K-State Gets Past St. Peter's, 7-4
Mar 17, 2003 | Baseball
March 17, 2003
Homestead, Fla. - True freshman Jon Mallett gained his first career win as a Wildcat on Sunday evening, as the Topeka, Kan., native allowed just one run on four hits in two innings of relief of starter Jared Brite in helping Kansas State post a 7-4 victory over a pesky Saint Peter's squad at the Papa John's Challenge at the Homestead Sports Complex.
With the win, Kansas State improved to 9-6 on the season, while Saint Peter's fell to 0-2 overall with the loss. The Wildcats, who finished a 17-5 victory over Florida International just an hour earlier in Miami, made the 45-minute trip south to Homestead nearly two hours later than expected. The two teams were originally expected to play at 4:30 p.m. CST, but was moved back due to the rain delay in the first game.
Kansas State and Saint Peter's both plate one run in the first inning. The Wildcats got an RBI-single from junior third baseman Ty Soto to score junior designated hitter Brad Anzman from third base. Anzman led off the game by being hit by a pitch then moved all the way around to third base on two passed balls. The Peacocks led off the bottom of the inning with back-to-back singles before a groundout by outfielder Jesse Lewandowski tied the score at 1-all.
The Wildcats broke the tie in the third inning, as senior first baseman Tim Doty collected an RBI on a bases-loaded walk and senior first baseman Brett Williams managed a sacrifice fly to left field. Anzman led off the inning again with a walk then moved to third on a senior outfielder Gabe Luttrell's single to right-center field. With runners on the corners, Luttrell stole second and Soto walked to load the bases. Doty then walked Anzman home to break the tie followed by Williams' sacrifice fly.
Saint Peter's tied the game at 3-all in the fourth inning with two unearned runs on zero hits and two fielding errors. Kansas State quickly broke the tie with two runs in both the fifth and sixth innings. Doty scored the first run in the fifth on an error by the second baseman on a ground ball, while sophomore outfielder Terry Blunt stole home after the error. In the sixth inning, Anzman and Luttrell scored from second and third base on Soto's RBI single down the left field line.
Saint Peter's closed to within 7-4 with a run on three hits in the bottom of the sixth, however, Kansas State was able to shutout the Peacocks the last three innings to post its second win of the day and its third in a row.
Soto was the lone Wildcat to have more than one hit, as he went 2-for-4 on the evening with a team-best two RBIs. Anzman scored three runs on a 1-for-2 performance, while Luttrell had two stolen bases to go with his two runs scored.
Outfielder Jesse Lewandowski and shortstop Josh Pineiro had two hits each for Saint Peter's, while Lewandowski added two RBIs.
Mallett picked up his first career win as a Wildcat, as he allowed just one run on four hits in two innings of relief of Brite with three strikeouts and a walk. Brite, who made his first start since the 2001 season after redshirting last season, allowed just one earned run (three total) on three hits with a career-tying five strikeouts and five walks. Reliever Frank Bauer also looked impressive on the mound for the Wildcats, as he shutout the Peacocks for 3-1/3 innings with two hits, four strikeouts and one walk. Sophomore right-handed pitcher Eric Rollins tallied his third save of the season, as he struck out the last two batters with runners on first and second.
Doug Grant was tagged with the loss for Saint Peter's, as he allowed seven runs (only three earned) on six hits in 5-1/3 innings of work with four strikeouts and four walks. Relievers Rob Scordato and Ben Gallo combined to shutout the Wildcats the last 3-2/3 innings, allowing just one hit with one strikeout and three walks.
Kansas State returns to action at the Papa John's Challenge on Monday, as the Wildcats conclude their suspended game with Stony Brook at 11 a.m. CST at University Park on FIU's campus before moving back to the Homestead Sports Complex later in the day to play Rider at 6 p.m.
