ARLINGTON, TX (K-State Athletics) – KU managed to outlast K-State in the opening round of the 2024 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship Tuesday, as the Jayhawks held on for a 2-1 victory at Globe Life Field.
“It was a well-played game,” said head coach Pete Hughes. “Disappointing from our perspective, obviously, but when you play in those tight ball games you’ve got to get a two-out hit. Have to get a misplay, there’s no wiggle room. You have to play really clean baseball to win those games.”
The Cats will play West Virginia (33-21) in an elimination game at 9 a.m. Wednesday at Globe Life Field and can be seen on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. Radio coverage can be heard on the K-State Sports Radio Network with live audio streaming at K-StateSports.com/Watch.
The pitching staff combined to strike out 10 batters and held the Jayhawks (30-21) to five hits. Josh Wintroub logged 3 1/3 innings of three-hit, one run ball in his 13th start of the season, while Cole Wisenbaker and Jackson Wentworth combined for 4 1/3 scoreless innings with five strikeouts.
“It’s a challenge especially with the new format, starting a day early. It gets tricky. You need depth. Certainly, bullpen depth really didn’t hurt us today. We pitched well enough for sure to win a ballgame,” commented Hughes.
“It’ll get tricky, the key is those built-in day offs. That’s what you have to play to get in those situations. We can have a day off to rest your pitching, but going through the losing bracket will certainly test the depth of our pitching staff going forward.”
Tyson Neighbors (1-2) suffered the loss in relief, allowing one run (one earned) on one hit in 1 1/3 innings of work with three strikeouts.
K-State (31-23) held a 7-5 advantage in hits led by three-hit days from Kaelen Culpepper and David Bishop. Culpepper, who went 3-for-4, drove in the Cats’ only run in the fifth to tie the game.
The Sunflower Showdown rivals met for the second consecutive year in the Conference tournament.
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