NORMAL, Ill. – Missouri State’s pitching staff matched a season high with 15 strikeouts to lead the Bears to a 4-3 victory over Illinois State Sunday afternoon at Duffy Bass Field. MSU held on to first place in the Missouri Valley Conference with their ninth series victory in 12 weekends this year.
Starter Tyler Charlton recorded his first nine outs via strikeout and fanned a career-high 11 in 4.2 innings of work, the most by an MSU pitcher since Brandt Thompson in March 2023. Max Knight (4-2) followed with three Ks in the winning decision, Owen Slater added another, and Jackson Holmes recorded the final out for his fifth save.
The Bears (25-20, 15-6) scored a pair in the third on a Zack Stewart solo homer and Caden Bogenpohl RBI single. Stewart’s 11th of the season and 44th of his career tied him with Dakota Kotowski for seventh all-time at MSU.
Illinois State (22-23, 11-10) tied it at 2-2 on a Daniel Pacella homer in the third.
Jake McCutcheon’s RBI fielder’s choice gave MSU the lead back at 3-2 in the fifth, and Curry Sutherland did the same in the ninth for a 4-2 score.
In the bottom of the ninth, the Redbirds put runners on the corners with one out, traded a run for an out for 4-3, then loaded the bases before Holmes induced a foul out to end the game.
Tyler Epstein recorded his first three-hit game as a Bear, scored twice and stole two bases, and Rodriguez extended his school-record hitting streak to 32 games.
The Bears return home for their final four home games this coming week, beginning with a 6:30 p.m. Tuesday contest against UCF of the Big 12. Tickets to home baseball games can be purchased here, and MSU students are admitted free.
