Mizzou baseball earns in-state bragging rights with win over Missouri State

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Bragging rights over the state of Missouri belong to Mizzou baseball.

On Tuesday, the Tigers took down Missouri State 5-2 in an in-state showdown at Taylor Stadium. The win came on the heels of head coach Kerrick Jackson and company's big series upset over No. 24 Kentucky over the weekend. With Tuesday's win, MU has now won three out of its last four games, moving to 20-14 overall in 2026.

The Bears actually drew first blood in Columbia, courtesy of a bases loaded walk from Tiger starter Jackson Sobel to get the home team down by one run. The Tigers responded in the home half of the frame with a pair of RBI singles from Blaize Ward and Jase Woita. However, Sobel allowed another run in the second inning to tie the game up at two runs apiece.

All-in-all, Sobel only lasted 2.2 innings on the hill, allowing a total of two earned runs on three hits.

In the third inning, Mizzou's birthday boy managed to break up the tie. With two runners on board, Donovan Jordan sent one to the yard in left field to snatch the lead back for MU, as the Tigers went up 5-2

It turns out that was all the offense Coach Jackson's team needed, too, because the Mizzou pitching locked it down the rest of the way. Junior Keyler Gonzalez was tremendous in relief, on Tuesday, throwing for 6.0 scoreless innings and only allowing two hit, while fanning nine Bear batters. He earned his second win of the year with that effort.

Right-hander Trey Lawrence came in to finish off the final two batters of the night for Mizzou, ending the in-state win on a strikeout and earning his first save of 2026.

Up next - Mizzou will turn the page to a three-game set against South Carolina, as the Tigers look for their second-straight SEC series win. First pitch in the series opener is set for 7 p.m. on Thursday at Taylor Stadium.