The Kansas State Wildcats baseball team hosted the University of Nebraska Omaha Mavericks at home in Tointon Family Stadium and lost 5-2.
Prior to the game the Mavericks were 1-14 and on a 12 game losing streak. The Mavericks came into the game from their first home series against Northern Colorado, where they lost two games of the series, 9-4 and 7-3. The third game of the series was cancelled due to inclement weather.
After beating K-State, they are now 2-14, breaking their losing streak. The Wildcats are now 12-5 after this hard-fought loss against the Mavericks.
After inclement weather cancelled Tuesday’s game against the Creighton Bluejays, K-State came into Wednesday’s game with high hopes and the will to compete.
Senior Colton Kalmus was the starting pitcher, and managed to strike out two Mavericks in the second and third innings, he finished with a total of eight strikeouts on the day.
The Mavericks led from the beginning after a poor Wildcats start.
In the top of the first, Ryan Cate and Grant Suponchick of the Mavericks scored to give them a 2-0 lead. Shortly after in the fourth inning, Parker Smejkal and Nate Mallott each drove in a run, growing their lead to 4-0.
It wouldn’t be until the bottom of the fourth inning that sophomore catcher Josh Rolette would double down the line to drive in the first run, making the score 4-1.
Following Rolette, junior outfielder Hanz Harker reached on a fielder’s choice, allowing another run to come home. They would end the fourth inning trailing the Mavericks 4-2.
At the start of the sixth inning Smejkal drove in another run to increase the Mavericks’ lead to 5-2. The score would hold for the rest of the game.
“We’re going to be practicing really hard tomorrow, I can promise you that,” head coach Brad Hill said after the game. “We’ll get after it hard, do the right things and we have to be sharp.”
Hill said the next couple days at practice the K-State baseball team will be coached on how to play fundamental baseball the “old fashioned way.”
“Our biggest place to improve will be offensively,” Hill said. “We’re not where we were. Doing the right thing means not walking people, making the plays that should be made, and just playing good fundamental baseball.”
The Wildcats will now turn their attention to this upcoming weekend for a home series at Tointon Family Stadium against the Iowa Hawkeyes, kicking off Friday at 4 p.m.
