UNI put up seven runs in the third inning to put the Missouri State baseball team in an 8-2 hole Friday night before topping the Bears by a 10-5 final in game one of the weekend’s three-game Missouri Valley Conference series at Hammons Field.

    The Bears (25-18, 11-4 MVC) matched the Panthers (17-24, 4-14) in hits at 13 each, but walked seven, hit three, committed three errors and tossed a wild pitch with the bases loaded to account for 16 free bases for the visitors, compared to only three allowed by UNI on two walks and an error.

    Missouri State answered UNI’s first inning run with a leadoff triple from Aaron Conway, who scored on an error before Ben Carlson singled home Kevin Medrano for a 2-1 lead, but the wheels fell off for MSU in the third as UNI loaded the bases with no outs on a walk, single and error.

    The Panthers went on to log four more singles, a double and another walk in the seven-run frame, knocking Tim Clubb (4-4) after 2.1 innings for the shortest of his 37 career starts.

    The Panthers went ahead 9-2 in a fifth inning that was extended by a two-out, two-strike hit batter that preceeded Travis Bennett’s RBI infield single.

    Tyler Ryun’s leadoff double in the seventh led to a run after a Medrano single with one out, and Brayden Drake followed with a single and moved to second on the throw in from the outfield, giving the Bears two men in scoring position and a 9-4 deficit. Dallas Hord added an RBI single to make it 9-5.

    UNI scored on a two-out error in response to MSU’s three-run seventh, but the Bears loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the eighth after two walks and a bunt single. Closer Shuhei Fujiya struck out Medrano and got Drake to pop up the first pitch to keep the Bears off the board.

    Drake tied the school record with his 62nd career double with two outs in the third.

    Game two of the series is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday.