FAYETTEVILLE — Missouri beat Arkansas 8-5 at Baum Stadium on Saturday for its first SEC win.
The Tigers scored four earned and six total runs off Razorbacks starter Keaton McKinney and held off a late rally to snap Arkansas' nine-game home win streak. The teams are scheduled to play the series finale Sunday at 12:30 p.m.
Game Sketch
Line Score: Missouri 8-10-1; Arkansas 5-8-2
Records: Missouri 16-13, 1-7 SEC; Arkansas 19-8, 4-4 SEC
WP: Tanner Houck (3-2)
LP: Keaton McKinney (1-1)
Save: Austin Tribby (1)
Turning Point: Missouri starter Tanner Houck didn't allow a hit until the bottom of the fifth inning.
Notable: The win was Missouri's first over Arkansas since 1991.
Attendance: 7,232
After trailing by six runs, the Razorbacks had a chance to tie the game in the bottom of the eighth, but Tucker Pennell grounded out with the bases loaded. Clark Eagan led off the ninth with a walk before Austin Tribby retired three straight batters to end the game.
Arkansas (19-8, 4-4 SEC) didn't record a hit until Austin Catron's solo home run in the fifth inning. Catron also had a two-run triple in the Razorbacks' three-run seventh and finished a double shy of hitting for the cycle.
Missouri starter Tanner Houck pitched six innings to earn his third win. Houck faced 15 batters before allowing a hit, but Arkansas scored five runs in its final 10 at-bats against the right-hander.
Houck, the reigning SEC pitcher of the week, struck out four.
The Tigers (16-13, 1-7 SEC) took the lead on Ryan Howard's two-run double in the first. Shane Benes homered to lead off a four-run fourth for Missouri that chased McKinney from the game.
Jake Ring had a sacrifice fly and Trey Harris had a two-run single in the inning to give the Tigers a 6-0 run.
Catron's home run pulled Arkansas within 6-1, but Missouri added a run in the sixth on Zach Lavy's RBI double. Catron's seventh inning triple pulled the Razorbacks within 7-4 and Pennell followed with an RBI single to make it 7-5.
Brett Bond scored for Missouri in the eighth on a fielding error by Arkansas third baseman Carson Shaddy.
The Razorbacks struggled to get production from the top of the batting order. Arkansas' one through five hitters were a combined 2-for-21.