MANHATTAN, Kan. (K-State Athletics) – K-State is set for its 2023 home-opening weekend on March 3-6, as the Wildcats welcome Army and Stonehill to Tointon Family Stadium to kick off a seven game home stand.
The Cats (4-5) will take on the Army Black Knights (4-2) in the home opener on Friday, March 3 at 4 p.m. before facing Stonehill (0-4) on Saturday at noon. K-State will go another round against Army on Sunday with game two against the Skyhawks on Monday to round out the four-day weekend event.
K-State will send senior left-hander Owen Boerema to the mound on Friday for his third start this season. Jackson Wentworth will throw in the series opener against Stonehill on Saturday while German Fajardo will get Sunday’s start.
The weekend matchups mark the first meetings between the Cats and Black Knights, as well as the Cats and Skyhawks.
With construction ongoing on the new Morgan Family Arena, parking for baseball games at Tointon Family Stadium will be impacted during the 2023 season.
Fans are advised to park in the west parking lot of Bill Snyder Stadium and do so by entering through Gate 3 via College Avenue across from Ascension Via Christi Hospital. Gate 1 and Gate 2 will be closed for the duration of the 2023 baseball season.
When proceeding to the stadium on foot, fans are advised to exit the west parking lot along the pedestrian path between Gate 1 and Gate 2 and then proceed to the stadium via the sidewalk along College Avenue.
Tickets are now on sale for the entire 2023 season, starting at just $5 when purchased in advance at K-StateSports.com/Tickets, by calling 800-221-CATS or visiting the K-State Athletics Ticket Office.
Three games this weekend will be carried on the Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and the ESPN app with radio coverage available on News Radio KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM). Live streaming audio is available for all four games at K-StateSports.com/watch and on the K-State Sports app.
GAME #10
K-STATE (4-5, 0-0 BIG 12) vs. ARMY (4-2, 0-0 PATRIOT)
Friday, March 3 | 4 p.m. CT | Tointon Family Stadium (2,331)
Projected Starters: Owen Boerema (0-0, 0-0 Big 12) v. Tanner Gresham (0-0, 0-0 Patriot)
Watch: Big 12 Now on ESPN+
Radio: 1350AM/93.3/93.7FM
Listen Online: kstatesports.com/watch // Matt Walters
Live Stats| Tickets
GAME #11
K-STATE (4-5, 0-0 BIG 12) vs. STONEHILL (0-4, 0-0 NORTHEAST)
Saturday, March 4 | 12 p.m. CT | Tointon Family Stadium (2,331)
Projected Starters: Jackson Wentworth (0-1, 0-0 Big 12) v. Brendan Kelly (0-1, 0-0 Northeast)
Listen Online: kstatesports.com/watch // Mitch Fortner
Live Stats| Tickets
GAME #12
K-STATE (4-5, 0-0 BIG 12) vs. ARMY (4-2, 0-0 PATRIOT)
Sunday, March 5 | 4 p.m. CT | Tointon Family Stadium (2,331)
Projected Starters: German Fajardo (0-1, 0-0 Big 12) v. TBD
Watch: Big 12 Now on ESPN+
Radio: 1350AM/93.3/93.7FM
Listen Online: kstatesports.com/watch // Matt Walters and Justin Tadtman
Live Stats| Tickets
GAME #13
K-STATE (4-5, 0-0 BIG 12) vs. STONEHILL (0-4, 0-0 NORTHEAST)
Monday, March 6 | 4 p.m. CT | Tointon Family Stadium (2,331)
Projected Starters: TBD v. TBD
Watch: Big 12 Now on ESPN+
Radio: 1350AM/93.3/93.7FM
Listen Online: kstatesports.com/watch // Matt Walters and Justin Tadtman
Live Stats| Tickets
A LOOK AT K-STATE
K-State opens the home schedule with matchups against Army and Stonehill this weekend, on March 3-6, following a 14-day road journey in Texas and Nebraska … K-State heads into the home opener against Army 4-5 overall with all four wins coming against Stephen F. Austin in the opening weekend … K-State is coming off a 7-6 loss against Omaha where the Mavs scored four unanswered runs in the bottom of the eighth … As a team, K-State has a slash line of .255/.376/.446, averaging 7.2 runs per contest on 8.4 hits … The Cats have recorded 28 extra-base hits this season which 13 doubles, one triple and 14 home runs which ranks second in the Big 12 … Sophomore Brendan Jones has leadoff in all nine games for the Cats producing a team-high .394 batting average with 13 hits … Jones has reached base in all nine games this season … Two players have reached double figure RBI with Cole Johnson and Kaelen Culpepper each with 11 … The Wildcats have a 5.31 team ERA allowing 6.1 runs on 11.3 hits per game with opponents hitting .313 … Corey Cater and Kyler Heyne have a team-low 0.00 ERA through 4 2/3 combined innings … Cats will send senior left-hander Owen Boerema to the mound on Friday for his third start of the season … Boerema has A 7.36 season ERA and has struck out a leading 11 batters this season through 7 1/3 innings … Jackson Wentworth (0-1) will get his third start of the season on Saturday while German Fajardo (0-1) will start on Sunday …
SCOUTING ARMY
Army West Point makes the program’s first appearance in Manhattan on Friday … The Black Knights enter the weekend 4-2 with series victories over Air Force and Charlotte … Army is coming off a 11-2 loss against Charlotte in North Carolina but claimed games one and two to take the series … Chris Tracz is in his first year as the head coach of the baseball program following 13 seasons at Marist … Tracz compiled a 316-283-2 (.527) overall record at Marist dating back to 2010 … Army made an appearance at the NCAA Hattiesburg Regional last season where they went 0-2 after falling 9-8 to Kennesaw State … The Black Knights have totaled 24 NCAA Regional appearances … As a team, Army has a team slash line of .263/.349/.433 with 24 extra-base hits … Four players are batting over .300 led by Kevin Dubrule and Ross Friedrick at .333 … Dubrule, a senior from Venic, Fla., has a team-high nine hits this season with seven RBI and one stolen base … The Black Knights pitching staff has a 5.79 ERA allowing seven runs on 10 hits per game … Right-hander Patrick Melampy has a team-low 1.50 ERA, allowing just one earned run on three hits through six innings … Tanner Greshman will earn the start in the series opener on Friday … The 6-foot-3 junior has started in two games this season with a 5.40 ERA allowing six runs (five earned) on nine hits with eight strikeouts and four walks … Gresham is 6-2 in his career at Army …
SCOUTING STONEHILL
Saturday’s game marks the first meeting between the Cats and Skyhawks … Stonehill enters the weekend 0-4 after falling to Tarleton State in a four-game series … The Skyhawks are led by 26th-year head coach Pat Boen who’s guided the program to an overall 614-496-4 (.553) overall record with two NCAA tournament appearances … The Skyhawks are hitting a .225/.385/.325 slash line as a team with two players batting over .400 … Jack Marshall, a junior shortstop, is batting .455 with five hits including a double against TSU … Stonehill’s pitching staff has a 16.71 ERA over four games … Three pitchers have made two appearances on the mound this season … Brendan Kelly (0-1) will earn the start on Saturday against the Wildcats … The senior right-hander has appeared in 24 games in his career with a 2-6 career record including seven starts and a 9.60 ERA …
TOINTON FAMILY STADIUM
The home of K-State baseball opened in 2001 before its renovation and expansion debut in 2020 … The stadium is named in honor of Bob and Betty Tointon … K-State baseball is 373-204 (.646) when playing at home … The Wildcats are 63-27 (.700) at home under Hughes and 45-14 (.763) in the past two seasons … Tointon’s largest crowd was on March 30, 2010 against Wichita State with 4,745 in attendance …
AROUND THE LEAGUE
No. 24 Texas Tech is the first team from the Big 12 to reach 10 games as the Red Raiders remain undefeated at 10-0 to lead the league standings followed by Kansas (5-2), Oklahoma State (5-3), TCU (5-3) and West Virginia (4-3) rounding out the top five … K-State ranks second in home runs, RBI, runs, and walks this season … Brendan Jones represents K-State in six offensive categories ranking as high as third with seven stolen bases this year … The Cats rank 3-4-5 in home runs with Cole Johnson, Roberto Pena, and Nick Goodwin each sending three out … Goodwin is ninth in the Big 12 with a .667 slugging-percentage …
BOMBS AWAY
K-State has produced 14 home runs this season which ranks second in the league and 29th across Division I… Cole Johnson, Roberto Pena and Nick Goodwin lead the pack with three home runs each … The Wildcats were the only team to produce double digit bombs in the opening weekend (10) … The Wildcats sent five deep and out in the series finale against Stephen F. Austin marking the third time in the Hughes era … The five home runs were just short two of matching a program record seven … The Cats have produced 80+ home runs the past two seasons … Cole Johnson and Roberto Pena each launched a grand slam against SFA (Feb. 20) to mark the first time since 2010 where two Wildcats posted grand slams in the same game … Six players are posting a multi-home run season … Eleven homers were against right-handed pitchers …
COACH HUGHES FILE
Pete Hughes grabbed his 100th victory with K-State on Feb. 18 against in game two against Stephen F. Austin … Hughes is in 26th season and fifth at the helm of K-State baseball … Hughes has compiled a career record of 754-589-3 (.561) as a head coach … His 750 career victories ranks first among active Big 12 head coaches … In five seasons as the head coach of the Wildcats, Hughes has put together a 102-97 (.513) record … He’s led the Cats to two straight runs in the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship semifinals … In 2021, K-State turned in a 34-23 mark, its highest win total since posting 45 in 2013 … Three players were selected in the 2022 MLB First-Year Player Draft increasing Hughes’ career draft total to 82, including eight while at K-State.
A LOOK AT THE NUMBERS
K-State has a season +10 run differential through nine games averaging 7.2 runs on 8.5 hits … The Wildcats outscored opponents 10-1 in the fourth inning alone Cats are 3-1 when leading after the seventh inning and 1-1 when tied after seven … K-State is 0-2 when committing no errors in a game … Conversely, K-State has won four games when one or more errors were committed, 4-3 overall … The Wildcats are 4-2 when scoring first and 3-3 when scoring in the first inning … K-State has outhit opponents twice this season and is 2-5 when being outhit …
FROM THE ‘PEN
The Cats pitching staff has produced a 5.31 ERA while 14 players have made their season debuts on the mound this season … Four different pitchers earned victories on the mound during the opening weekend at Stephen F. Austin … Seven players have made more than three appearances on the mound while German Fajardo (0-1) leads with three starts … Ty Ruhl (1-1) has pitched in a team-high 10 2/3 innings with nine strikeouts … Owen Boerema has struck out a team leading 11 batters followed by Tyson Neighbors with 10 … Neighbors averages 14.2 strikeouts per nine innings Blake Corsentino and Shay Hartis have earned the Cats two saves …
HOME. SWEET. HOME.
K-State finished its 2022 home schedule with a record of 21-7, marking the second straight season in which the Cats have reached the 20-win plateau at home … It was the first time K-State has put together consecutive 20-win home seasons since three straight from 2009-11 … Over the last two seasons, K-State is 45-14 (.763) – good for the third-best win total and home winning percentage in the Big 12 … At home, the Wildcat offense hit .303 while slugging .566 with 60 home runs … K-State averaged 6.9 runs a game on 10.2 hits at Tointon Family Stadium … The Wildcat bullpen boasted a 3.83 ERA at home, striking out 128 compared to 60 walks … K-State homered in 24 of 28 home games while 60 of its 82 home runs have come at Tointon Family Stadium.
2023 SCHEDULE REVIEW
The Wildcats schedule 56 regular-season games, highlighted by 27 games played inside Tointon Family Stadium … K-State will play in 23 games against teams that made the NCAA Tournament a year ago … The 2023 Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship will again be held at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, May 24 through May 28 …The 2023 NCAA Baseball Tournament begins June 2.
UP NEXT
K-State will continue its homestand with a three-game series against Youngstown State (1-7, 0-0 Horizon) on March 10-12 at Tointon Family Stadium.
How to follow the ‘Cats: Stay up to date on K-State baseball online at www.kstatesports.com and on the team’s social media channels on Twitter and Instagram.
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