Kansas State University Athletics
Friday, February 23
Norfolk, Va.
2 p.m.
Kansas State University
at
Old Dominion
K-State Wraps Up East Coast Road Swing
Feb 22, 2018 | Baseball
NORFOLK, Va. – K-State begins a three-game weekend series Friday afternoon at Old Dominion at Bud Metheny Baseball Complex to wrap up its season-opening eight-game roadtrip to begin the 2018 season.
GAME #6
K-STATE (2-3, 0-0 Big 12) at OLD DOMINION (2-2, 0-0 C-USA)
Friday, February 23, 2018 // 2 p.m. CT // Bud Metheny Baseball Complex (2,500) // Norfolk, Va.
Projected Starters: RHP Kasey Ford (0-0, 9.00 ERA) vs. RHP Jim Fluke (0-0, 6.75 ERA)
Radio: KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Mitch Fortner (play-by-play) / Christopher Brown (analyst)
Online Video: CUSA.TV ($)
Listen Online (free) | Live Stats
GAME #7
K-STATE (2-3, 0-0 Big 12) at OLD DOMINION (2-2, 0-0 C-USA)
Saturday, February 24, 2018 // 1 p.m. CT // Bud Metheny Baseball Complex (2,500) // Norfolk, Va.
Projected Starters: RHP Gabe Littlejim (0-1, 9.00 ERA) vs. RHP Hunter Gregory (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
Radio: KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Mitch Fortner (play-by-play) / Christopher Brown (analyst)
Online Video: CUSA.TV ($)
Listen Online (free) | Live Stats
GAME #8
K-STATE (2-3, 0-0 Big 12) at OLD DOMINION (2-2, 0-0 C-USA)
Sunday, February 25, 2018 // 11 a.m. CT // Bud Metheny Baseball Complex (2,500) // Norfolk, Va.
Projected Starters: RHP Justin Heskett (0-0, 4.50 ERA) vs. TBD
Radio: KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Mitch Fortner (play-by-play) / Christopher Brown (analyst)
Online Video: CUSA.TV ($)
Listen Online (free) | Live Stats
A LOOK AT K-STATE
Kansas State heads into a three-game series at Old Dominion with a 2-3 record following back-to-back wins over Virginia Tech and Elon ... K-State held on to a one-run victory over Elon Wednesday, 8-7 ... The Wildcats opened an early 5-0 lead after a four-run fourth inning ... Rainer Ausmus homered for the second straight game before the Phoenix scored four in the seventh to cut into the Cats' lead ... Jaxon Passino and Jared Marolf combined to retire the final eight batters to preserve the win ... Marolf collected his first career save ... K-State went 1-3 at the 19th Annual Brittain Resorts Baseball at the Beach in Myrtle Beach and Conway, South Carolina, against South Alabama, Indiana, Coastal Carolina and Virginia Tech.
2018 OUTLOOK
The Cats said farewell to nine seniors from the 2017 team, and 14 total letterwinners from a year ago, including Jake Scudder, who led the team each of the past two seasons in homers and RBI ... K-State welcomes in 14 newcomers to the 2018 Wildcats (11 freshmen. 3 transfers), to pair with key returners Will Brennan, Cameron Thompson, Kasey Ford and others ... K-State graduated its entire starting infield while catcher Josh Rolette was selected in last season's MLB Draft ... Four position players - Brennan, Thompson, Kyle Barfield and Hanz Harker - are the only players set to return that started at least 20 games last year ... The Cats will lean heavily on their group of newcomers, including junior-transfer Drew Mount who is expected to earn the starting center field job, moving Thompson to his natural position of shortstop ... K-State was selected to finish ninth in the Big 12's preseason coaches' poll, collecting nine points.
SCOUTING OLD DOMINION
Old Dominion (2-2) finished 1-2 in the season's opening weekend in Kissimmee, Florida, picking up a win over Saint Louis before falling to Oakland and Iowa ... ODU picked up a 4-2 victory over Richmond on Tuesday in its home opener ... The Monarchs were voted fifth in the Conference USA preseason coaches' poll and return 17 letterwinners from its 2017 roster that finished second in the league ... ODU was labeled "first team out" of the NCAA Tournament a year ago ... Sophomore outfielder Kyle Battle leads the offense with his .438 average ... Through four games, ODU is hitting .130 (6-for-46) with runners in scoring position, with Brian Morley collecting half of those hits ... The Monarchs featured six players in their Opening Day lineup making their first career start ... This is the first all-time meeting between K-State and Old Dominion.
MAKING A SPLASH
K-State welcomes 14 newcomers to its 2018 squad ... TK McWhertor, Rainer Ausmus and Drew Mount, all junior transfers, each collected their first hits in a Wildcat uniform as home runs ... McWhertor hit a two-run shot in his first at-bat in the season opener vs South Alabama, as he drove in four runs in the game after missing all of 2017 due to Tommy John surgery ... Ausmus hit a game-tying bomb in the sixth inning Monday against Virginia Tech while Mount's three-run homer proved to be the game-winning hit in the eighth inning against the Hokies ... Ausmus has homered in two straight games while Mount has driven in three runs in back-to-back games.
CARDIAC CATS
After three wins when trailing after seven innings last season, K-State has already picked up one such victory in 2018 (6-5 over Virginia Tech on Monday) ... The day before, K-State scored two runs in the top of the ninth inning to force extra innings at Coastal Carolina ... Cameron Thompson's two-run single in the ninth helped K-State erase a three-run deficit against the Chanticleers ... Mount's homer also erased a three-run hole for the Cats against Virginia Tech ... K-State collected a second one-run victory at Elon Wednesday, with Jaxon Passino and Jared Marolf setting down the final eight Phoenix batters that came to the plate ... The Wildcats held a 7-1 lead until Elon scored two in the sixth and four in the seventh before Passino entered the game with two runners on base and one out.
NO SOPHOMORE SLUMP
K-State's leadoff hitter Will Brennan has shown no signs of slowing down after his freshman all-American campaign a year ago ... The sophomore left fielder ended 2017 on a 23-game on-base streak and has hit safely in all five games of 2018, extending his career-long streak to 28 games ... Last season, Brennan was the Big 12's most difficult player to strike out, going over 15 at-bats for every strikeout and has yet to go down on strikes this year ... Sophomore righty Kasey Ford earned the honor of being the Opening Day starter and struck out a career-best eight batters over five innings.
CAN'T TOUCH THIS
Through the season's first five games, the K-State pitching staff has accumulated 48 strikeouts against just 15 walks (9.7 K/9, 3.0 BB/9) ... The staff struck out a season-high 11 hitters with just one walk in a 6-5 victory over Virginia Tech ... Kasey Ford and Jared Marolf have topped their single-game highs they set last season, as Ford fanned eight Friday and Marolf punched out seven in relief at Coastal Carolina ... Twelve of K-State's 14 pitchers to appear have picked up multiple strikeouts.
GAME #6
K-STATE (2-3, 0-0 Big 12) at OLD DOMINION (2-2, 0-0 C-USA)
Friday, February 23, 2018 // 2 p.m. CT // Bud Metheny Baseball Complex (2,500) // Norfolk, Va.
Projected Starters: RHP Kasey Ford (0-0, 9.00 ERA) vs. RHP Jim Fluke (0-0, 6.75 ERA)
Radio: KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Mitch Fortner (play-by-play) / Christopher Brown (analyst)
Online Video: CUSA.TV ($)
Listen Online (free) | Live Stats
GAME #7
K-STATE (2-3, 0-0 Big 12) at OLD DOMINION (2-2, 0-0 C-USA)
Saturday, February 24, 2018 // 1 p.m. CT // Bud Metheny Baseball Complex (2,500) // Norfolk, Va.
Projected Starters: RHP Gabe Littlejim (0-1, 9.00 ERA) vs. RHP Hunter Gregory (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
Radio: KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Mitch Fortner (play-by-play) / Christopher Brown (analyst)
Online Video: CUSA.TV ($)
Listen Online (free) | Live Stats
GAME #8
K-STATE (2-3, 0-0 Big 12) at OLD DOMINION (2-2, 0-0 C-USA)
Sunday, February 25, 2018 // 11 a.m. CT // Bud Metheny Baseball Complex (2,500) // Norfolk, Va.
Projected Starters: RHP Justin Heskett (0-0, 4.50 ERA) vs. TBD
Radio: KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Mitch Fortner (play-by-play) / Christopher Brown (analyst)
Online Video: CUSA.TV ($)
Listen Online (free) | Live Stats
A LOOK AT K-STATE
Kansas State heads into a three-game series at Old Dominion with a 2-3 record following back-to-back wins over Virginia Tech and Elon ... K-State held on to a one-run victory over Elon Wednesday, 8-7 ... The Wildcats opened an early 5-0 lead after a four-run fourth inning ... Rainer Ausmus homered for the second straight game before the Phoenix scored four in the seventh to cut into the Cats' lead ... Jaxon Passino and Jared Marolf combined to retire the final eight batters to preserve the win ... Marolf collected his first career save ... K-State went 1-3 at the 19th Annual Brittain Resorts Baseball at the Beach in Myrtle Beach and Conway, South Carolina, against South Alabama, Indiana, Coastal Carolina and Virginia Tech.
2018 OUTLOOK
The Cats said farewell to nine seniors from the 2017 team, and 14 total letterwinners from a year ago, including Jake Scudder, who led the team each of the past two seasons in homers and RBI ... K-State welcomes in 14 newcomers to the 2018 Wildcats (11 freshmen. 3 transfers), to pair with key returners Will Brennan, Cameron Thompson, Kasey Ford and others ... K-State graduated its entire starting infield while catcher Josh Rolette was selected in last season's MLB Draft ... Four position players - Brennan, Thompson, Kyle Barfield and Hanz Harker - are the only players set to return that started at least 20 games last year ... The Cats will lean heavily on their group of newcomers, including junior-transfer Drew Mount who is expected to earn the starting center field job, moving Thompson to his natural position of shortstop ... K-State was selected to finish ninth in the Big 12's preseason coaches' poll, collecting nine points.
SCOUTING OLD DOMINION
Old Dominion (2-2) finished 1-2 in the season's opening weekend in Kissimmee, Florida, picking up a win over Saint Louis before falling to Oakland and Iowa ... ODU picked up a 4-2 victory over Richmond on Tuesday in its home opener ... The Monarchs were voted fifth in the Conference USA preseason coaches' poll and return 17 letterwinners from its 2017 roster that finished second in the league ... ODU was labeled "first team out" of the NCAA Tournament a year ago ... Sophomore outfielder Kyle Battle leads the offense with his .438 average ... Through four games, ODU is hitting .130 (6-for-46) with runners in scoring position, with Brian Morley collecting half of those hits ... The Monarchs featured six players in their Opening Day lineup making their first career start ... This is the first all-time meeting between K-State and Old Dominion.
MAKING A SPLASH
K-State welcomes 14 newcomers to its 2018 squad ... TK McWhertor, Rainer Ausmus and Drew Mount, all junior transfers, each collected their first hits in a Wildcat uniform as home runs ... McWhertor hit a two-run shot in his first at-bat in the season opener vs South Alabama, as he drove in four runs in the game after missing all of 2017 due to Tommy John surgery ... Ausmus hit a game-tying bomb in the sixth inning Monday against Virginia Tech while Mount's three-run homer proved to be the game-winning hit in the eighth inning against the Hokies ... Ausmus has homered in two straight games while Mount has driven in three runs in back-to-back games.
CARDIAC CATS
After three wins when trailing after seven innings last season, K-State has already picked up one such victory in 2018 (6-5 over Virginia Tech on Monday) ... The day before, K-State scored two runs in the top of the ninth inning to force extra innings at Coastal Carolina ... Cameron Thompson's two-run single in the ninth helped K-State erase a three-run deficit against the Chanticleers ... Mount's homer also erased a three-run hole for the Cats against Virginia Tech ... K-State collected a second one-run victory at Elon Wednesday, with Jaxon Passino and Jared Marolf setting down the final eight Phoenix batters that came to the plate ... The Wildcats held a 7-1 lead until Elon scored two in the sixth and four in the seventh before Passino entered the game with two runners on base and one out.
NO SOPHOMORE SLUMP
K-State's leadoff hitter Will Brennan has shown no signs of slowing down after his freshman all-American campaign a year ago ... The sophomore left fielder ended 2017 on a 23-game on-base streak and has hit safely in all five games of 2018, extending his career-long streak to 28 games ... Last season, Brennan was the Big 12's most difficult player to strike out, going over 15 at-bats for every strikeout and has yet to go down on strikes this year ... Sophomore righty Kasey Ford earned the honor of being the Opening Day starter and struck out a career-best eight batters over five innings.
CAN'T TOUCH THIS
Through the season's first five games, the K-State pitching staff has accumulated 48 strikeouts against just 15 walks (9.7 K/9, 3.0 BB/9) ... The staff struck out a season-high 11 hitters with just one walk in a 6-5 victory over Virginia Tech ... Kasey Ford and Jared Marolf have topped their single-game highs they set last season, as Ford fanned eight Friday and Marolf punched out seven in relief at Coastal Carolina ... Twelve of K-State's 14 pitchers to appear have picked up multiple strikeouts.
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