On Sunday against the Florida International University Panthers, Missouri struggled with command all day long, hitting six Panther batters while allowing 11 runs to score. On Wednesday, however, the Tigers’ pitchers came out focused, allowing only six hits and no runs.
The Tigers’ dominant pitching allowed them to pick up a commanding 9-0 victory on the road against the No. 24 University of Miami Hurricanes.
Junior Brian Sharp took the mound Wednesday for the visiting Tigers and established command of the strike zone early on. He cruised through five innings of shutout ball, scattering just four hits while striking out eight Hurricanes.
On the offense, the Tigers started slow, unable to get anything going in the first three innings. In the top of the fourth inning, a throwing error on a play at the plate by Hurricanes starting pitcher Mike Mediavilla opened the floodgates, allowing the first two Tiger runs to score. The Tigers would tack on three more in the frame, and Sharp went back out to the mound staked to a 5-0 lead.
Sharp put up a zero in the fifth before being replaced by sophomore lefty TJ Sikkema, who contributed three scoreless frames of his own.
After a mid-game hiatus, the Tiger offense reignited in the top of the ninth to put the game out of reach. Kameron Misner doubled down the left field line and Alex Samples, Chris Cornelius and Matt Berler all drew bases-loaded walks, forcing in three more runs and extending the Tiger lead to 9.
Cameron Dulle finished the shutout for the Tigers.
Head coach Steve Bieser was thrilled with the pitching performance but was more impressed with the persistence his hitters showed at the plate.
“[The players] weren’t making good contact but our guys stuck to the approach stayed true to who they are,” Bieser said in a press release. “Then they broke out a big inning. Proud of how they handled that.”
The Tigers are now 3-1 on the young season and have added a top-25 victory to their postseason resume, and it’s only February.
The Tigers remain in the Sunshine State for a four-game series against the Northeastern University Huskies. They are back in action on Friday in a 5:30 p.m. contest.
_Edited by Joe Noser | jnoser@themaneater.com_