SPRINGFIELD – Missouri State tied a school record with 10 stolen bases and held on to an early 10-1 lead Sunday afternoon with a 13-12 victory over Memphis to complete a second consecutive series sweep at Hammons Field.
It was the Bears’ trademark power game early that led to a seven-run first inning, with three-run shots by Curry Sutherland and Gabe Roessler followed by a Jax Ryan RBI single that made it 7-1.
Taeg Gollert stole home in the second and Ryan added a two-run double for a 10-1 advantage in a fifth inning during which the Bears (10-5) stole five bags.
The Tigers (3-12) roared back with a two-run homer in the sixth and a six-run seventh to close to 10-9.
Charlie Carter led off the bottom of the seventh with a solo home run, then Ryan stole his third bag of the game before Gollert added a two-run single for 13-9. Ryan became the first Bear with three steals since 2021, while Carter and Jackson Beaman also swiped two bases in helping Mo State to the record-tying 10 thefts that previously occurred in 1985 and 1986.
Memphis scored two more in the eighth and got a two-out solo homer in the ninth before Tyler Charlton eventually nailed down his first save of the year.
Owen Slater (2-1) threw six strong innings in the start, allowing two earned runs and striking out a career-high seven batters.
Ryan had three hits and three RBIs, while Gollert, Logan Fyffe and Carter notched two-hit games. Caden Bogenpohl walked twice to tie Spencer Johnson for second on the school’s career list with 133.
Missouri State hits the road for a 3 p.m. Tuesday contest at SEMO before opening Conference USA play with a March 13-15 series at Liberty.
