Feb. 26, 2004

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Missouri will open up the 2004 home schedule this weekend at Taylor Stadium/Simmons Field with a three-game series against Youngstown State. The Tigers are 6-1 on the season after two weeks of play. They opened by going 3-0 at the Oakland A's Spring Training Tournament in Phoenix, Ariz. before taking three of four games at the Coastal Carolina Beach Blast in Myrtle Beach, S.C. The Youngstown State Penguins will open their season with this weekend's series against the Mizzou. Game one of the three-game set will start at 4 p.m on Friday with game two at 2 p.m. on Saturday and the final game taking place at 1 p.m. on Sunday. Following this weekend's action, MU will travel to Seattle, Wash. for a three-game series against the Washington Huskies on March 5-7.

Last Time Out
Missouri went 3-1 at last weekend's Beach Blasts in Myrtle Beach, S.C. The Tigers defeated Coastal Carolina 12-10 in 10 innings on Thursday, took down Rider 2-1 on Friday, handed Coastal Carolina another loss by a 21-4 score on Saturday, before falling to Albany 5-3 on Sunday.

Flanders Goes Yard
Mizzou senior C Brad Flanders became only the second Tiger in school history to hit three home runs in one game, when he belted out three against Coastal Carolina last Saturday in Myrtle Beach, S.C. Flanders was 4-for-5 and drove in seven runs. He also threw out two baserunners from behind the plate. The Tigers pounded out six home runs on their way to a 21-4 rout of Coastal Carolina. Flanders joins former Tiger Jerry Schoonmaker as the only players in MU history to hit three homers in one game. Schoonmaker did it against Kansas State in 1954 as part of that season's national championship team. In the four games of last week's Coastal Carolina Beach Blasts, Flanders had seven hits, three home runs, one double, nine RBI, a 1.133 slugging percentage and a .471 on base percentage.

Putting the Blast in the 'Beach Blast'
Last Sunday's 21-4 crushing of Coastal Carolina at last week's Beach Blast was the most runs the Tigers have scored since putting 23 on the board against Baylor last April in a 23-18 win. Against Coastal, Mizzou banged out 18 hits, six home runs, six doubles and one triple. Hidden behind the offensive output, was the strong pitching by MU starter Garrett Broshuis and reliever Mark Alexander. Broshuis went 6.0 innings, allowing three runs on seven hits and striking out eight, as he picked up his second win of the season. Alexander pitched the final three innings, allowing just one hit and one run and striking out two. Two days before that, MU defeated Coastal 12-10. The Tigers have reached double-digits in runs in three games this year. They shutout Portland 13-0 on Feb. 14 in Phoenix.

The Hits Keep on Coming
A pair of Tigers currently have four-game hitting streaks on the line heading into the series with Youngstown State. Senior Ryan Rallo and sophomore James Boone have each had at least one hit in each of the last four games. Five other carry two-game hitting steaks into the weekend. Senior Jeremy Hernandez, junior Cosme Caballero, sophomore Zane Taylor, junior Bo Davis and sophomore Josiah Holst have put together two-game streaks. Senior Cody Ehlers had his six-game hitting streak broken last Sunday against Albany after having a hit in each of the Tigers' first six games of the year.

A Perfect Start
The Tigers opened the season with six straight wins before Albany handed MU its first loss of the year last Sunday. The 6-0 start was the best start since the 1987 team began the year 7-0. The 1986 team also opened with seven straight wins.

Up Next
The Tigers will continue their homestand with a two-game set with Western Illinois on Tuesday and Wednesday. The first game will start at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday with Wednesday's game starting at 4 p.m. at Taylor Stadium/Simmons Field. After that, Mizzou is back on the road, traveling to Seattle, Wash. for a three-game series with Washington March 5-6.