COLUMBIA, Mo. – Despite 5 1/3 hitless innings from Logan Lunceford, Missouri baseball dropped its third straight Southeastern Conference decision to Alabama by a 3-2 score Sunday at Taylor Stadium.
The Crimson Tide scored a pair of seventh-inning runs to snap a 1-1 tie, then rode 3.0 shutout innings of relief by Alton Davis II to a 3-2 victory over the Tigers.
In just his second career SEC start, Lunceford was dominant throughout the first five innings, striking out seven Tide hitters to take a no-hitter into the sixth.
But Alabama (29-12, 9-9 SEC) struck for three runs in the sixth and seventh frames, thanks largely to two of the Tide's nine home runs in the three-game series. With one-out in the sixth, UA's Tommy Seidl belted a 1-0 pitch deep to left for a solo shot and the game's first run.
After Mizzou (23-16, 5-13 SEC) tied it up in the bottom of the sixth, Andrew Pinckney delivered the go-ahead blast with his eighth homer of the year to spark what would prove to be the game's decisive two-run rally.
Crimson Tide starter Jacob McNairy nearly matched Lunceford (3-3), allowing just a leadoff single to Ty Wilmsmeyer in the first before settling into a groove to retire the next nine Tigers in succession. The right-hander fanned five batters and took a shutout bid of his own into the sixth before Mizzou got another base hit from Wilmsmeyer to spark its first scoring chance of the afternoon.
The Tigers were able to match UA's sixth-inning run, after Wilmsmeyer swiped his second base of the day, then moved to third on Luke Mann's bouncer back to the mound. A two-out wild pitch allowed Wilmsmeyer to slide home with the tying run, and Mizzou loaded the bases on a pair of walks and a Hank Zeisler single, before reliever Kade Woods (3-1) retired Dylan Leach on a fly to left for the final out of the sixth.
Lunceford took the mound for the seventh and promptly retired Colby Shelton on a liner to first, then worked an 0-2 count to Pinckney. But the Tide right-fielder drove the next pitch deep to left, handing UA a 2-1 lead.
Caden Rose followed Pinckney's homer with a double, and Mac Guscette lined a two-out single through the right side of the Tiger infield to bring home the second run of the inning.
Mizzou responded with a rally of its own in the home half of the seventh, as Matt Garcia singled for the first of his two hits to start the inning. A failed pickoff attempt and a passed ball allowed the baserunner to advance to third. Pinch hitter Tre Morris then lofted a sacrifice fly to right, bringing in Garcia and cutting the margin to 3-2.
But from there Davis took control for the Tide on the mound, setting down eight batters in a row before Garcia's two-out double in the ninth put the potential tying run in scoring position for the Tigers.
Davis finished the job—and his fifth save of the season—coaxing a pop up to second from Juju Stevens for the final out.
Wilmsmeyer led the Mizzou attack, going 2-for-4 with a pair of steals, while Garcia added a two-hit effort as well. Lunceford suffered the tough-luck defeat, despite allowing just two runs on two hits while striking out seven over 6 1/3 innings.
               Â
TIGER NOTEBOOK
- Missouri fell to 6-6 in one-run games this season, snapping a two-game winning streak in such contests
- The Tigers fell to 13-6 at Taylor Stadium this season, dropping three-straight home games for the first time since May 2021
- Mizzou dropped its seventh-straight meeting with Alabama dating back to 2018, falling to 7-12 all-time vs. the Crimson Tide
- Wilmsmeyer logged his team-best 14th multi-hit game of the season, as well as his second two-steal game of 2023 (March 7 vs. Western Illinois)
- Garcia recorded his fourth multi-hit effort as a Tiger and extended his hit streak to four straight games
- Garcia has at least one hit in eight of his last nine appearances dating back to his April 7 walk-off, two-run single against Vanderbilt
- Lunceford registered his fifth outing with at least seven strikeouts in nine career appearances as a Tiger
- Today's announced attendance of 1,641 marked the 13th different home crowd of 1,000 or more spectators — and the Tigers' eighth in a row — in Mizzou's 16 home dates this season
- The Tigers averaged 1,953 fans for its three-game set with UA for a total of 5,857 spectators, marking a 2023 season high for a home series
UP NEXT
Mizzou will begin a four-game road trip Wednesday (April 26) with a 5 p.m. nonconference matchup with SIUE in Edwardsville, Ill.
FOLLOW THE TIGERS
For all the latest information on Mizzou baseball, please visit MUTigers.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the Tigers on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
