April 7, 2009

MIZZOU vs. MINNESOTA
APRIL 7-8, 2009 • COLUMBIA, MO.

COMPLETE GAMENOTES

FIRST PITCH
Missouri will host Minnesota in a two-game midweek series this week at Taylor Stadium. The Tigers and Golden Gophers will face off at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday and 2 p.m. on Wednesday. On Tuesday, for $5 (in addition to a ticket), fans can sit in the special "All-You-Can-Eat" section located in left field. All tickets for Wednesday's game will be available for just $1. Mizzou and Minnesota met last season in Minneapolis, where Mizzou won game one, 17-8, before Minnesota took the second game by a score of 12-5. The Tigers enter the series with a record of 15-16, while the Gophers are 16-9 on the year. Following the two games against Minnesota, Mizzou will travel to Waco, Texas for a three-game series against Baylor, starting at 6:30 p.m. on Friday night.

RECORDS COMPLETE GAME IN 3 OF LAST 4 BIG 12 OUTINGS
Mizzou junior Kyle Gibson has pitched a complete game in three of his last four Big 12 starts. Gibson struck out 15 and allowed two runs on six hits against Oklahoma last Friday, but was handed the hard-luck loss in a 2-1 game. On March 23, Mizzou junior Kyle Gibson was named the Big 12 Conference Pitcher of the Week for the second-consecutive week. He was the first pitcher to claim back-to-back Big 12 Pitcher of the Week honors since Texas' Kyle McCulloch in 2006. Gibson picked up a complete game victory over Texas A&M on March 20, as he struck out a career-high 16 batters in the Tigers' 3-2 win. He gave up just two runs on five hits to the Aggies and his only walk allowed on the night was an intentional pass in the eighth inning. Gibson retired the first 10 batters to the plate and 18 of the first 19 he faced. A week earlier, Gibson was named the NCBWA National Pitcher of the Week, in addition to Big 12 Pitcher of the Week, after picking up his first career shutout in MU's series opener with Texas on March 14. Gibson struck out 11 batters and gave up six hits in nine innings pitched, as the Tigers defeated Texas, 2-0. The complete-game was the first nine-inning complete game for Gibson, who has had two seven-inning complete games in his career. He leads the conference with 75 strikeouts on the year in 51.0 innings pitched.

MIZZOU ADDS JOHNNY WHOLESTAFF TO THE ROSTER
Missouri has utilized a pitcher-by-committee strategy in nine games this season. In those nine games, Mizzou is 7-2 and has a team ERA of 2.81. Opposing batters are hitting just .233 against the Tigers in the pitcher-by-committee games. MU lost for just the second time in the staff games last Saturday against Oklahoma. On April 1, Mizzou used 10 pitchers to defeat SLU at Busch Stadium. That came two days after the Tigers' staff pitched a shutout over Oklahoma State, allowing six hits to the Cowboys. Missouri used nine pitchers in the game against OSU. The first time the Tigers used the staff pitching plan was against Arizona State on Feb. 24. Eight pitchers each pitched one inning against ASU, allowing just three runs on five hits. The Tigers used nine pitchers, again employing one pitcher an inning, against Western Illinois on March 4 and shutout the Leathernecks 8-0, giving up just five hits. A week later nine pitchers each turned in one inning on the mound as Mizzou defeated Western Illinois, 18-4. Missouri utilized a season-high 11 pitchers against Southern Illinois-Edwardsville on March 18, defeating the Cougars 4-1. On March 21, Missouri employed the strategy for the first time in a Big 12 Conference game. Nine pitchers teamed up to defeat Texas A&M, 6-2. Each pitcher worked exactly one inning on the mound against the Aggies. On March 25, Mizzou matched its season high with 11 pitchers used as the Tigers defeated UI-Chicago.

FOLGIA IS MISSOURI'S UTILITY MAN
Junior Greg Folgia is second on the team with a .306 average and he leads the team with four home runs and 25 RBI. Folgia was 3-for-4 in the series finale with Oklahoma last Sunday and hit his fourth home run of the year in game two against the Sooners. He has had three hits in four games this year. Folgia had two hits in each of the Tigers' two games against UI-Chicago, including a four-RBI game on March 25. Folgia homered and tripled in that game to set a new career high with the four RBI. He has had a pair of four-game hitting streaks on the year. Folgia has started in left field, center field and at first base for the Tigers this season and also has made 11 appearances on the mound out of the bullpen. In his two previous years at MU, Folgia has also played second base, third base and shortstop, meaning he has played all positions except right field and catcher during his career at Mizzou.

LOLLIS LEADS THE TIGERS AT THE PLATE
Senior Ryan Lollis has been one the Tigers' most consistent performer this season. Lollis has a .289 average and has 23 RBI. He had six-game hitting streak snapped against SLU on April 1. During that six-game hitting streak, Lollis was 10-for-25 (.400). He had an eight-game hitting streak from Feb. 22-March 6. Lollis has had two three-hit games this season (against Gonzaga on Feb. 22 and against Western Illinois on March 4). He has seven doubles and three triples. His three triples are second most in the Big 12 this season. Lollis has two home runs on the year, hitting his first against Gonzaga on Feb. 22. He hit a two-run home run against UI-Chicago on March 25, going 2-for-4 with three RBI in that game.

SENNE'S BIG HOMECOMING IN 2008
It was quite a homecoming for Mizzou Aaron Senne when Mizzou traveled to Minnesota last season. Missouri defeated Minnesota 17-8 at the Metrodome in Minneapolis on March 25 in game one of the two-game series. Senne, a native of Rochester, Minn., tied a school record with eight RBI, hit two home runs and had a career-high four hits in his return to his home state. With a large contingent of family and friends in attendance, Senne was 4-for-4 with eight runs driven in and two runs scored. In his first at-bat, Senne connected on a two-run homer to right centerfield to give the Tigers the early 2-0 lead. He singled in each of his next two at-bats, driving in runs on both hits. Senne drove in his eighth run of the game when he was hit-by-a-pitch with the bases loaded in his second trip to the plate in the sixth inning. Senne's eight RBI matched Marcus Adler's eight RBI game against Evansville in 1986.

UP NEXT
This weekend, the Tigers will travel to Waco, Texas for a three-game series with Baylor. The series will begin at 6:30 p.m. on Friday with game two at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday and the series finale set for 1:30 p.m. on Sunday. Next week, Mizzou will host Indiana State in a two-game series at Taylor Stadium, before a three-game series at Kansas State.