
@MizzouBaseball’s Comeback Falls Short in 4-3 Loss at No. 10 Arkansas
3/16/2019 6:15:00 PM | Baseball
Sikkema goes the distance, matches career-high with 10 strikeouts despite the loss
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Mizzou Baseball (11-7, 0-2 SEC) fell behind by four runs early, but mounted a late comeback to make it a one-run ballgame in the ninth. Arkansas' closer put a halt to the Tigers' attempted comeback with a perfect frame however, as the Razorbacks escaped with a 4-3 victory.
Junior LHP TJ Sikkema was very effective despite the loss Saturday, going the distance while allowing three earned runs and matching his career-high with 10 strikeouts. It was the second double-digit strikeout performance of Sikkema's career, joining his 10 punch out performance last year vs. Vanderbilt (April 19, 2018).
#ShowMe Top Performers at No. 10 Arkansas
- Sikkema: (L) 8.0 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 10 K
- Luke Mann: 2-for-4, 2B, RBI
- Josh Holt Jr.: 1-for-3, RBI, SB
- Chris Cornelius: 1-for-4, RBI
Hear From Head Coach Steve Bieser
On Saturday's close contest against the Razorbacks…
"We just let this thing slip away in the first inning. That was a big blow to our team. We didn't respond very well to that adversity. The wind came out of our sails after not getting anything in the first inning. It came back to bite us and took us a while to get going. It was too little too late. In conference games you have to be sharp for nine innings. We weren't very competitive with our at bats. But what can you say about TJ (Sikkema). He didn't have his best stuff today, but still battled all the way through this game."
On Sikkema's pitch count climbing and sending him out in the eighth…
"I wasn't happy with sending him out in the eighth. We have to have faith and trust and I had Ian (Bedell) warming up for three innings. We probably should've punched that ticket and let him in there and get those last three outs. TJ is such a competitor. He was talking to Coach Corral on going back out there. That was the decision we ended up making."
#MIZ Takeaways
- Mann paced the Tiger offense Saturday with his eighth RBI and third multi-hit outing of the year.
- Holt Jr. earned his second RBI in his past four games played, ripping a run-producing single in the fifth inning.
- Cornelius extended his team lead in RBI following an eighth inning run-producing single.
- With a leadoff base hit in the eighth inning, sophomore OF Clayton Peterson has now reached base safely in 14 consecutive games. It's the longest current active streak on Mizzou and the second longest overall on the year, trailing junior OF Kameron Misner's 18-game streak earlier on the season.
- Sophomore 2B Mark Vierling recorded a second inning single, extending his team-best hitting streak to four games. He has also reached base safely in 13 straight games, ranking second longest on the team.
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Team Stats
Pitching:
W: K. Ramage (4-0)
L: Sikkema, TJ (2-1)
S: M. Cronin (6)

Batting:
2B: Mann, Luke 1 ; Zimmermann, Peter 1
RBI: Holt Jr., Josh 1 ; Mann, Luke 1 ; Cornelius, Chris 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Brumfield, Connor 1 ; Zimmermann, Peter 1 ; Peterson, Clayton 1
SB: Holt Jr., Josh 1

Batting:
RBI: C. Franklin 3
SH: T. Ezell 1
SF: C. Franklin 1
Base Running:
RUNS: C. Martin 1 ; C. Opitz 1 ; M. Goodheart 1 ; J. Nesbit 1
SB: C. Martin 1 ; C. Franklin 1
HBP: H. Kjerstad 1 ; C. Opitz 1
PO: D. Fletcher 1

















