University of Missouri
Oklahoma
Mizzou Drops Series Opener with Oklahoma 3-2
4/9/2004 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 9, 2004
NORMAN, Okla.-- - Despite a late rally by Mizzou to tie the game in the ninth inning, the Tigers took their fourth straight, falling to Oklahoma 3-2 on Friday in Norman, Okla. Six errors and two passed ball were committed by the two teams in a game in which all five runs scored were unearned.
The Tigers (21-10-1, 2-5), needing a rally down 2-1 in the ninth inning, got it. With two outs in the inning and two on, sophomore 2B Zane Taylor struckout swing for what would have been the final out of the game, but the ball got away from the Oklahoma catcher and Taylor went to first and the two runners moved up on the passed ball. The first pitch to the next Tiger batter, sophomore RF James Boone, was another passed ball, which allowed sophomore CF Tyler Williams to score the game-tying run.
In the bottom of the ninth inning, Ole Sheldon led off with a single for OU. Sheldon advanced to second an a sacrifice bunt and moved to third on a ground out to second. He then scored the game-winning run when sophomore SS Trevor Helms, who had just entered the game in the ninth inning, mishandled a ground ball hit by Brandon Lance.
The late-game excitement was a change from how the first six innings played out. The game was scoreless through six as MU senior RHP Danny Hill and OU starter Mark Roberts were locked up in a pitchers' dual. Hill turned in one of his best starts of the season. Through the first six innings, he did not face more than five batters in an inning and recorded a strike out in each of the six innings.
He opened the bottom of the seventh inning with his seventh strikeout of the game, but the next Sooner to the plate was Eric Thorntan, who reached base on a Tiger error and would later score on a sacrifice fly for the game's first run. OU would add another run later in the inning on two-out RBI single by Jeff Scurderi. Those were the only runs scored on Hill, who left the game allowing just five hits and striking out seven in the 6.2 innings of work.
Mizzou cut the lead in half by scoring its first run of the game in the top of the eighth. Taylor opened up the inning by reaching on an error. He advanced to second after was hit by a pitch and scored on a single to right by senior 1B Cody Ehlers, who was 2-for-4 on the night.
The Tigers and Sooners will take the field for game two of the series at 2 p.m. on Saturday, in a game that will be shown live on Fox Sports Net. The series will conclude on Sunday at 1 p.m. The ZRG Radio Network (1580 KTGR in Columbia) will carry all of the Tigers' games with Tex Little and Luke Cassis providing the commentary. The broadcasts can also be heard online www.KTGR.com.
