Kansas State baseball suffered a 12-2 mercy rule loss to the Oklahoma State Cowboys, falling to third place in the Big 12 while the Cowboys take sole possession of second place.
K-State was victorious in a tightly contested series opener before a resounding 19-5 defeat in Saturday’s Game 2. This afternoon’s rubber match saw shades of Saturday early on as poor pitching took the forefront.
Starter Mason Buss allowed two free passes with two outs in the first before left fielder Nolan Schubart went deep for the Cowboys.
The Wildcats grabbed one run back in the top of the third before Oklahoma State exploded for seven runs in the bottom half. Eight hits and two errors in the inning saw K-State trailing 10-1.
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Buss (4-3) left the contest allowing seven runs through 2 1/3 innings of work. Two-way player Carson Benge (2-1) earned the win for Oklahoma State.
The Wildcats drop to 32-20 (12-9 Big 12) and Oklahoma State moves to 34-15 (13-8 Big 12) following the 2-1 series loss.
K-State remains in the hunt for its first NCAA Regionals appearance since 2013. The Wildcats entered the series ranked No. 55 in RPI and rose to No. 47 despite the series defeat.
K-State has one last regular season opportunity to prove its place in the postseason with a series against TCU, 29-21 (10-10 Big 12) starting at 6 p.m. Thursday. Following the series is the Big 12 Championship on May 24-28.
