Kansas State’s offense scored 33 runs over the weekend, averaging 11 per game. However, the Wildcats won just one game as the pitching staff — as it has for most of Big 12 play — doomed K-State to a series loss.
“Another tough loss,” K-State head coach Pete Hughes said. “We’re not finishing games. There are plenty of areas to look at to find the solution. It’s easy to say our bullpen is struggling, but we’ve left some opportunities to score out there. We’ve played sloppy defense that led to runs. There’s blame to spread in each aspect of our game.”
The Wildcats’ lone win in the series came on Friday night with K-State winning 8-5. Right-handed starter James Guyette continued his streak of solid starts, going six innings, striking out 10 batters and allowing three runs.
Guyette was the winning pitcher for the contest as he moved his record to 4-1 with a 5.35 ERA on the season, a number that has come down in the previous weeks.
“We needed a great effort, number one, by James Guyette, and he went deep into the game, and I thought [he] did really well,” Hughes said. “His fastball was as good as it has been all season long.”
K-State was leading 6-3 once Guyette departed after the sixth. While the bullpen struggled most of the weekend, left-handed reliever Adam Arther didn’t as he went three innings, allowing two runs, but more importantly, closed down the game for the Wildcats.
Offensively, it was catcher Bear Madliak and outfielder Cadyn Karl who led the way for the Wildcats. Madliak hit two home runs, which came in back-to-back innings; the first was a solo shot in the third inning and the second was a three-run shot in the fourth to put K-State up 6-0. Karl had two hits on the night, both driving in runs, which accounted for three RBIs for the outfielder.
“Offensively, we got a big night out of Cadyn Karl and specifically Bear [Madliak],” Hughes said. “He got the big hits against one of the best arms in our league, in my opinion, and got our team going on a Friday night on the road.”
Last weekend’s contests were tight ones, but both ended with Utah on top. The Utes rallied for five-plus runs in the eighth inning of both games, which gave them the lead after trailing in both.
The game on March 28 was an entertaining one, with both teams battling closely and answering one another with runs in their half of the inning. With the game tied 8-8 going into the eighth inning, the Wildcats put three runs on the board via a Shintaro Inoue two-run home run, which was followed by a Ty Smolinski homer to give K-State the lead late, 11-8.
However, as was the case all day, Utah battled back and scored five runs in the bottom part of the inning to take back the lead, which they would hold onto, winning 13-11.
“I thought our guys competed all game,” Hughes said. “We always do, and right now it’s not enough to just compete. We need to compete and get the job done, and we will. We’ve battled and took leads late, but have been unable to finish out games.”
On March 29, the finishes were similar, but the games were not. K-State jumped out to an early 12-4 lead and appeared as if they could be heading home early with a mercy rule of the Utes and a series win.
However, Utah fought back in the fourth and fifth innings, scoring six runs and cutting it to a 12-10 game. K-State scored two more runs in the top of the eighth, but as was the case the night before, Utah went on a rally. The Utes came roaring back with six runs, taking a two-run lead into the ninth, and securing the series, 16-14.
K-State not only let a series win slip through their fingers, but also a series sweep with back-to-back blown games late. K-State has now lost five of its last seven conference games, but has its next two series at home, a place where the Wildcats are tough to beat.
The first home series will be against Texas Christian University. First pitch from Tointon Family Stadium is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Friday, April 3, with Friday starter James Guyette on the bump.
