Complete Notes (.pdf)
Live Stats
 
JOPLIN, Mo. – The big innings continued on Sunday as Missouri Southern batted around in the bottom of the first and went on to defeat the Truman Bulldogs 20-4 for the series sweep on Sunday afternoon. Truman will open up the home season next Friday when they host the University of Central Missouri at 2:00 p.m.   

Game 4 Recap|Box Score
Steven Rose had a pair of doubles while Jared Hahn and Daniel Jewett ran their hitting streaks to five games however it was a 10-run first inning that quickly put a damper on things as the Lions took the sweep in the four-game series. Dane Kolkmeyer delivered the big blow with a grand slam in the first as he hit .600 for the series with two home runs and 11 RBIs. Rose had a double in the first and a two-run double in the fourth and Zak Larkin reached base all three times with a double, single and a hit-by-pitch. Ethan Stenger (1-0) tossed six innings with five strikeouts for Southern while Paul McMahon (0-2) lasted just a third of an inning.

Game 3 Recap|Box Score
Will Nader and Pete Jurich each had doubles in the fourth inning and Daniel Jewett went 2-for-3 with an RBI but Southern pitcher Ryan Wheat (2-0) fanned six and allowed just two other hits in the Lions 5-2 win. The Lions jumped on top 2-0 but Truman evened the game with those doubles in the fourth. Dane Kolkmeyer broke the tie in the bottom of the fourth with an RBI single. Kolkmeyer finished the doubleheader going 4-for-6 with five RBIs and reached base six of the seven plate appearances since coming in the fourth inning of the opener as a pinch hitter. Logan Siegler (1-1) also tossed a complete game for the Bulldogs allowing one earned run and seven hits.
 
Game 2 Recap|Box Score
Missouri Southern 16, Truman 10
Truman led 5-0 and 8-3 behind multiple hits from Devon Myers and Zak Larkin but two big innings allowed Missouri Southern to grab the lead and the win. The Lions scored seven times in the fifth and six more in the sixth aided by 13 walks, four hit batsmen and four errors by the Bulldogs. Myers had a two-run double in the second and an RBI single in the fourth before David Reese (1-0) in the final three and two-thirds innings to pick up the win.  

Game 1 Recap|Box Score
Missouri Southern 9, Truman 3
The Bulldogs took an early 1-0 lead but the Lions scored seven straight runs in a three-inning span to take the series opener 9-3. Jarod Hahn went 3-for-4 with a double and Daniel Jewett had two hits and three runs scored for Truman, however the Bulldogs stranded 10 runners on base. Tyler Stefan (0-2) was strapped with the loss after allowing seven runs, five earned on 10 hits in just three and a third innings. The Lions collected 13 total hits, all singles and pitcher Cody Griebling (3-0) pitched eight innings, striking out nine for the win.





Series Preview:
Conference play gets underway this weekend as the Truman Baseball team heads to Joplin to face the previously unbeaten Missouri Southern State Lions in a four-game series beginning on Friday night.  The two teams split last year's series in Kirksville.

Truman (1-3; 0-0 MIAA) opened their 2012 campaign with a non-conference series with Missouri S&T last weekend. The Bulldogs lost both ends of a doubleheader on Saturday by 6-0 and 11-4 scores but bounced back on Sunday with a 5-3 win before falling 5-4 in the finale.
Steven Rose had a productive day on Sunday going 4-for-8 with two runs scored and a run batted in but as a team, Truman hit .221 in the series and had just one extra base hit.

Newcomers, junior Blake Marino and freshman Zak Larkin reached base in all four games of the series as Marino went 3-for-11 with three walks and two runs batted in and Larkin was 3-for-13 with a bases on balls and was hit by a pitch.

The Lions (7-0; 0-0 MIAA) have had a strong combination of excellent pitching and timely hitting to win their first seven games to start the season. Southern has a team ERA of 0.85 allowing just five earned runs with three shutouts in 53 innings pitched. Ryan Wheat was named MIAA Pitcher of the Week following a complete-game two-hit shutout over the University of Sioux Falls (S.D.) last weekend.

Southern swept a doubleheader against Concordia-St. Paul (Minn.) played in the Metrodome in Minneapolis and then won five straight at home against Ottawa and Sioux Falls. The Lions were picked to finish fifth in the MIAA Coaches poll after going 24-26 in 2011 and 20-24 in conference play.

Series Schedule:
The four-game series will begin Friday night with a single, nine-inning contest followed by two seven-inning games on Saturday. The series will conclude on Sunday with another nine-inning game.

Current Weather Forecast:
The National Weather Service forecast for Joplin is saying mostly clear all three days with just a 30% chance of rain early Friday. Temps are forecasted for the upper 50s with winds in the teens.

MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll
The Truman Baseball team was selected ninth in the MIAA Coaches poll released in early February. The Bulldogs garnered 31 points to finish six behind Pittsburg State and were 12 points ahead of Lincoln and 19 in front of Southwest Baptist.

Milestone Watch:

• Catcher Devon Myers is 32 hits away from Truman's all-time hit record of 191 held by Patrick Hardin (2002-05). He is currently seventh and will tie Adam Davis (2003-06) with 16 more hits.
• Myers is four runs scored from the top 10 in Truman history. He has 83 entering this weekend. He is also nine doubles away from tying the Truman record of 40 held by Mike Kubinski (1997-00) and is currently sixth in RBIs with 91. He will next pass Hardin at 93 and Tony Vandemore at 96 RBIs.
• Steven Rose has 144 career hits, 81 runs scored, seven triples (fourth all-time) and 521 career at bats which is seventh all-time.
• Pitcher Tyler Stefan is one appearances away from entering the top 10 all-time. Stefan has made 45 appearances and pitched in 164.0 innings.

Bulldog Bites:

• Last season, the Bulldogs hit .255 with 77 extra base hits.  The team had 59 doubles, nine triples and nine home runs to go with 51 stolen bases.
• As a team, the Bulldogs were 62% successful in stolen base attempts (51-of-82).
• The pitching staff had a 4.96 earned run average through 48 games.  Opponents hit .290 with 100 extra base hits (62 doubles, 13 triples and 25 home runs.).

Truman vs. Missouri Southern:
The Lions hold a 35-13 series advantage over the Bulldogs as the two teams split last year's meetings in Kirksville. Truman took the opener 5-2 and the finale 5-4 but lost both seven-inning games in between. Southern won both Saturday games in extra innings 6-4.

In that series, Truman's Devon Myers was 8-of-16 with three doubles as the Bulldogs hit .315 in the set. Ryan Trimble and Kyle Veazey picked up the Bulldog wins on the mound as the Lions hit .258 as a team with 25 strikeouts to just six walks. Dallas Burke and Jesse Kinzey combine for eight extra base hits with each hitting .400 for the Lions in the series. 

Up Next:
Truman will open up the home season next weekend as they welcome the University of Central Missouri Mules to Kirksville. The series will begin on Friday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. It is the start of a 10-game home stand for the Bulldogs.