long, and Missouri exploded for six runs in the inning.

A leadoff homer from Justin Colon tied things up, and then MU turned to small ball. Three hit-by-pitches and a wild pitch helped Missouri stretch its lead to 6-4. A 2-RBI single from Lovich made it 8-4, and finally Colon, the man who got the rally started in the first place, drove in another run to make it 9-4. The Tigers sent 11 batters to the plate in the inning.

Cal Poly tried to mount a comeback and actually outhit Missouri 16 to 13, but Mizzou relievers did enough to keep their opponents at arm’s length. The Missouri offense also helped. Jeric Curtis delivered an RBI-triple before scoring on a balk in the 7th, and Lovich provided 9th inning insurance again with a solo home run.

Four Tigers — Curtis, Lovich, Colon, and Austin — finished with multi-hit games. Curtis had three hits including a triple and double, and Austin added a pair of doubles, too. Solo homers highlighted Lovich’s and Colon’s days.

Brock Lucas got his first save of the season with 1.2 innings out of the pen. He allowed just one hit.

Up next

Missouri is staying out west and next plays in the Tony Gwynn Legacy. The Tigers have four games scheduled against three different opponents Thursday-Saturday. The schedule is as follow:

Thursday: CSU Bakersfield @ 8 p.m. in San Diego, California

Friday: San Diego State @ 8 p.m. in San Diego, California

Saturday: UC San Diego (doubleheader) @ 4 p.m. in La Jolla, California