TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – No. 16 Alabama rode Coleman Mizell's two-out, two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth to a 7-5 victory over University of Missouri baseball in the opening game of the two clubs' Southeastern Conference series Thursday evening at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.
The Crimson Tide overcame a five-run first inning by the Tigers thanks to a trio of two-out home runs from the bottom third of its batting order. Eight-hole hitter Garrett Staton's three-run shot in the sixth erased a 5-2 Mizzou lead, before Mizell – the Tide's No. 9 batter – laid into a full-count offering from PJ Green and drove his fifth round-tripper of the season over the right-center field wall to snap the 5-5 deadlock.
Alabama closer Carson Ozmer (4-0) worked out of a bases loaded jam in the top half of the eighth to keep the game tied, then struck out the side in the ninth to secure the win. The right-hander struck out four Tigers in his 2.0 scoreless frames, capping a strong showing by the Alabama bullpen, which combined for 3 2/3 scoreless innings. Four Crimson Tide hurlers combined to hold the Tigers scoreless over the final 8 1/3 innings after Mizzou struck for five early runs.
Leadoff man Jackson Lovich set the tone for the Tigers' opening inning rally, chopping the first pitch of the game to the left side of the Alabama for an infield hit. Crimson Tide starter Tyler Fay then plunked Kaden Peer with a pitch to put two runners on base, before Keegan Knutson's sacrifice bunt brought Lovich all the way home thanks to an errant throw.
Next, Cayden Nicoletto's sac fly to left was deep enough to plate Peer from third, and back-to-back singles from Chris Patterson and Gehrig Goldbeck produced the third run of the inning. After a strikeout and another hit batsman, Brady Picarelli put the finishing touches on the outburst with a two-run single through the right side of the UA infield for a 5-0 Mizzou cushion.
Tigers starter Brady Kehlenbrink retired the first four Alabama hitters of the game in order, but a walk to Brady Neal opened the door to a Crimson Tide rally in the second. Will Hodo jumped on the first pitch he saw and lined a two-run homer to right to slice the Mizzou lead to three runs.
Kehlenbrink ran into trouble again in the third after allowing back-to-back singles and issuing a walk to Richie Bonomolo Jr. to load the bases with just one out. But the freshman lefty responded in a big way, blowing a 2-2 offering past Neal for the second out before fanning Jason Torres on three pitches to escape the inning unharmed.
Reliever Xavier Lovett picked up where Kehlenbrink left off, retiring the first seven hitters he faced after taking over mound duties in the fourth. But with one out in the sixth, Neal and Torres delivered base hits, and following a ground ball for the second out, Staton followed with the game-tying three-run homer to right-center.
A pair of freshmen – Patterson and Picarelli – led the Tigers with two-hit performances, while Kehlenbrink and Lovett teamed up to strike out six Tide batters over their 6.0 combined innings.
TIGER NOTEBOOK
- Kehlenbrink's two earned runs allowed marked the fewest the left-hander has permitted in his five SEC starts.
- Patterson recorded his fourth multi-hit effort as a Tiger, finishing 2-for-4.
- Picarelli (2-for-4) logged his fifth multi-RBI game and his third multi-hit effort – his first in SEC play.
- With the setback – Mizzou's eighth in a row against the Crimson Tide – the Tigers drop to 7-13 all-time vs. Alabama.
UP NEXT
Mizzou continues its series with Alabama Friday evening with a 6 p.m. contest, before concluding the weekend with a 1 p.m. game Saturday.
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