Kansas State baseball had a slow start in the beginning of the game to open the Missouri State series, but picked up the pace later to win 7-3. Pitcher Mason Buss received the win, pitching just 1/3 innings, while fellow pitcher Jackson Wentworth earned a save with seven strikeouts in three innings pitched.

K-State’s slow start included an early deficit, but the tide shifted by the sixth and seventh inning. The Wildcats had a great game defensively, leaving the Bears scoreless for six innings. 

The first two innings of the game were uneventful for the Wildcats. In the first inning, Bears’ designated hitter Zack Stewart homered with two out off Wildcat pitcher Josh Wintroub.

The Wildcats started to see action in the third and fourth innings. In the bottom of the third inning, center fielder Brendan Jones scored from a double by second baseman Brady Day. 

After the Wildcats received two outs, catcher Raphael Pelletier homered to right field, raising the score 2-1 Wildcats.

The Bears managed to tie the game in the fifth inning with second baseman Nick Rodriguez tripling a run from first base.

The Wildcats had a fiery sixth inning, scoring three runs in total. Day scored the first run off of an error from the pitcher. On the next play, Pelletier singled to center field, allowing pinch hitter Jaden Parsons and designated hitter Nick English to score. The Wildcats walked out of the sixth inning in the lead 5-3.

The Wildcats scored its last runs in the seventh inning. Jones homered to right field in the first play of the bottom of the inning. Next, Day scored a run after English got out trying to steal a base.

The Bears were not able to make a comeback in the eighth or ninth inning, rewarding the Wildcats with the first win of the series. 

This success places the Wildcats at a 11-6 record and will continue the series at 4 p.m. Saturday.