Missouri baseball team extends winning streak

The Missouri baseball team extended its winning streak to five games with an 8-4 victory over Nebraska on Friday night in the opener of a three-game series in Lincoln, Neb.The five-game winning streak is a season long for the Tigers, who have won six of their past seven conference games.

The Tigers (26-21, 12-10 Big 12) had five players with multiple hita games, including a trio of seniors. Coming off a four-hit game on Tuesday against Eastern Illinois, Steve Gray was 3-for-5 on Friday night with two RBI and a run scored, while Kyle Mach and Ryan Lollis each had two hits. Junior Aaron Senne and sophomore Ryan Ampleman also had two hits.

Nebraska (21-14-1, 5-17) scored twice in bottom of the fourth and tied the game with a run in the sixth inning.

Missouri regained the lead four runs in the seventh. All four runs scored with two outs. Mach doubled to drive in two runs and Gray tripled to score Mach. It was Gray’s team-leading fourth triple of the year.

Ampleman drove in Gray with his second single of the game. Ampleman, in the lineup for the injured Trevor Coleman, was 2-for-4 with an RBI.

“We had a number of guys come through for us offensively tonight,” Missouri coach Tim Jamieson said in a realease. “There is a trust in the lineup that if I don’t get it done, the next guy will pick me up. That takes a lot of pressure off everyone.”

Missouri junior pitcher Kyle Gibson earn the win to improve to 8-3. He struck out eight and walked just one in eight innings pitched, allowing four runs on six hits.

Game 2 of the series is set for 2:05 p.m. on Saturday.