Mistakes in all three phases of the game cost Vanderbilt dearly in a 2-1 loss to Missouri at Taylor Stadium in Columbia, Mo., on Thursday night.

The Commodores out-hit Missouri, 7-4, but one unearned run, a huge base-running mistake, and the general failure to put the ball in play (14 combined strikeouts against starter T.J. Sikkema and reliever Andy Toelken) did VU in.

Austin Martin led Vandy with two hits, and knocked in the Commodores' only run. Vandy left seven on base, compared to Missouri's four.

Starter Drake Fellows (4-3) , who took the loss, was good on the whole, fanning nine against a walk, a hit batsman and four hits, all singles. Tyler Brown threw a perfect eighth to keep the 'Dores in it.

Missouri opened the scoring in the bottom of the second. Cade Bormet blooped a leadoff single to center, took second on a sacrifice, then advanced to third on a Fellows wild pitch. Matt Berler reached on an infield single with two outs to make it 1-0, Tigers.

Sikkema had retired 10 straight Commodore hitters with one out in the fifth, then, Vanderbilt finally started to execute its offense.

Alonzo Jones laced a single through short, and Harrison Ray beat out a bunt down the first-base line. Martin then took a hanging breaking ball on a 1-1 count and lined it into shallow right, scoring Jones to tie, with Ray taking third.

But that was short-lived. Connor Kaiser popped up a bunt in foul territory to the catcher, and Ethan Paul struck out swinging on a 3-2 pitch.

And then, the Tigers got the lead right back when Trey Harris's two-out single plated Chris Cornelius, who reached with one out when Martin, playing first, couldn't handle a low throw from Kaiser, who was at short.

Vandy then missed a huge opportunity when Philip Clarke doubled the opposite way to the wall in left, then, Jayson Gonzalez lined a double to the opposite field off the wall in right.

But Clarke took a wide turn around home, and was easily thrown out 9-3-2 for the inning's second out. Jones struck out looking on a 3-2 pitch to end the inning, leaving Vandy down a run.

The Commodores were nine-up and nine-down from there against Toelken. Catcher Stephen Scott just missed a home run into a breeze in left-center, which instead was out two of the ninth.

It's just the second time VU has lost to Missouri in the 18-game series history. All games have come since the Tigers joined the Southeastern Conference.

Vandy (23-15, 9-7 SEC) faces the Tigers again at 6:30 on Friday night, with Patrick Raby taking the hill.

Vanderbilt got an unusual double play to end the third, when Missouri's Zach Hanna couldn't get down a squeeze bunt and Scott applied the tag on Connor Brumfield near home as he tried to score.

Sikkema struck out six straight Commodores spanning the parts of the second and fourth innings.

First baseman Julian Infante didn't start, with Martin starting there. Infante, hitting .152 this season, had started four straight at first.

Ray started in left.

MO 2: Berler's infield single off Fellows scored Bormet. MO, 1-0

VU 5: Martin's single to right scored Jones. Tied-1

MO 5: Harris single through short scored Cornelius. VU, 2-1