Mizzou baseball drops rubber match against No. 22 Tennessee

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (KMIZ)

The Mizzou baseball team fell short of its first series win over Tennessee since 2023, with a 7-1 loss in the series rubber match, on Sunday.

The Volunteers had a strong day on the bump, as the Tigers only managed four hits and going 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position. Mizzou's struggles at the dish came courtesy of Tennessee pitcher Evan Blanco, who threw for 7.2 innings and allowed just one run on four hits, while fanning five MU batters.

On the flip side, Tiger lefty Brady Kehlenbrink didn't have a bad start, as he actually retired 17 batters in his six-plus innings of work. However, the Missouri native did allow four runs on five hits, while sitting down nine Volunteer batters.

Tennessee's offense was scorching hot, but Mizzou couldn't find the same fire. Pierre Seals was the only source of production for head coach Kerrick Jackson, sending out his second home run of the series in the sixth inning. Other than that, Kaden Peer had a pair of hits and Jase Woita tallied one, as the bats went cold in the finale.

Up next - Mizzou will return to Missouri for the next five games. First up, the Tigers wil face Illinois in rivalry action at CarShield Park in O'Fallon.