Kansas State University Athletics
Wednesday, March 27
Wichita, Kan.
6 p.m.
Kansas State University
at
Wichita State
K-State Makes Wednesday Trip to Wichita
Mar 26, 2019 | Baseball
MANHATTAN, Kan. – K-State travels to Wichita to renew a rivalry with Wichita State that dates back to 1906, as the Wildcats and Shockers are set to clash at 6 p.m. on Wednesday at Eck Stadium.
K-State (11-13) has won 10 of the last 12 meetings with the Shockers (11-12), including a 7-3 victory last season at Eck Stadium in the season's only meeting. WSU leads the all-time series 53-41.
The Wildcats enter the Wednesday night tilt on a season-long three-game skid after being swept by Oklahoma State over the weekend. Wichita State has won four of its last five games overall and are in the midst of a 14-game homestand.
Wednesday night's game will be broadcast on Cox YurView Kansas and the K-State Sports Radio Network. Live, streaming audio is also available at K-StateSports.com/watch.
GAME #25
K-STATE (11-13) at WICHITA STATE (11-12)
Wednesday, March 27 // 6 p.m. // Eck Stadium (7,851) // Wichita, Kan.
Projected Starters: RHP Kasey Ford (0-0, 13.83 ERA) vs. RHP Ryan Stuempfig (0-0, 8.59 ERA)
Watch: Cox YurView Kansas
Radio: K-State Sports Radio Network // Brian Smoller and Matt Walters
Listen Online: K-StateSports.com/watch
Watch | Listen Online | Live Stats
A LOOK AT K-STATE
K-State (11-13) enters its midweek matchup with in-state rival Wichita State after being swept in a three-game series at Oklahoma State to begin Big 12 play ... The Wildcats begin conference play 0-3 for the fifth straight season ... Chris Ceballos led the way offensively for the Cats, picking up six base hits and hitting .545 to go with a home run and two RBI ... Ceballos' slash line of .545/.615/.818 paced the Cats for the weekend ... Thomas Hughes hit .455 (5-for-11) in the series with at least one hit in all three games while Rainer Ausmus had three doubles and scored four times ... Freshman lefty Jordan Wicks matched his career high with eight strikeouts in his start on the mound Saturday, going five innings with three earned runs allowed in a no decision ... Despite being outscored by the Cowboys in the series 24-12, K-State held a lead Saturday and Sunday before OSU rallied to complete the sweep ... In 19 of 24 games this season, the Wildcats have held a lead at some point in the game ... K-State's three-game losing skid is a season high as the Wildcats have dropped four of their last five overall.
A LOOK AT WICHITA STATE
Wichita State comes into the week with an 11-12 record, continuing its 14-game homestand ... Wednesday night's matchup will mark the 11th straight home game for the Shockers ... WSU has won four of its last five games after dropping the series finale to Memphis in their league-opening series ... So far in 2019, Wichita State is 1-4 against the Big 12 after being swept in a three-game set by Texas Tech along with falling to Oklahoma State earlier this year ... The Shockers defeated Kansas 3-2 in 13 innings on March 20 ... Offensively, WSU is led by Jordan Boyer who has a slash line of .400/.500/.573 to go with two home runs and 15 RBI ... Luke Ritter has blasted a team-high five home runs to go with 20 runs driven in ... The Shockers will start right-handed pitcher Ryan Stuempfig, who has a 0-0 record with an 8.59 ERA ... Stuempfig will be making his third start of the year and has walked eight with five strikeouts.
A LOOK AT THE SERIES
A rivalry that dates back to 1906, Wichita State leads the all-time series 53-41 ... Last season, K-State took the only meeting by a score of 7-3 in Wichita ... In the victory, senior righty Justin Heskett tossed a complete game for K-State, allowing three earned runs on six hits with four strikeouts ... The Cats are 16-33 all-time in Wichita and are 5-5 in the last 10 games at Eck Stadium ... K-State is 10-2 in the last 10 games in the series, going back to 2013.
MIDWEEK SUCCESS
In six midweek games this season, K-State is 4-2 while hitting .313 as a team ... Will Brennan and Zach Kokoska each have 10 base hits in six midweek affairs, as Brennan has four doubles while Kokoska has a team-high seven RBI ... Caleb Littlejim has hit two of his four homers and five extra-base hits during the midweek ... As a team, the Cats have 28 extra-base hits, including 18 doubles, in averaging 7.2 runs per game during midweek games.
WINNING TIME
In K-State's 11 wins, the Wildcats are hitting .390 (39-for-100) with runners in scoring position and .366 (49-for-131) with two outs ... Conversely, the Cats have a .200 average (25-for-125) with runners in scoring position while hitting .143 (19-for-133) with two outs over 13 losses ... K-State has produced 29 two-out RBI in victories with just 11 over 13 losses ... Overall, K-State hits nearly .100 points higher in wins as opposed to losses (.324-.237).
WHATS THE SITCH?
In the three-game series at Oklahoma State, K-State went 5-for-28 (.179) with runners in scoring position while stranding 29 runners on base ... With two outs, the Wildcats hit .206 (7-for-34) with just three two-out RBI in the series ... Senior Thomas Hughes went 3-for-3 with runners in scoring position with a two-out RBI against the Cowboys.
NO K FOR YOU
Junior Will Brennan owns the title of toughest to strike out in the Big 12, going 15.3 at-bats per strikeout this season (92 AB, 6 K) ... Brennan's rate is the 13th-best in the nation ... The Stilwell product has finished each of the last two seasons as the toughest hitter in the conference to punch out ... In 2017, Brennan had 12 strikeouts in 183 at-bats and only went down on strikes 11 times in 220 at-bats last season.
Z-U-B-R-A-D-T SPELLS RELIEF
Senior Mitch Zubradt has now thrown the final out in seven of K-State's 11 wins, including the Wildcats' first four wins of the year ... In 12 total innings thrown, Zubradt has given up just two hits without a run allowed while picking up 17 strikeouts ... He is 4-for-4 in save opportunities - the first saves of his career - with a victory ... Opponents are hitting a microscopic .054 against him in 2019.
CC ARE YOU WITH ME
K-State catcher Chris Ceballos led the Cats in the Big 12 opening weekend, going 6-for-11 with a home run and two RBI ... Ceballos leads K-State with 21 runs batted in and is tied for the team lead with four home runs (Caleb Littlejim) ... The junior-college transfer leads the Wildcats in slugging at .563 and over the last five games, owns a team-high .438 average (7-for-16) ... The first-year backstop has already gunned down 10 would-be base stealers, as opponents are 17-for-27 in steal attempts against Ceballos ... Ceballos has started 19 of 24 games behind the plate and has hit safely in his last four games, with an RBI in three of his last four.
FUN WITH NUMBERS
K-State has held a lead in 19 of 24 games this season and are 10-2 when leading after six innings ... When leading after eight innings, K-State is a perfect 9-0 ... The Cats have a record of 10-4 when limiting their opponent to five or fewer runs ... K-State is 0-8 when its opponent plates seven or more runs (1-9 when scoring six or more) ... Opponents have outscored the Wildcats 21-11 in the first inning of games while K-State outscores its opponents 13-5 in the ninth inning.
K-State (11-13) has won 10 of the last 12 meetings with the Shockers (11-12), including a 7-3 victory last season at Eck Stadium in the season's only meeting. WSU leads the all-time series 53-41.
The Wildcats enter the Wednesday night tilt on a season-long three-game skid after being swept by Oklahoma State over the weekend. Wichita State has won four of its last five games overall and are in the midst of a 14-game homestand.
Wednesday night's game will be broadcast on Cox YurView Kansas and the K-State Sports Radio Network. Live, streaming audio is also available at K-StateSports.com/watch.
GAME #25
K-STATE (11-13) at WICHITA STATE (11-12)
Wednesday, March 27 // 6 p.m. // Eck Stadium (7,851) // Wichita, Kan.
Projected Starters: RHP Kasey Ford (0-0, 13.83 ERA) vs. RHP Ryan Stuempfig (0-0, 8.59 ERA)
Watch: Cox YurView Kansas
Radio: K-State Sports Radio Network // Brian Smoller and Matt Walters
Listen Online: K-StateSports.com/watch
Watch | Listen Online | Live Stats
A LOOK AT K-STATE
K-State (11-13) enters its midweek matchup with in-state rival Wichita State after being swept in a three-game series at Oklahoma State to begin Big 12 play ... The Wildcats begin conference play 0-3 for the fifth straight season ... Chris Ceballos led the way offensively for the Cats, picking up six base hits and hitting .545 to go with a home run and two RBI ... Ceballos' slash line of .545/.615/.818 paced the Cats for the weekend ... Thomas Hughes hit .455 (5-for-11) in the series with at least one hit in all three games while Rainer Ausmus had three doubles and scored four times ... Freshman lefty Jordan Wicks matched his career high with eight strikeouts in his start on the mound Saturday, going five innings with three earned runs allowed in a no decision ... Despite being outscored by the Cowboys in the series 24-12, K-State held a lead Saturday and Sunday before OSU rallied to complete the sweep ... In 19 of 24 games this season, the Wildcats have held a lead at some point in the game ... K-State's three-game losing skid is a season high as the Wildcats have dropped four of their last five overall.
A LOOK AT WICHITA STATE
Wichita State comes into the week with an 11-12 record, continuing its 14-game homestand ... Wednesday night's matchup will mark the 11th straight home game for the Shockers ... WSU has won four of its last five games after dropping the series finale to Memphis in their league-opening series ... So far in 2019, Wichita State is 1-4 against the Big 12 after being swept in a three-game set by Texas Tech along with falling to Oklahoma State earlier this year ... The Shockers defeated Kansas 3-2 in 13 innings on March 20 ... Offensively, WSU is led by Jordan Boyer who has a slash line of .400/.500/.573 to go with two home runs and 15 RBI ... Luke Ritter has blasted a team-high five home runs to go with 20 runs driven in ... The Shockers will start right-handed pitcher Ryan Stuempfig, who has a 0-0 record with an 8.59 ERA ... Stuempfig will be making his third start of the year and has walked eight with five strikeouts.
A LOOK AT THE SERIES
A rivalry that dates back to 1906, Wichita State leads the all-time series 53-41 ... Last season, K-State took the only meeting by a score of 7-3 in Wichita ... In the victory, senior righty Justin Heskett tossed a complete game for K-State, allowing three earned runs on six hits with four strikeouts ... The Cats are 16-33 all-time in Wichita and are 5-5 in the last 10 games at Eck Stadium ... K-State is 10-2 in the last 10 games in the series, going back to 2013.
MIDWEEK SUCCESS
In six midweek games this season, K-State is 4-2 while hitting .313 as a team ... Will Brennan and Zach Kokoska each have 10 base hits in six midweek affairs, as Brennan has four doubles while Kokoska has a team-high seven RBI ... Caleb Littlejim has hit two of his four homers and five extra-base hits during the midweek ... As a team, the Cats have 28 extra-base hits, including 18 doubles, in averaging 7.2 runs per game during midweek games.
WINNING TIME
In K-State's 11 wins, the Wildcats are hitting .390 (39-for-100) with runners in scoring position and .366 (49-for-131) with two outs ... Conversely, the Cats have a .200 average (25-for-125) with runners in scoring position while hitting .143 (19-for-133) with two outs over 13 losses ... K-State has produced 29 two-out RBI in victories with just 11 over 13 losses ... Overall, K-State hits nearly .100 points higher in wins as opposed to losses (.324-.237).
WHATS THE SITCH?
In the three-game series at Oklahoma State, K-State went 5-for-28 (.179) with runners in scoring position while stranding 29 runners on base ... With two outs, the Wildcats hit .206 (7-for-34) with just three two-out RBI in the series ... Senior Thomas Hughes went 3-for-3 with runners in scoring position with a two-out RBI against the Cowboys.
NO K FOR YOU
Junior Will Brennan owns the title of toughest to strike out in the Big 12, going 15.3 at-bats per strikeout this season (92 AB, 6 K) ... Brennan's rate is the 13th-best in the nation ... The Stilwell product has finished each of the last two seasons as the toughest hitter in the conference to punch out ... In 2017, Brennan had 12 strikeouts in 183 at-bats and only went down on strikes 11 times in 220 at-bats last season.
Z-U-B-R-A-D-T SPELLS RELIEF
Senior Mitch Zubradt has now thrown the final out in seven of K-State's 11 wins, including the Wildcats' first four wins of the year ... In 12 total innings thrown, Zubradt has given up just two hits without a run allowed while picking up 17 strikeouts ... He is 4-for-4 in save opportunities - the first saves of his career - with a victory ... Opponents are hitting a microscopic .054 against him in 2019.
CC ARE YOU WITH ME
K-State catcher Chris Ceballos led the Cats in the Big 12 opening weekend, going 6-for-11 with a home run and two RBI ... Ceballos leads K-State with 21 runs batted in and is tied for the team lead with four home runs (Caleb Littlejim) ... The junior-college transfer leads the Wildcats in slugging at .563 and over the last five games, owns a team-high .438 average (7-for-16) ... The first-year backstop has already gunned down 10 would-be base stealers, as opponents are 17-for-27 in steal attempts against Ceballos ... Ceballos has started 19 of 24 games behind the plate and has hit safely in his last four games, with an RBI in three of his last four.
FUN WITH NUMBERS
K-State has held a lead in 19 of 24 games this season and are 10-2 when leading after six innings ... When leading after eight innings, K-State is a perfect 9-0 ... The Cats have a record of 10-4 when limiting their opponent to five or fewer runs ... K-State is 0-8 when its opponent plates seven or more runs (1-9 when scoring six or more) ... Opponents have outscored the Wildcats 21-11 in the first inning of games while K-State outscores its opponents 13-5 in the ninth inning.
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