At one point, it was close.
But the bottom of the sixth inning proved to be the nail in the coffin for Missouri baseball, which dropped its fourth game in a row, and third of the Frisco College Baseball Classic, 16-6.
After Missouri coach Steve Bieser changed up his lineup by moving senior infielder Mark Vierling to the leadoff spot, his team looked at ease to open the third game of the weekend.
Vierling and redshirt senior infielder Brandt Belk led the game off with back-to-back singles. Missouri then took four walks, two of which came with the bases loaded. Before sophomore starter Seth Halvorsen took the mound, the Tigers held a three-run lead.
But Halvorsen didn’t exhibit the control he had against Omaha, where he allowed just two hits in five innings. He walked three batters on Saturday and five against Grand Canyon. Combined with several extra-base hits and a lack of command, Halvorsen lasted just two-and-two-thirds innings against Oklahoma. First, however, he surrendered six runs and the lead.
The Sooners pushed across six more runs in the sixth inning to take a 12-6 lead. Missouri fans headed toward the gates as Oklahoma freshman Kendall Pettis crossed home plate on a deep fly ball to right field.
Saturday’s loss was the third of the past four that was determined by at least six runs as the Tigers’ offense repeatedly struck out with runners in scoring position.
Missouri is second in the Southeastern Conference in strikeouts. Through 11 games this season, the Tigers have struck out 101 times, compared to 86 opponent strikeouts. In Friday’s game against Dallas Baptist, Missouri struck out 16 times, adding to its season total.
Missouri’s young batters must work on their patience in the box. Often, Missouri hitters are swinging at pitches outside of the zone and are not forcing opponent pitchers to give them a pitch they can hit.
“We got off to a good start, we just couldn’t hang onto the lead we had,” Missouri coach Bieser said. “We have a lot of younger guys that just haven’t been through the adversity yet. It’s about having patience.”
High strikeout numbers combined with a team ERA of 8.52 have made it difficult for Missouri to find much success against its non-conference opponents. However, as the non-conference schedule dwindles, it has become more imperative the Tigers capitalize on scoring opportunities and put together consistent at-bats.
Oftentimes, the Tigers rely on late-inning relief from the bullpen to keep the game close. On Saturday, after Halvorsen exited, junior Jacob Kush pitched two-and-a-third innings while not allowing a run.
As soon as the Tigers called on Spencer Juergens, the floodgates opened and Oklahoma scored six runs off of the grad student. Juergens lasted just one-third of an inning.
Missouri will cap off the Frisco College Baseball Classic tomorrow at noon against Arizona.
_Edited by Kyle Pinnell | kpinnell@themaneater.com_
