Alabama
26-15, 9-10
Missouri
12-27, 5-14
Comeback Complete as Baseball Overcomes Early Deficit for 11-8 Win over Missouri
4/30/2021 10:22:00 PM | Baseball
The Tide fell behind after the first inning but battled back all evening for the series-opening win
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Despite falling behind early, Alabama baseball battled for the eventual 11-8 comeback win over the Missouri Tigers on Friday at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The series-opening victory moves the Crimson Tide to 26-15 overall and 9-10 in Southeastern Conference action.
Missouri jumped out front with four runs in the top of the first. The Tide countered with a pair in the home half, but the Tigers added one in the second and two in the third to maintain the lead. Alabama posted two runs in the bottom of the third but, once again, Missouri came back with a run of their own. That run would be the last one for the Tigers as UA went on to score seven unanswered runs, highlighted by a three-run sixth to put Alabama in front for good.
Despite an early exit from Tyler Ras, the Crimson Tide bullpen took over in the fifth and proceeded to blank the Missouri offense. William Freeman (1-1) was first out, tossing 3.0 scoreless with three punchouts to pick up the win. Freeman was followed by the Tide's late-inning duo of Landon Green and Chase Lee, with each pitcher contributing 1.0 scoreless. Lee earned the save, working a 1-2-3 ninth with two punchouts.
Alabama's offense was led by Sam Praytor and Peyton Wilson who each recorded a three-hit night. Praytor went 3-for-5 with a team-high three RBI and one run scored while adding his team-leading 12th homer of the season. Wilson went 3-for-4 and finished a triple short of the cycle. The sophomore tallied a team-high three runs scored to go with two RBI and a walk.
From Head Coach Brad Bohannon
"I'm just so proud of our guys. The amount of times that we've gotten down early and just kept playing, kept competing, just speaks to the culture of our program and the intangibles of a lot of the kids on our team. Regardless of what happens going forward, I couldn't be more proud of this group, and I think tonight was a great example of our resiliency."
How It Happened
- T1 | Missouri did their damage with two down in the first. A two-run double came first followed by a pair of RBI-singles. (4-0, Missouri)
- B1 | Peyton Wilson sent the first pitch he saw over the wall in straightway center for his fifth leadoff home run of the season. Zane Denton hammered his own solo homer one batter later to cut the lead in half. (4-2, Missouri)
- T2 | The Tigers led off the inning with a double followed by a groundout to move the man to third. A 6-3 putout then crossed the leadoff man. (5-2, Missouri)
- T3 | Missouri struck with two down once again. The rally started with a two-out double before a single up the middle added one. Another single put runners on the corners with a wild pitch bringing in the man from third in the next at-bat. (7-2, Missouri)
- B3 | Denton drew a one-out walk to put a man on for Sam Praytor. The Tide catcher cleared the bases with a bomb over the playground in left. (7-4, Missouri)
- T4 | A single followed by a one-out double to right-center widened the gap. (8-4, Missouri)
- B5 | Wilson and William Hamiter led things off with a pair of walks and both moved into scoring position on a wild pitch. Denton delivered with an RBI-single to right-center to score Wilson. Hamiter came home in the next at-bat on a double play to cut the lead to two. (8-6, Missouri)
- B6 | Alabama moved ahead thanks to a three-run sixth. Drew Williamson started the inning with a double before a Caden Rose single brought in the leadoff man. Jim Jarvis then dropped down a perfect bunt that forced an errant throw to first, allowing Rose to score and moving Jarvis to second. Wilson took advantage of the opportunity, sending a double to the corner in right to put UA in front. (9-8, Alabama)
- B8 | Wilson began the inning with a single and a throwing error in the next at-bat put two in with Wilson moving into scoring position. One out later, the Tide executed a perfect hit-and-run play with Praytor finding a hole on the left side for an RBI-single. A walk followed to load them up before a fielder's choice from Jackson Tate pushed a second insurance run across. (11-8, Alabama)
Postgame Notes
- Chase Lee struck out two of his three batters faced. Lee has now struck out two or more in 13 of his 15 appearances on the season.
- Lee picked up his fifth save and has recorded a save or win (6-0) in 11 of his 15 relief outings.
- Alabama finished with 13 hits and has totaled double-digit hits in 22 games this season, including 11 of the last 15 contests.
- The Crimson Tide recorded three home runs in tonight's game. UA has now homered in 12 of 19 SEC contests, totaling 28 home runs across those 12 matchups.
- Alabama is 19-7 in games with at least one home run, including a 13-3 mark in games with two-plus homers.
- Peyton Wilson recorded his fifth leadoff home run of the season.
- William Hamiter has reached base safely in 17 consecutive games dating back to April 2.
- ATTENDANCE: 1,958
Alabama and Missouri return to the diamond at 2 p.m. CT on Saturday for game two of the series. The Crimson Tide will call on right-hander Dylan Smith while the Tigers counter with Spencer Miles, also a righty. Saturday's matchup will air live on SEC Network+.
Get all the latest information on the team by following @AlabmaBSB on Twitter and Instagram and on Facebook at Alabama Baseball. General athletic news can be found at UA_Athletics on Twitter and Instagram and AlabamaAthletics on Facebook.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Freeman, William (1-1)
L: Kush, Jacob (2-1)
S: Lee, Chase (5)
Batting:
2B: Holt Jr., Josh 1 ; Montgomery, Torin 1 ; Belk, Brandt 1 ; Mann, Luke 1
RBI: Keefer, Andrew 1 ; Montgomery, Torin 1 ; Belk, Brandt 2 ; Morris, Tre 1 ; Day, Joshua 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Holt Jr., Josh 1 ; Vierling, Mark 1 ; Keefer, Andrew 1 ; Montgomery, Torin 1 ; Belk, Brandt 1 ; Morris, Tre 1 ; Mann, Luke 1 ; Day, Joshua 1
Batting:
2B: Wilson, Peyton 1 ; Williamson, Drew 1
HR: Wilson, Peyton 1 ; Denton, Zane 1 ; Praytor, Sam 1
RBI: Wilson, Peyton 2 ; Denton, Zane 2 ; Praytor, Sam 3 ; Tate, Jackson 1 ; Rose, Caden 1
SH: Hamiter, William 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Wilson, Peyton 3 ; Hamiter, William 1 ; Pinckney, Andrew 1 ; Denton, Zane 2 ; Praytor, Sam 1 ; Williamson, Drew 1 ; Rose, Caden 1 ; Jarvis, Jim 1
SB: Tate, Jackson 1
HBP: Rose, Caden 1
PO: Rose, Caden 1
