COLUMBIA, Mo. – Missouri State erased an early seven-run deficit and then came 90 feet short of tying the game in the ninth inning Tuesday evening in a 10-9 loss to in-state rival Missouri at Taylor Stadium.
 
After yielding the largest scoring inning by an opponent this season when the Tigers (13-23) tallied seven in the second, the Bears (19-16) began,to chip away, beginning with a Tyler Epstein RBI single in the fourth that extended his hitting streak to 11 games.
 
MoState struck for five runs in the fifth, getting an RBI single from Caden Bogenpohl and grand slam from Nick Rodriguez to close the gap to 7-6. Bogenpohl's hit extended his reached base streak to 48 games, while Rodriguez pushed his hitting streak to 22 games, the longest at MSU since 2010, while connecting on an extra-base hit in the last 14 contests.
 
Curry Sutherland belted a solo homer in the sixth for the 7-7 tie, while Garrett Ferguson fired two perfect innings in the interim to keep it within reach.
 
The Tigers countered with three runs on four hits for a 10-7 lead after six innings, and the Bears had one last comeback in them.
 
Bogenpohl launched a two-run homer in the top of the ninth for a 10-9 score, and Jake McCutcheon tripled with two out before the game ended with him 90 feet away from the tie.
 
Missouri makes the return trip to Hammons Field on April 22. Tickets to home baseball games can be purchased here, and MSU students are admitted free.
 
The Bears remain on the road this weekend for a three-game series at UIC. First pitch from Chicago on Friday is set for 6 p.m. as MoState looks to stay on top of the Missouri Valley Conference standings.