Despite a dominant bounce-back win in the finale, Kansas State dropped its first home series in over a year against No. 24 Arizona State. The Sun Devils took two out of three games in the high-scoring Big 12 showdown from March 20-22 at Tointon Family Stadium.
On March 20, K-State opened the series by building momentum early and carrying a 4-3 lead into the eighth inning from timely hitting at the plate. Cadyn Karl put the Wildcats on the board with a solo home run, while Dee Kennedy added his 10th homer of the season in the sixth, and became the fastest player in the Pete Hughes era to reach double-digit home runs.
The Sun Devils capitalized late, however, tying the game on a double play before Landon Hairston delivered the decisive solo home run in the eighth inning. K-State left 10 runners on base and committed two errors, allowing Arizona State to steal the opener 5-4.
On March 21, there was an offensive explosion. The game showcased 30 combined runs and 31 hits, with both teams trading leads deep into the game. During the ninth inning, Arizona State went on an eight-run stretch, highlighted by Dean Toigo’s grand slam that turned a one-run deficit into a sealed win, 18-12.
In game two, Dee Kennedy led the Wildcats with a perfect 4-4 performance, finishing with three runs and three RBI’s. Shea McGahan and Nick English also had homers, with nine different Wildcats recording hits. The pitching staff was not as effective, though, as K-State used seven arms and surrendered 18 runs. This loss snapped K-State’s streak of 11 consecutive home series wins.
Although Arizona State sealed the series, K-State responded with an emphatic 12-1 win in seven innings on March 22. The Wildcats delivered a complete performance, all while facing a potential sweep.
After trailing 1-0 early, K-State erupted for 12 runs between the third and fifth innings. Lincoln Sheffield pitched all seven innings and allowed just one run while striking out six batters. The Wildcats produced 14 hits, with Shintaro Inoue, Carlos Vasquez and Ty Smolinski each having a three-hit performance.
