The Missouri baseball team won both games against North Dakota State to extend its winning streak to eight games, the longest winning streak for Missouri baseball in the Creek Jackson era. The Tigers are currently 10-2 on the season, a strong start compared to a 5-5 start through the first 10 games of 2025, which includes series with Binghamton and Evansville.
First game
Mizzou’s timely but not explosive offense lifted them to another series win over the Bison, 5-3, the Tigers’ fourth series win so far this season.
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The Tigers took the lead early in the second half of the first quarter and scored two runs.
A sacrifice fly from Blaize Ward opened the scoring, then Eric Maisonet loaded the bases and walked. The Bison responded quickly, not in droves but in non-small ball fashion in the second and third innings. The fifth game ushered in another game
Tommy Simon’s RBI double in the second inning put the Bison on the board, and Colten Becker tied it with a no-doubt home run over the right-field fence in the third.
Two more innings later, NDSU struck again, once again scoring on a runner-up opportunity. Tigers starter Josh McDevitt struck out six in four innings, but NDSU made the most of its limited opportunities.
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Dante Smith hit an RBI single to give the Bison a 3-2 lead, their first lead of the game and only lead of the entire series.
Then Missouri’s response turned the tables. He eventually scored on a fielder’s choice after Ward reached base on a fielding error. The Tigers aren’t done yet.
With two out and two runners on, Chris Patterson hit a sharp single up the middle, scoring Cameron Benson and Jamal George, to put Missouri back in front 4-3, a lead they wouldn’t relinquish the rest of the game.
Ultimately, starting in the third inning, Josh McDevitt wasn’t dominant, but provided the Tigers with the hits they needed to keep the game in the game and stopped the bleeding in what could have been one run turned into three runs.
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In four innings, McDevitt allowed three runs on three hits, walked four and struck out six. NDSU put him to work – facing 18 batters and pitching 83 times. The game marked the first time a Missouri pitcher had made a start this season that went more than five innings after McDevitt’s walk in the top of the fifth inning drew Creek Jackson from the dugout.
From there, Missouri’s bullpen took care of the rest. The staff allowed five scoreless innings, allowing just two hits and striking out seven. The Tigers played clean defense behind them, making no mistakes and preventing NDSU from generating any late momentum.
Kadden Drew was first on the mound, hit a two-out bridge hitter, struck out one, gave up no hits, and left the game after giving up a walk to the third batter he faced. P.J. Green came on to replace Drew and walked McDevvit with a runner in the fifth inning after giving up an RBI single.
After that. Green followed up with the longest and most important relief effort of the game: 2.1 innings, two hits, no runs, three walks, but failed to allow NDSU to build any offensive momentum, earning his first win of the season in the process.
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Rookie pitcher Sam Rosand followed Green with an eighth pitch that yielded no runs, no hits, four bases and a strikeout. Ian Lohse shut the door on the Bisons, striking out two to give the Black and Gold their ninth win of the season.
Offensively, Missouri State didn’t take any more insurance after the bottom of the fifth inning, finishing with 12 hits, including multiple hits from Tyler Macon, Voita, Serna, George and Patterson.
Jamal George went 2-for-3 at the plate, throwing out a runner on a stolen base attempt behind the plate.
second game
The Tigers used small ball and Creek Jackson’s pitching staff to sweep their opponents 7-5 in a come-from-behind victory.
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The sweep was hard-earned, but the Tigers’ reaction every inning matched the tone that Creek Jackson would later describe: a day when his team refused to become complacent and simply decided to win the game.
NDSU got its first punch in the top of the third inning when Tyman Long turned around and hit a two-run home run to left on a 1-2 pitch. The Tigers trailed 2-0, and the early offensive energy of the doubleheader finale faded for the Tigers through the first three innings.
The momentum turned around in the bottom of the fourth quarter. Jamal George’s infield single scored Jase Woita. The small ball theme keeps popping up.
Cameron Benson followed with a bunt single, bringing home Mateo Serna, and Sam Parker drew a bases-loaded walk to lift Missouri to a 3-1 victory.
“Anytime you play a doubleheader … it’s hard to win the second game,” Jackson said. “Your guys can get complacent … and the other team is eager to make sure they don’t get swept.” “
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Korenbrink maintained the lead in the fifth inning, striking out a career-high nine. Things quickly fell apart in the sixth inning for the left-handed starter.
Dante Smith had a two-run homer, Cal Jones had a soft single to center and Noah Gordon sneaked home and took advantage of a slow return pass to Missouri reliever Isaiah Salas to give NDSU a 5-4 lead in the sixth inning.
Jackson gathered the team after the inning and said after the game: “It’s not a question of if we’re going to win the game. It’s when they decide they’re going to win the game… Good teams don’t win the first two games of a series and then fall into a lull.”
The news was confirmed.
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In the eighth inning, Donovan Jordan came on as a pinch runner and scored on Tyler Macon’s shot down the right field line, which just dropped and tied the game. That’s probably not good: they’re all the same. By tying the game at 5, Macon extended its hitting streak to 11 games.
Moments later, Voita hit a single from the left side and scored two more runs, giving Missouri a 7-5 lead and the dugout erupted. After the win, Jackson said the transition came from settling in.
“We’re torn between getting the job done and trying to get the job done…it doesn’t do us any good to try, you have to have the will,” Jackson said.
“If we give some of these teams a chance, they’re not going to let us back into the game,” Jackson said. “We have to play clean and let the other team win everything they get.”
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Main points
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The great TR Robertson summed up Game 2 very well in his tweet. If this were Missouri baseball in 2025, I’m not sure they would have won after their visiting opponent unexpectedly hit hard in the sixth inning. Instead of viewing the sixth-inning steal as a ticket home, they viewed it as a challenge.
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The fourth-inning rally in Game 2 came from small ball: an infield single, a bunt single and a bases loaded hit. Jackson emphasized in his postgame press conference that this versatility is intentional and that the Tigers need to be able to bunt, run and create runs when the SEC’s weapons don’t allow them to attack freely.
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Ian Lowes has proven to be very effective for the Tigers as a closer. 2 saves on the day and 4 saves this season, raising his ERA to 1.45 this season. His reliable arm out of the bullpen could become a very reliable tool for Jackson as the season progresses.
Previous
The University of Missouri will try to continue its fast start to the season with a four-game set against the UIC Flames at Taylor Stadium. The Missouri Valley Conference team is now 4-5 on paper this season, providing another prime opportunity for the Tigers to build on an already hot start to nonconference play.
“Every game is important,” Jackson said. “If we want to be the team we say we are, then we can’t let up. We have to show up, compete and make sure we get the job done.”
