STILLWATER, Okla. –  Missouri State struck for a season-high 14 runs in game one win over Seton Hall, but a four-run seventh-inning rally by Oklahoma State spelled doom for the Bears in the nightcap of a twin bill Saturday at Allie P. Reynolds Stadium.

Jack Duffy spearheaded a key game one rally with a three-run double that doubled the Bears' lead over the Pirates, then gashed OSU for three hits in the second game, while Jeremy Eierman homered and extended his career-best hit streak to 10 games.

The Bears (11-6) received strong starting performances from both Ty Buckner and Dylan Coleman, and mounted a ninth-inning rally against the Cowboys that saw them put the potential go-ahead run on base before a game-ending double play stopped their four-game win streak.

Game 1 – MSU 14, Seton Hall 2
Missouri State scored in six different innings and took advantage of a season-high 14 walks to post their best offensive effort of 2018 with a 14-2 victory over Seton Hall in game one of the twin bill. Drew Millas went 3-for-3 and reached base safely in all five of his plate appearances, while five different Bears recorded multi-RBI performances.

Buckner (1-2) registered his first win as a Bear, holding Seton Hall to a single run on five hits over 6.0 innings. The right-hander struck out four and gave the MSU offense time to build a 6-0 lead, thanks in part to Eierman's solo blast to straight-away center in the first—one of five different scoring rallies the junior shortstop helped spur. 

The Bears coaxed four free bases (three walks and a hit batsman) in the third, including bases-loaded walks to Hunter Steinmetz and Matt Brown to stretch their lead to 3-0, before Duffy's two-bagger with two out in the fourth doubled that advantage.

After Seton Hall (7-9) scratched out its first run of the game against Buckner in the top of the sixth, the Bears answered promptly with four runs in the bottom half of the inning to put the game on ice. Back-to-back singles by Eierman and Millas started the rally, before a Ben Whetstone sacrifice fly, three straight walks and a two-run single by Ryan Skalnik made it a 10-1 game.

Millas struck again in the seventh with his third hit of the game to plate another run, before Sam Faith's two-run, pinch homer highlighted a three-run eighth for the Bears.

Like Millas, Eierman also reached safely in five different trips to the plate, going 2-for-3 with three walks and four runs scored to extend his hit streak to a career-best nine straight games.

Game 2 – Oklahoma State 4, MSU 2 
Missouri State came out on the short end of a pitcher's duel, as OSU's Carson Teel and Coleman combined forces to allow just four total hits over the first six scoreless innings. Coleman (3-1) struck out five over 6 2/3 innings to take his place on the Bears' all-time top 10 strikeout list, despite suffering his first setback of the season.

Just as quickly as the Bears' bats caught fire in game one, Teel put them in the freezer in the nightcap. The Cowboy left-hander yielded a leadoff single to John Privitera in the first, then nothing else until a Duffy base hit to start the sixth. In all, Teel struck out eight Bears while allowing just three singles over 7.0 shutout innings before the OSU offense struck for four runs in the bottom of the seventh.

The Cowboys' key rally started with a walk to Matt Kroon and an infield single against the shift by Colin Simpson that put runners on the corners with nobody out. Coleman issued a walk to Christian Funk that loaded the bases, and Jon Littell made MSU pay with a two-run double into the gap in left-center for a 2-0 OSU lead.

Jake Taylor stretched the lead to 3-0 with a base hit to right, before a Trevor Boone double and a wild pitch brought home the fourth run of the inning.

The Bears' best early scoring opportunity came in the sixth, when Duffy led off with a single to right before moving into scoring position on a passed ball. Landan Ruff moved the runner to third with just one out, but Teel struck out Privitera and induced an inning-ending pop fly to left off the bat of Eierman to keep the game scoreless.

MSU did cash in on Duffy's second single, an Eierman double and a two-out error to put its first run of the night on the board in the eighth. A leadoff walk to Brown set the wheels of another Bears rally in motion in the ninth, as three consecutive one-out singles from Duffy, Logan Geha and Jordan Fitzpatrick made it a two-run game and put the potential tying run at second base. Privitera then lashed a liner that appeared ticketed for center field and another run-scoring single, but OSU pitcher Joe Lienhard snared the ball in mid-air and fired to Kroon covering second for a back-breaking double play to end the game.

Duffy finished the night 3-for-4 to cap a day that saw the sophomore collect four hits and score four runs.

Teel (3-0) scattered three hits over his seven innings, while Lienhard picked up his first save for the Cowboys (9-8), who stopped a four-game slide with their victory.

The Bears return home to open a five-game home stand Tuesday (March 20) with a 3 p.m. game against Southeast Missouri at Hammons Field.