Bergman, Sutherland Land Big Blows as Bears Top Little Rock
February 27, 2026 | Baseball
SPRINGFIELD – Curry Sutherland hit a go-ahead two-run double and Carter Bergman slugged Missouri State's first grand slam of the season in a decisive six-run seventh inning Friday afternoon at Hammons Field for an 8-5 Bears victory against Little Rock.
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Logan Fyffe's RBI double and a Sutherland RBI single staked the Bears (5-4) to a 2-0 lead in the second inning, but Little Rock (6-3) countered with a run in the third and a two-out, two-run double in the fifth for a 3-2 advantage.
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The Trojans' first three runs came off starter Michael Yusypchuk, who struck out seven and allowed just three hits in 4.1 innings before giving way to Tyler Charlton (1-0), who fanned three in 2.2 shutout frames for the winning decision.
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Sutherland came through with a two-run double for the lead in the seventh, and Bergman followed with his second career grand slam to make it 8-3 and provide the Bears with enough cushion.
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Little Rock, which ended last season one game away from a Super Regional, fought back with another two-out, two-run double, this time in the eighth, setting the stage for Max Knight to come into an 8-5 game and keep it there for his first save of the year.
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Sutherland finished 3-for-5 at the plate while Bergman collected his second four-RBI game of the season. The MoState pitching staff combined to strike out 13 Little Rock hitters.
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With rain in the forecast, the teams will conclude the series with a 1 p.m. doubleheader on Saturday. Tickets to all home games are available here.
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Logan Fyffe's RBI double and a Sutherland RBI single staked the Bears (5-4) to a 2-0 lead in the second inning, but Little Rock (6-3) countered with a run in the third and a two-out, two-run double in the fifth for a 3-2 advantage.
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The Trojans' first three runs came off starter Michael Yusypchuk, who struck out seven and allowed just three hits in 4.1 innings before giving way to Tyler Charlton (1-0), who fanned three in 2.2 shutout frames for the winning decision.
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Sutherland came through with a two-run double for the lead in the seventh, and Bergman followed with his second career grand slam to make it 8-3 and provide the Bears with enough cushion.
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Little Rock, which ended last season one game away from a Super Regional, fought back with another two-out, two-run double, this time in the eighth, setting the stage for Max Knight to come into an 8-5 game and keep it there for his first save of the year.
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Sutherland finished 3-for-5 at the plate while Bergman collected his second four-RBI game of the season. The MoState pitching staff combined to strike out 13 Little Rock hitters.
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With rain in the forecast, the teams will conclude the series with a 1 p.m. doubleheader on Saturday. Tickets to all home games are available here.
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#WeAreMoState
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Charlton, Tyler (1-0)
L: Brett Gastman (0-1)
S: Knight, Max (1)
Batting:
2B: Kade Smith 1 ; Ty Rhoades 2 ; Easton Roe 1
RBI: Kade Smith 1 ; Ty Rhoades 2 ; Easton Roe 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Kade Smith 1 ; Cade Martin 1 ; Ty Rhoades 1 ; Nico Baumbach 1 ; Jerdy Lopez 1
HBP: Nico Baumbach 1 ; Luis Castillo 1 ; Cooper Chaplain 1

Batting:
2B: Sutherland, Curry 1 ; Fyffe, Logan 1
HR: Bergman, Carter 1
RBI: Sutherland, Curry 3 ; Bergman, Carter 4 ; Fyffe, Logan 1
SH: Cermenelli, Bryce 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Ryan, Jax 1 ; Bogenpohl, Caden 1 ; Sutherland, Curry 1 ; Gollert, Taeg 1 ; Knight, Max 1 ; Bergman, Carter 2 ; Fyffe, Logan 1
HBP: Gollert, Taeg 1
Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
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