COLUMBIA, Mo. – Cam Chick’s two-run single in the bottom of the ninth capped another come-from-behind Missouri victory over Georgia, as the Tigers rallied from a three-run deficit to complete a Southeastern Conference series sweep of the Bulldogs with a 5-4 decision Sunday afternoon at Taylor Stadium.
In his final at-bat of his final home game in his hometown of Columbia, Chick lined the first pitch he saw from Georgia right-hander Leighton Finley through the right side to bring home Isaiah Frost and Ty Wilmsmeyer and flip a one-run Bulldog lead in the Tigers favor for the game-winner.
The walk-off victory capped a three-game conference sweep of the Bulldogs (28-24, 10-17 SEC), moving the Tigers closer to securing a spot in the SEC Tournament. Mizzou moved into a tie with Georgia in the Eastern Division standings and enters the final weekend of the regular season with a 2.0 game lead over Mississippi State for the No. 12 seed in the tournament.
Chick’s single followed a wild afternoon that saw the Bulldogs build a 4-1 lead through the first three innings, before severe weather forced a delay that lasted more than three-and-a-half hours.
The Tigers rode big afternoons from Wilmsmeyer (3-for-4) and Chick (2-for-3), as well as 5.0 combined shutout innings from their bullpen to their second consecutive SEC series win. Kyle Potthoff (2-0) starred on the mound, logging 3.0 innings of one-hit relief, striking out five Bulldogs to keep the Tigers within striking distance.
Georgia jumped on top early courtesy of the long ball, as Charlie Condon added to his SEC freshman home run record with his 24th round-tripper of the season with one out in the first. Connor Tate followed his lead, lifting a solo shot of his own to make it a 2-0 game.
Mizzou (30-20, 10-17 SEC) used a Hank Zeisler leadoff double in the second as a springboard to its first scoring opportunity of the afternoon. Wilmsmeyer’s two-out line drive eluded the reach of third baseman Parks Harber to chase Zeisler home with the Tigers’ first tally.
But the Bulldogs struck for two more runs in the third, using a two-out Tate single to spark another threat. Harber made it a 4-1 game, launching a long drive that cleared the Mizzou bullpen in left.
Riding the momentum of a recent power surge, Mizzou cut into the deficit on a Trevor Austin two-out shot in the home half of the third to pull to within two runs.
Inclement weather intervened, forcing a stoppage that spanned three hours and 35 minutes before the two clubs resumed play in the home half of the fifth.
Once play resumed, Wilmsmeyer again keyed a Mizzou rally, delivering an opposite-field hit, before swiping second for his 21st steal of the season. Next, Chick beat out an infield single to put runners on the corners, before a two-out wild pitch brought Wilmsmeyer home to pull the Tigers to within a run.
Mizzou’s bullpen took the lead from that point, as Jacob Hasty worked a scoreless sixth, and Potthoff worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the seventh to start a string of three consecutive scoreless innings to close the game.
The Tigers’ decisive rally began with a Dalton Bargo walk, before Wilmsmeyer came through with his third hit of the game, beating out a bunt single to put two on with nobody out. Matt Garcia laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt to set up Chick’s game winner.
TIGER NOTEBOOK
Mizzou will travel to Auburn next weekend for its final SEC weekend series of the regular season. Game one of the series is slated for a 6 p.m. (CDT) first pitch on Thursday (May 18) at Plainsman Park in Auburn, Ala.
In his final at-bat of his final home game in his hometown of Columbia, Chick lined the first pitch he saw from Georgia right-hander Leighton Finley through the right side to bring home Isaiah Frost and Ty Wilmsmeyer and flip a one-run Bulldog lead in the Tigers favor for the game-winner.
The walk-off victory capped a three-game conference sweep of the Bulldogs (28-24, 10-17 SEC), moving the Tigers closer to securing a spot in the SEC Tournament. Mizzou moved into a tie with Georgia in the Eastern Division standings and enters the final weekend of the regular season with a 2.0 game lead over Mississippi State for the No. 12 seed in the tournament.
Chick’s single followed a wild afternoon that saw the Bulldogs build a 4-1 lead through the first three innings, before severe weather forced a delay that lasted more than three-and-a-half hours.
The Tigers rode big afternoons from Wilmsmeyer (3-for-4) and Chick (2-for-3), as well as 5.0 combined shutout innings from their bullpen to their second consecutive SEC series win. Kyle Potthoff (2-0) starred on the mound, logging 3.0 innings of one-hit relief, striking out five Bulldogs to keep the Tigers within striking distance.
Georgia jumped on top early courtesy of the long ball, as Charlie Condon added to his SEC freshman home run record with his 24th round-tripper of the season with one out in the first. Connor Tate followed his lead, lifting a solo shot of his own to make it a 2-0 game.
Mizzou (30-20, 10-17 SEC) used a Hank Zeisler leadoff double in the second as a springboard to its first scoring opportunity of the afternoon. Wilmsmeyer’s two-out line drive eluded the reach of third baseman Parks Harber to chase Zeisler home with the Tigers’ first tally.
But the Bulldogs struck for two more runs in the third, using a two-out Tate single to spark another threat. Harber made it a 4-1 game, launching a long drive that cleared the Mizzou bullpen in left.
Riding the momentum of a recent power surge, Mizzou cut into the deficit on a Trevor Austin two-out shot in the home half of the third to pull to within two runs.
Inclement weather intervened, forcing a stoppage that spanned three hours and 35 minutes before the two clubs resumed play in the home half of the fifth.
Once play resumed, Wilmsmeyer again keyed a Mizzou rally, delivering an opposite-field hit, before swiping second for his 21st steal of the season. Next, Chick beat out an infield single to put runners on the corners, before a two-out wild pitch brought Wilmsmeyer home to pull the Tigers to within a run.
Mizzou’s bullpen took the lead from that point, as Jacob Hasty worked a scoreless sixth, and Potthoff worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the seventh to start a string of three consecutive scoreless innings to close the game.
The Tigers’ decisive rally began with a Dalton Bargo walk, before Wilmsmeyer came through with his third hit of the game, beating out a bunt single to put two on with nobody out. Matt Garcia laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt to set up Chick’s game winner.
TIGER NOTEBOOK
- Mizzou improved to 14-15 all-time versus Georgia and 5-9 against the Bulldogs at home
- The Tigers finished the 2023 home slate with an 19-7 record, marking their best season win total at Taylor Stadium since 2019
- Mizzou’s streak of five-straight double-digit scoring performances came to an end, stopping its longest such streak since March 2005
- Mann’s string of six consecutive games with at least one home run came to an end as well, falling one shy of the program record (Griffin Moore in 1997)
- Mann sits just one home run shy of Jacob Priday’s all-time Mizzou record of 49 career long balls
- Zeisler extended his consecutive games reaching safely streak to 19 straight, dating back to April 11
- Austin’s third-inning home run hiked the Tigers’ season team homer total to 76, which is the most by a Mizzou team since 1998, when the Tigers hit a school-record 110 home runs
- Sunday’s announced attendance of 1,447 marked the Tigers’ 20th crowd of at least 1,000 fans in 23 home dates this season, as well as their 17th in a row dating back to March 15
- The crowd also pushed Mizzou’s single-season home attendance record to a final count of 37,133
Mizzou will travel to Auburn next weekend for its final SEC weekend series of the regular season. Game one of the series is slated for a 6 p.m. (CDT) first pitch on Thursday (May 18) at Plainsman Park in Auburn, Ala.
