COLUMBIA, Mo. – We weren't kidding when we said the Northern Kentucky baseball program could play with anyone in the nation and the Norse proved just that with a huge 3-1 win over the Southeastern Conference's (SEC) Missouri at Taylor Stadium on Friday night.
The bright lights weren't too big for Northern Kentucky as the squad collected their first SEC and Power Five victory since knocking off No. 7 Mississippi State back on February 25, 2022.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Northern Kentucky – 3, Missouri – 1 (9 innings)
LOCATION: Taylor Stadium – Columbia, Missouri
RECORDS: NKU 3-6 (0-0 HL), MIZ 4-5 (0-0 SEC)
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
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Jake Paulick was the only offense the Norse needed as he went 2-for-3 at the dish with a home run, three RBI and a run scored. He also added a walk. The redshirt freshman catcher is now up to three dingers and 14 RBI through the first eight games of the campaign to go with batting an eye-popping .522 (12-for-23).
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Tanner Gillis threw a gem on the mound against the SEC foe. He picked up a quality start as he struck out six batters over six innings of work for his first victory of the year. Gillis allowed just three hits and a single earned run in the contest.
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Nick McClanahan was even more untouchable as he locked down his first save of the season. He went three scoreless innings to close things out with six strikeouts and just a single hit allowed.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Norse started the game off with a bang in the top of the first as Paulick sent a three-run shot over the left field wall to give NKU an early 3-0 lead. Simpson and McFadden-Ackman came around to score on the homer.
- Missouri responded right back with a run of its own in the bottom half of the inning to make it a 3-1 game.
- That was it for scoring as Gills and McClanahan combined to throw eight innings of scoreless ball. Mizzou was only able to generate three hits from the second inning through the end of the game.
NEXT UP
The Norse and Tigers are right back to it with game two of the series on Saturday, March 2 inside Taylor Stadium. First pitch is set for 3 PM ET and can be
watched nationwide on SEC Network +.
FOLLOW NKU NORSE BASEBALL
Get in the game and follow Northern Kentucky's NCAA Division I college baseball team through
@NKUNorseBSB on X (Twitter),
@NKUNorseBSB on Instagram,
nkunorsebsb on Facebook and
subscribe to the NKU Norse Youtube channel.
