If there is one thing the K-State baseball team will not be lacking entering tonight’s game, it’s confidence.
After dropping seven straight games, the Wildcats, 12-13 and 0-3 in the Big 12, got back on their feet on Tuesday night when they defeated the University of Nebraska Omaha 11-3.
“We’ve had some big wins here at K-State, but I don’t necessarily know that they’ve felt this good,” senior outfielder Clayton Dalrymple said. “We had that monkey on our back and we just needed a big one.”
Now just less than 24 hours after their battle with the Mavericks, the Wildcats will take on Oral Roberts University.
“We’ve just got to make a quick turnaround, get a scouting report put together and do the best you can,” K-State head coach Brad Hill said. “Oral Roberts is a good club, and they’ve beat plenty of Big 12 teams in midweek. So it’s going to be a tough go tomorrow.”
The Golden Eagles are 13-10 overall and 4-2 in the Summit League. It will be the first time these two teams have faced each other since the 2006 season, a matchup the Golden Eagles came out on top of.
The recent history between the teams has not been in the Wildcats’ favor. K-State will look to defeat Oral Roberts for the first time since May 11, 1997.
Sophomore pitcher Cale Tims will be doing the honors for the Golden Eagles today. Tims enters the contest with high success. He has started just two games this season but has been the victor in both outings.
In the 13.1 innings he has pitched this season, Tims has given up just 11 hits and three runs for a 2.03 ERA.
One player for K-State who will look to have success on Tims will be Dalrymple. He has been K-State’s source of offense recently. Since March 18, Dalrymple has recorded a .379 batting average with four doubles, three walks and six runs scored. He continued that success on Tuesday night, going 3-for-4 at the plate, scoring two runs and one RBI.
“The approach has just been getting my foot down on time for that fastball and then I can react to whatever comes next,” Dalrymple said. “I’m not trying to be too aggressive, but I’m not trying to be unaggressive.”
Freshman pitcher Jacob Ruder will take the mound for the Wildcats. Ruder has not had the same success as his opponent. He will enter the game with an 0-2 record and a 7.36 ERA that looks promising for the Golden Eagles’ bats.
First pitch at Tointon Family Stadium is set for 4:05 p.m. today.
