Looking to sustain momentum gained from a seven-game win streak, 10 seed Missouri baseball fell to 2 seed LSU 10-2 in the second round of the Southeastern Conference Baseball Tournament in Hoover, Alabama on Wednesday.
The game started well for Mizzou as freshman Kameron Misner gave the Tigers an early lead with a home run in the second inning, his seventh solo shot of the season.
Freshman sensation TJ Sikkema was largely unimpressive in his third career start, allowing five earned runs over 4.1 innings pitched and striking out just two batters.
The LSU offense jumped all over Sikkema in bottom of the third, tacking on four runs and taking a lead that the team wouldn’t relinquish. Missouri’s pitchers simply couldn’t retire LSU’s Cole Freeman, who dominated with a 4-4 performance at the plate that included a home run and four RBIs.
For the second straight day, inclement weather would play a role in Hoover. After a near two-hour rain delay on Tuesday, rain stopped Wednesday’s game for one hour and 21 minutes.
Tigers’ head coach Steve Bieser felt the delay played to Missouri’s advantage.
“Tonight, I thought [the rain delay] came at a good time for us,” Bieser said. “It kind of slowed them down and gave us a little bit of time to regroup. As a true competitor, you can’t make excuses because that’s part of the game.”
After play resumed, the Missouri offense simply couldn’t rally. Junior Brett Bond recorded an RBI single in the bottom of the eighth, and junior Nelson Mompierre added a pinch-hit home run in the bottom of the ninth, but their contributions would not be enough to pull Mizzou back into the game.
Despite the loss, there is still hope for Missouri and its postseason. The Tigers will have a chance to avenge themselves against South Carolina on Thursday at 1:30 p.m., with junior Bryce Montes De Oca scheduled to start. The game will have major implications on both teams’ chances of receiving an NCAA regional tournament bid, as the winner will advance in the SEC Tournament to face the loser of Thursday’s Kentucky vs. LSU game.
_Edited by Eli Lederman | elederman@themaneater.com_