MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Missouri State men's soccer (9-2-1) completed its Tennessee sweep Tuesday night with an emphatic 3-1 victory over the Memphis Tigers (6-5-2) in a battle of teams leading their respective conferences. The Bears put up seven corner kicks and outshot the Tigers 8-1 in the first half to earn their first win over Memphis since 2012 and first road victory against the Tigers since 1999.

"It was just a great road trip for the guys," head coach Michael Seabolt said. "Memphis is a very good team. They've won a bunch of games this season and I think they'll win a bunch more. I'm proud of our group effort and a really great team result."

Senior forward Jesus Barea earned his fourth brace of the season and fifth of his career thanks to two second-half goals that ensured Missouri State would never trail.

With the victory, Missouri State increased its winning streak to four and its unbeaten streak to nine. 

The three goals allowed by Memphis tied a season-most for the Tigers and snapped a four-match shutout streak that dated back to Sept. 20 against Tulsa. Memphis had its seven-match unbeaten streak snapped in the process.

The Bears looked to assert dominance early, stacking a pair of corner kicks in the eighth and ninth minutes. The latter of which resulted in a blocked shot from sophomore midfielder Adrián Esteban. That would be the extent of the offensive output for the opening third. The teams combined for just five shots after 30 minutes.

Missouri State finally pierced the net on its fifth corner kick in the 34th minute. Sophomore midfielder Tyler Caton found the sweet spot in the box and found senior defender Harry Jolley who headed in his first goal as a Bear. In his sixth start of the season, the Northern Illinois matched his goal total from his time with the Huskies.

"Our success is not just one or two guys, it's everybody," Seabolt said. "Harry has been a great example of that. He's had some games he's played, some games he didn't. When he's played, he's been really, really good on both sides of the ball."

The Bears took the 1-0 lead into the locker room. Missouri State is now 6-0 when leading at halftime.

Barea got the first of his two goals in the 62nd minute on Missouri State's first attempt at the net in the half. Freshman midfielder Jared Harlock got his first career assist sending a leading pass to the box for senior forward James Jennings, who redirected the ball in front of the net to Barea for the open shot. The goal was Barea's first since his equalizer against No. 11 Western Michigan on Sept. 28.

"Jesus has been great all season as the leading goal scorer for the team," Seabolt said. "It's been cool to see some other guys step up and score goals when we need them, and Jesus is back on it."

Barea took four shots to increase his career total to 235, one shy of Jamal Sutton (2000-03) for the all-time program record. Barea has taken 55 shots in 2024, the eighth most by a Bear in a single season.

Memphis upped the pressure down multiple scores. The Tigers outshot the Bears, 11-3, in the second half to win the shot category for the match, 12-11. Memphis took 10 unanswered shots in 16 minutes, the ninth of which cut the lead in half on a corner kick from midfielder Lleyton Impartato to defender Logan Longo for his fourth goal of the year.

With Memphis still pushing, Missouri State found an opening thanks to a sliding steal. Junior forward Ollie Bate broke free on a one-on-one and found a trailing Barea to set up his MVC-leading 12th goal of the year.

Barea is now tied for second in the nation in total goals with Notre Dame's Matthew Roou with 12 apiece. They trail Arkon's Emil Jaaskelainen with 14. Barea now sits at 31 career goals and 79 career points, both good for third in program history.

Missouri State will return to Springfield to play three of its last four regular season matches at home starting with Bowling Green (9-2-2, 3-1-1 MVC) on Sunday at Betty & Bobby Allison South Stadium. Admission is free and attendees can receive a free headband as part of Missouri State's blackout night.