Warrensburg, Mo. - The Lions continued their final series of the regular season Saturday afternoon, taking on the #2 Central Missouri Mules in game two. Down 6-0 in the eighth inning, Missouri Southern scored 9 runs in the final two frames to take down UCM 9-7, handing the Mules just their second loss at home this year and evening the series. That is MSSU's first win over UCM in Warrensburg since 2018, improving the team to 37-12 (24-8 MIAA) on the season.
Both teams were slow to start, but it was Central Missouri who got on the board first. They scored one run in the second and used a big fifth inning to take a 6-0 lead. That score remained heading into the eighth inning.
With one out in the eighth,
Drew Townsend put the Lions on the board with a solo shot to right, his second of the series.
Ethan Clark and
Henry Kusiak drew back-to-back walks, then
Will Doherty loaded the bases with a single through the left side.
Garrett Rice poked one into right to score Clark, then
Nate Mieszkowski cleared the bases with a double to left.
Central Missouri got one run back in their half of the eighth, making it 7-5 Mules heading into the ninth. Morgan Wyatt was the first batter of the inning, leading off with a pinch-hit home run to right-center, putting the Lions within one.
Drew Townsend added another walk to his season total, then
Ethan Clark reached on an error after laying down a sacrifice bunt. With two on,
Henry Kusiak launched one over the left field wall, giving the Lions a 9-7 lead. That was his 50th career home run, becoming just one of two Lions to hit the milestone. UCM escaped the remainder of the inning without giving up another run, but also failed to score any in their half, making it a 9-7 MSSU victory.
Henry Kusiak went 3-4 on the day, one being a home run and another a double. He drove in three runs, scored two himself, drew a walk, and had a stolen base.
Nate Mieszkowski finished with 3 RBI, going 2-5 with a double.
Drew Townsend and
Wyatt Morgan each had a solo home run, and
Garrett Rice went 2-5 with an RBI and a run scored.
Kyle Moore was credited with the win, giving up just 1 run on 1 hit over 2.0 innings.
Aron Harrington and
Cale McCallister each had a strikeout over a scoreless inning.
The deciding game three of the series will be played on Sunday, April 28. First pitch for that contest is scheduled for 12:00pm at Crane Stadium/Tompkins Field.
