May 30, 2009
Box Score
OXFORD, Miss.- -
Junior Kyle Gibson tied the school record for strikeouts in a season after he struck out eight in eight scoreless innings pitched in a 9-0 Missouri win over Monmouth on Saturday in the NCAA Oxford Regional. Gibson now has 131 strikeouts on the year, tying the MU record set by Max Scherzer in 2005.
For his career, Gibson has 304 strikeouts, moving him into second place in the Mizzou record books. He allowed six runs and walked one on Saturday afternoon, improving to 11-3 on the season. He has won his last six starts. The win was the 28th of Gibson's career, which is tied for second all-time at Mizzou.
The Tigers (35-26) scored an unearned run in the second inning and added a run in the fourth on an RBI single by senior Steve Gray. They then put together a pair of three-run innings in the fifth and seventh frames.
The first five Tigers to bat in the fifth inning all reached safely. After senior Austin Holt was hit by a pitch to start the inning, senior Ryan Lollis doubled down the right field line. Holt would score on a wild pitch and, after junior Greg Folgia drew a walk, Lollis crossed the plate on a single by junior Aaron Senne. Folgia scored the final run of the fifth when junior Trevor Coleman grounded into a double play.
Senne led off the seventh with a single and later scored on a sacrifice fly by Coleman. Gray then connected on his fifth home run of the season, a two-run shot that gave the Tigers an 8-0 lead. Gray had three RBI in the game, finishing 2-for-5.
Mizzou capped off its scoring as Senne led off the top of the eighth by hitting a home run for the second-straight game. It was his eighth homer of the season, as he was 3-for-5 against Monmouth.
Senior Kyle Mach matched a career best with four hits, all singles, on Saturday. Mach has had a hit in 19 of the last 21 games. During that stretch, he has had at least three hits five times and has had two four-hit games.
Senior Ryan Gargano pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning to seal Missouri's fourth shutout of the season.
The Tigers will play at 1 p.m. on Sunday against the loser of Saturday evening's Ole Miss-Western Kentucky game.
