Check out our picks for best and worst of the year.

Priday leads MU to win

The outfielder hit two home runs as MU beat William Woods.

By Derek Reagan
April 18, 2008

William Woods senior shortstop Kyle Christiansen jumps over sliding Missouri designated hitter Jacob Priday to turn a double play during Wednesday’s game at Taylor Stadium. Priday hit two home runs to break the MU home run record as the Tigers won 16-9.

Photo/Jeff Lautenberger

William Woods senior shortstop Kyle Christiansen jumps over sliding Missouri designated hitter Jacob Priday to turn a double play during Wednesday’s game at Taylor Stadium. Priday hit two home runs to break the MU home run record as the Tigers won 16-9.

In a surprising early struggle, the Missouri Tigers were able to rally back and beat the William Woods Owls 16-9. The Owls were able to jump on top of the Tigers with an early five-run lead thanks in part to fielding errors, pitch command issues and a slow start for the Tigers’ offense. With the Tigers down 5-0 going into the bottom of the fourth inning, a familiar face stepped to the plate to get the rally started.

In what would be a record-breaking game, senior outfielder Jacob Priday hit a solo home run to get the Tigers’ on the board. That started a run in which the Tigers closed the gap by adding three runs of their own in the fourth and eventually outscore the Owls 16-4 over the remaining five innings.

“You know, it really did seem like the Texas game Friday night, we were down eight to nothing,” Priday said. “We knew it was still early, we knew we had the ability to come out and win the game, we had two-thirds of the game left, we knew that we needed to get something started quick and thankfully I could start that.”

In the bottom of the seventh inning, Priday hit his second home run of the game to put MU ahead 11-7. It also made Priday the Tigers’ all-time record holder in home runs and in RBIs as he passed Mike Rogers and Ryan Fry in their respective categories.

“It’s definitely something to look back on at the end of the season, and it will be that much nicer,” Priday said. “Looking back on it, it’s a big accomplishment. Four different teams, [I’ve] been through it all, surgery, everything. It’s nice to go out this year with a team like we have given the wins. Hopefully we can keep it going.”

Tigers coach Tim Jamieson said Priday’s excellence has been evident away from the field as well.

“It’s been great because he’s obviously performed on the field, but he’s such a leader off the field in how he does his day-to-day work in the classroom,” he said. “I’ll try to figure out a way to lobby the NCAA for four more years.”

In the inning directly following the occasion, senior outfielder Kurt Calvert gunned out William Woods’ Ryan Dickerman on his way to third base. The throw ended the inning and saved the Tigers from a possible rally by the Owls. Calvert also had a fantastic day at the plate, reaching base five times with an RBI and two runs scored.

Both teams had issues with pitch command and getting outs as the teams used a total of 15 pitchers in the ball game. William Woods used nine pitchers and another pitcher waiting in the bullpen if the game was to go into the bottom of the ninth inning. Missouri drew 14 walks, only four walks short of the team record.