KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) – Tennessee blasted six home runs on Thursday, taking the series opener against SEC rival Missouri 10-1 inside Lindsey Nelson Stadium.

Christian Moore added to his program record, hitting his 46th career home run at Tennessee to lead off the first inning.

Billy Amick hit a pair of long balls, marking the second straight game the Clemson transfer has hit multiple home runs.

NC State transfer Cannon Peebles hit his first home run as a Volunteer in the eighth inning to close the scoring for the Vols.

Hunter Ensley and Cal Stark also hit home runs on Thursday night.

AJ Causey earned the win in relief, striking out six batters in six innings of work. Causey allowed Missouri’s only run.

Tennessee improves to 35-7 overall and 13-6 in SEC play.

Game two of the series is set for 6:30 p.m. Friday.

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JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Republican Missouri lawmakers are divided over how far to go with a ballot measure that would make it more difficult for future voters to amend the state constitution.

The GOP-led House on Thursday amended a proposed constitutional amendment that, if approved by voters, would raise the vote threshold needed for all constitutional amendments going forward.

The heart of the proposed amendment would raise the percentage of votes needed to enact voter-directed constitutional changes.

Currently, the constitution is amended with a simple majority statewide vote.

Under the Republican proposal, amendments also would need a majority of votes in five of the state’s eight congressional districts to pass.

House lawmakers on Thursday added a provision to the amendment to ban noncitizens from voting — which they already can’t do — setting up a showdown with the GOP-led Senate.

In the Senate, Democrats earlier this year negotiated with Republicans to strip the language stating that noncitizens cannot vote.

House Republican Majority Leader Jon Patterson on Monday acknowledged that including additional provisions could mean that the proposed amendment is killed in the Senate. But Patterson said House members are willing to take that risk.

Missouri Republicans have been trying for years to put stricter limits on constitutional amendments, arguing that policies such as the legalization of recreational marijuana, approved by voters in 2022, should not be included in the document.

“It’s not meant as a document that is going to be coopted by special interests, by political parties, by deep pockets, by billionaires out of state, (and) foreign interests,” Republican Rep. Adam Schnelting said during House floor debate. “That is not the purpose of the constitution.”

House Democratic Minority Leader Crystal Quade told reporters Thursday that the measure would take “away the citizens’ ability to, in my opinion, hold the Legislature accountable.”

“Missouri citizens have used the ballot initiative whenever the Legislature has gone too far or not done enough,” Quade said. “Whether that was for passing Medicaid expansion and stopping right to work, legalization of medical and recreational marijuana; the list goes on and on.”

The GOP faces added pressure this year as advocates work to get a constitutional amendment that would restore abortion rights in Missouri on the ballot this fall.

If lawmakers send the constitutional changes to the August ballot and they are approved by voters, the higher vote-threshold would be in place if the abortion-rights amendment is on the November ballot.

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Missouri lawmakers passed legislation Wednesday that bars any state funding, including Medicaid reimbursements, from going to abortion providers or their affiliates.

This means that since Planned Parenthood performs abortions in other states, locations in Missouri would not receive state reimbursements for services provided to Medicaid patients.

While abortion is illegal in Missouri, Planned Parenthood clinics provide reproductive health care services like cancer screenings and contraceptive access.

On a party-line vote, House members approved the measure 106-48.

Because the House adopted the Senate’s changes to an underlying House bill, the legislation now goes to Gov. Mike Parson.

“The bill is very much still intact. It very much does what we initially intended it to do, which is to defund abortion providers and their affiliates. So, I feel good about where it’s at today,” said Rep. Cody Smith, R-Carthage.

Rep. Brian Seitz, R-Branson, said even though abortion is illegal in the state, the legislation still needed to pass.

“Missouri will continue to be a pro-life state,” Seitz said.

The passage of the bill is the latest attempt by Republican lawmakers to stop state money from going to Planned Parenthood or other abortion providers and affiliates.

The Missouri Supreme Court ruled this year that the legislature’s attempt to do the same thing through the state budget was unconstitutional. The court made a similar ruling in 2020.

Unlike prior attempts, this bill makes the change through state statute. It is expected to be challenged in court.

A statement issued by Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis region and Southwest Missouri referenced the prior state Supreme Court rulings.

“Despite the courts repeatedly ruling that ‘defunding’ Planned Parenthood health centers is unconstitutional, lawmakers continue to deny critical care like birth control, cancer screenings, wellness exams, and STI testing & treatment from the patients who need it.”

The statement also said Planned Parenthood will “continue to do everything we can to continue serving our patients — no matter what.”

Multiple Democrats spoke out against the bill on the House floor.

Rep. LaKeySha Bosley, D-St. Louis, referenced Missouri’s maternal mortality rate.

“Many of you have said over and over again, we need to do more, we need to do more. This is not an option of doing more. We are taking away financial resources to be given to areas and organizations that are providing access to health care resources,” Bosley said.

Democrats also referred to the current petition seeking to put abortion rights in the Missouri constitution through a statewide vote. The deadline to collect the necessary signatures to put the issue on the ballot is May 5.

“You all know that November is coming, and this bill will not matter. It won’t matter because women of this state are going to come in full force and demand their rights back from the body that stripped it of them,” said Rep. Keri Ingle, D-Lee’s Summit.

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