The Missouri State baseball team scored three runs in the first inning and cruised to a 12-0 victory over Minnesota Saturday afternoon inside the Metrodome in Minneapolis, improving to 5-6 on the year behind a season-high offensive output and a combined shutout by Scott Carroll and Austin Todd. Minnesota dropped to 7-3.

The Bears quickly erased their offensive struggles from Friday’s game, opening the top of the first with back-to-back singles from Ben Woodbury and Nolan Keane and a walk by Kyle Paul to load the bases with no outs. Minnesota starter Gary Perinar then tossed a pitch to the backspot that allowed Woodbury to scoot home for the first run of the game. With two outs and runners on first and second, Clay Coulter hit a two-run double down the right field line to give the Bears a quick 3-0 lead.

Perinar retired 10 MSU hitters in a row following the three-run outburst, but walked Christian Overstreet and Keane in the fifth to set up Paul’s two-out, two-RBI single that extended MSU’s advantage to 5-0.

The two-out scoring continued for the Bears in the seventh when reliever Kyle Carr balked with the bases loaded to allow Ryan Mantle to score. Carr then tossed a wild ball four to pinch hitter Shane Elenz, letting Woodbury score from third. After Carr hit Ben Carlson to load the bases again, Tom Buske gave up a two-run single to Coulter for the catcher’s third and fourth RBIs of the contest. An error by the shortstop allowed Carlson to score the fifth run of the frame, making the score 10-0 in favor of the Bears at the stretch.

Paul tripled and scored on a later error in the ninth, and Tanner Mattson hit an RBI single for MSU’s 12th run.

Carroll (1-0) was brilliant in his second start of the season, throwing seven shutout innings and striking out eight against one walk for the victory. Todd pitched two perfect innings to close it out.

The rubber match is set for Sunday at 1:05 p.m.