COLUMBIA, Mo. – The Northern Kentucky baseball program headed down to Mizzou and left by etching their mark in school history as the Norse posted a thrilling 16-15 comeback win over Southeastern Conference (SEC) foe Missouri on Sunday afternoon for their first Power Five series victory in program history.
Northern Kentucky jumped out to a big lead and then watched as Tigers fought back, but the last punch of the battle belonged to the Norse as they plated three runs over the final two innings to escape with the thrilling 16-15 win.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Northern Kentucky – 16, Missouri – 15 (9 innings)
LOCATION: Taylor Stadium – Columbia, Missouri
RECORDS: NKU 4-7 (0-0 HL), MIZ 5-6 (0-0 SEC)
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
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Liam McFadden-Ackman led the charge for the Norse with a 1-for-4 outing that included a grand slam, four RBI and a run scored. He also drew a base on balls.
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Cleary Simpson was close to impossible to get out as he went 2-for-3 at the dish with two runs scored, one RBI and three walks. He was also a menace once he got on the basepaths with three stolen bases.
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Mitch Wood continues to swing one of the hottest bats in the nation with a 3-for-5 performance. He recorded a home run, four runs scored, two RBI and a base on balls.
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Logen Devenport chipped in a 2-for-3 day with two RBI, a steal and a run scored.
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Jake Paulick posted a 3-for-6 outing that included two runs and a RBI.
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Treyvin Moss added a 2-for-5 afternoon with a RBI.
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John Odom went 1-for-3 at the dish with three runs scored, a RBI and a swiped bag.
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Tyler Shaneyfelt hit 2-for-5 at the plate with a RBI.
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Brennan Rowe rounded out the NKU attack with a 1-for-5 outing. He notched a RBI, a run scored and a stolen base in the win.
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Aaron Massie picked up the first win of his career and the season as he went two scoreless innings to close out the victory for the Norse. He allowed just a single base hit and struck out three Missouri batters.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Simpson got the Norse on the board in the top of the first as he laced a RBI single to left center to give NKU the 1-0 lead.
- Missouri responded right back in the bottom half of the inning with two runs of its own to jump ahead 2-1.
- Northern Kentucky went crazy in the top of the second as the squad dropped eight runs in the inning to retake the 9-2 advantage.
- The Norse got two more runs in the top of the fourth off RBI hits from Odom and Shaneyfelt to push the NKU edge to 11-2.
- The Tigers tried to answer back again with two runs in the bottom half of the frame to make it 11-4.
- Northern Kentucky added another run in the top of the fifth off a solo shot from Wood to move back ahead 12-4.
- Missouri then got hot with 10 unanswered runs between the bottom of the fifth and sixth as the Tigers retook the lead at 14-12.
- The Norse started to come back with a run in the top of the seventh, but the Tigers answered right back with a run of their own in the bottom half of the inning to make it a 15-13 game.
- Northern Kentucky responded with a run in the top of the eighth and two more runs in the top of the ninth to escape with the 16-15 win.
TALK OF THE TOWN
NEXT UP
Northern Kentucky is right back to it with another Power Five clash on the slate as the Norse head to Indiana to take on the Hoosiers on Tuesday, March 5 at Bart Kaufman Field. First pitch is set for 4 PM ET and the contest will be played in front of a national audience on B1G 10 Network +.
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