For the third consecutive game, Missouri played No. 1 Florida tough in Gainesville.
Unfortunately, for the Tigers, their comeback effort fell short for the third consecutive game on Sunday afternoon. Mizzou (14-9, 0-3 SEC) dropped the series finale against the Gators (21-1, 3-0 SEC) by a score of 7–5 as the nation’s top team earned a sweep to start conference play.
The Gators got to Tigers senior starter Austin Tribby in the early going. Junior outfielder Buddy Reed drew first blood as he crushed a two-run home run in the first inning. Florida added three more in the third, causing coach Tim Jamieson to give Tribby an early hook. All five runs in his three innings of work were earned.
However, Mizzou did not go quietly. After falling behind 6–1, junior center fielder Jake Ring got a sixth-inning rally started with an RBI-double to the right-center gap. Sophomore outfielder Trey Harris followed up with an RBI-groundout and senior first baseman Zach Lavy delivered an RBI-double to cut the deficit to two. Freshman designated hitter Brian Sharp singled up the middle to bring home another run, but he was thrown out trying to advance to second on the play.
The Tigers put runners on base in each of the final three frames, trying to get over the hump and complete the comeback, but the team was not able to plate another run. Their best chance came after sophomore catcher Brett Bond doubled with one out in the seventh, but the opportunity was squandered when junior shortstop Ryan Howard was caught looking to end the inning. Mizzou struck out 12 times in Sunday’s finale and 44 times total over the weekend.
Although the comeback fell short, Mizzou’s bullpen turned in a nice effort and allowed the Tigers to remain within striking distance. Redshirt sophomore Cole Bartlett, redshirt freshman Liam Carter and Sharp combined to allow just one earned run over five innings.
Mizzou will try to right the ship next weekend at home against Vanderbilt (17-3, 1-2 SEC) at 6 p.m. Friday. The game will be broadcasted on SEC Network + and KTGR. Mizzou is 0-10 all-time against the Commodores, including a narrow defeat in the SEC tournament last season.
_Edited by Alec Lewis | alewis@themaneater.com_
