K-State Opens 2021 at Sanderson Ford College Classic
Feb 17, 2021 | Baseball
MANHATTAN, Kan. – K-State kicks off the 2021 baseball season at the Sanderson Ford College Classic at Surprise Stadium in Surprise, Arizona, as the Wildcats will take Oregon State, Gonzaga and New Mexico starting Friday.
K-State will take on the Beavers Friday at 1 p.m. CT before taking on Gonzaga (Saturday, Monday) and New Mexico (Sunday). The four-day event is hosted at Surprise Stadium, the Spring Training home of the Kansas City Royals and Texas Rangers.
The Wildcats finished the pandemic-shortened 2020 season with a 10-7 record, winning seven of their final nine games. Twenty-seven letterwinners return for 2021, including all nine position players and four starting pitchers headlined by Big 12 Preseason Co-Pitcher of the Year Jordan Wicks.
Wicks will take the mound on Opening Day. The lefty led all Big 12 starters with a .035 ERA last season and was named a preseason all-American by multiple outlets.
Right-hander Carson Seymour, a top-100 college prospect according to D1Baseball, will get the ball on Saturday. Connor McCullough takes the mound Sunday and senior Kasey Ford is slated to start in the finale on Monday.
All four games of the tournament will be broadcast on FloBaseball.TV (paid). Radio coverage will be available all weekend on News Radio KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) with live streaming audio at K-StateSports.com/watch and the K-State Sports app.
GAME #1
K-STATE (0-0) vs. OREGON STATE (0-0)
Friday, February 19 // 1 p.m. CT // Surprise Stadium (10,500) // Surprise, Ariz.
Projected Starters: LHP Jordan Wicks (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. RHP Kevin Abel (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
Watch: FloBaseball.TV ($)
Radio: KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Mitch Fortner, Christopher Brown
Listen Online: K-StateSports.com/watch // 1350KMAN.com
Listen Online | Live Stats
GAME #2
K-STATE (0-0) vs. GONZAGA (0-0)
Saturday, February 20 // 6 p.m. CT // Surprise Stadium (10,500) // Surprise, Ariz.
Projected Starters: RHP Carson Seymour (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. RHP Alek Jacob (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
Watch: FloBaseball.TV ($)
Radio: KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Mitch Fortner, Christopher Brown
Listen Online: K-StateSports.com/watch // 1350KMAN.com
Listen Online | Live Stats
GAME #3
K-STATE (0-0) vs. NEW MEXICO (0-0)
Sunday, February 21 // 6 p.m. CT // Surprise Stadium (10,500) // Surprise, Ariz.
Projected Starters: RHP Connor McCullough (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. RHP Tristin Lively (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
Watch: FloBaseball.TV ($)
Radio: KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Mitch Fortner, Christopher Brown
Listen Online: K-StateSports.com/watch // 1350KMAN.com
Listen Online | Live Stats
GAME #4
K-STATE (0-0) vs. GONZAGA (0-0)
Monday, February 22 // 11 a.m. CT // Surprise Stadium (10,500) // Surprise, Ariz.
Projected Starters: RHP Kasey Ford (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. RHP Trystan Vrieling (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
Watch: FloBaseball.TV ($)
Radio: KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Mitch Fortner, Christopher Brown
Listen Online: K-StateSports.com/watch // 1350KMAN.com
Listen Online | Live Stats
A LOOK AT K-STATE
K-State begins its 121st baseball season at the Sanderson Ford College Classic in Surprise, Arizona, where the Wildcats will meet Oregon State, Gonzaga and New Mexico over the four-day event ... The Cats' 2020 season ended after just 17 games due to the COVID-19 pandemic ... The Wildcats finished the season 10-7 after winning seven of their final nine games after a two-game split with South Dakota State and taking three of four games at Stanford ... K-State brings back all nine position starters as well as four starting pitchers from 2020, including the team leader in every statistical category ... In total, K-State retains 27 letterwinners while losing just three from a year ago ... The Cats welcome in 12 newcomers (eight freshmen) to their 2021 roster.
A LOOK THE FIELD
The field of the 2021 Sanderson Ford College Classic includes K-State, Gonzaga, New Mexico and Oregon State ... OSU, an NCAA Tournament team in 2019 and 2018 national champion, went 5-9 under first-year head coach Mitch Canham last season ... Gonzaga went 6-10 while New Mexico was 14-4 in the pandemic-shortened campaign.
INSIDE THE SERIES
K-State begins the 2021 season against 2018 nation champion Oregon State ... In the series history, the Beavers own an 8-4 edge after winning the last five in the series ... The Wildcats and Beavers last met in 2016, also in Surprise, Ariz., with OSU winnings 14-0 ... K-State and OSU clashed in the 2013 Corvallis Super Regional, with Oregon State advancing to the College World Series in three games ... The Cats and Bulldogs will meet for the first time and will play twice during the tournament ... K-State leads the all-time series with New Mexico, 8-7-1, after sweeping a two-game midweek series in Manhattan in 2017.
RETURN AISLE
The Wildcats bring back every statistical leader from 2020 along with its entire starting lineup and pitching rotation ... K-State lost just three letterwinners, including Luke Bay and Brett Lockwood ... Lockwood signed an undrafted free-agent contract with the Cincinnati Reds following the five-round 2020 MLB Draft ... Bay graduated from K-State and is currently a graduate assistant on Coach Hughes' staff.
GOING STREAKIN'
Zach Kokoska and Dylan Phillips each bring in career-best streaks into 2021 ... Kokoska reached base safely in each of the final 16 games of last season while Phillips put together an 11-game hitting streak ... Phillips went 7 for 11 with three homers and seven RBI in his last three games ... The K-State bullpen enters the new year on an extended streak of its own after not allowing a run over the final 22 innings of the season ... The streak began on March 7 at Stanford while 10 different Wildcat relievers have appeared, led by 5 2/3 innings from Zak Herbers.
WICKY WICKY YEAH
K-State lefty Jordan Wicks has racked up the preseason honors, including being named the 2021 Big 12 Co-Preseason Pitcher of the Year ... Wicks was tabbed a preseason all-American by D1Baseball, Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball and NCBWA ... The Conway, Ark., product is K-State's first preseason all-America nod since 2014 and the first Big 12 preseason of-the-year award winner.
LAST NINE
K-State won seven of its last nine games, limiting opponents to one or no runs in all seven wins ... During that nine-game stretch, the Wildcats have out-scored their opponents 78-17 for a +64 run differential ... Three Cats hit over .400 during the streak, with Zach Kokoska hitting a team-high .424 ... Terrence Spurlin drove in 16 over the last nine games while Dylan Phillips registered 12 RBI ... The K-State pitching staff boasted a 1.35 ERA (12 ER, 80.0 IP) over the last nine games.
WHAMMER HAMMER
Dylan Phillips tallied a career-high four hits in what would be the final game of 2020, extending his career-long hitting streak to 11 games ... Phillips launched two homers against South Dakota State, his second career multi-homer game, and drove in five in a 10-0 win ... The sophomore two-way player hit three home runs over his last three games and led K-State with five long balls (tied for second in the Big 12) ... Phillips has a dozen RBI over his last eight games.
PROMISING PROSPECTS
K-State's Jordan Wicks and Carson Seymour both cracked D1Baseball's top 100 collegiate prospects list ahead of the 2021 MLB Draft ... Wicks came in at No. 10 while Seymour was rated at No. 83 ... K-State was one of just three Big 12 teams with multiple selections on the top-100 list (TCU, Texas) ... Seymour checked in as the 56th-best prospect ahead of the 2020 MLB Draft by D1Baseball and No. 95 by MLB Pipeline.
IRON MAN, CAM
Cameron Thompson has started every game during his Wildcat career and is on the verge of breaking into the program's top-10 list in the category at 184 career starts ... Thompson eclipsed the 200-hit mark against Fairleigh Dickinson and is five hits away from cracking the top 10 in program history ... Thompson, a four-year senior and team captain, has started games in center field, third base, second base and shortstop ... Now slotted as the everyday third baseman, Thompson has led the Cats in hits in two of the last three seasons ... If the Pasadena, Texas, product starts all 52 scheduled regular-season games in 2021, he would tie Craig Wilson for the K-State record in career starts with 236 ... Thompson is also on the brink of K-State's career top-10 list in career at-bats, singles and games played.
FROM THE PEN
After logging 7 1/3 scoreless frames in the final victory over South Dakota State, the K-State bullpen extended its scoreless streak to 22 innings, going back to March 7 at Stanford ... Ten different Cat relievers appeared in that stretch, led by 5 2/3 scoreless innings from Zak Herbers ... Herbers earned two wins in that span while contributing in K-State's combined shutout Wednesday ... At home, the Wildcat pen boasted a 0.42 ERA (1 ER, 21.1 IP) with 25 strikeouts against eight walks ... Overall, the bullpen has a combined ERA of 1.72 with 61 strikeouts and four saves.
K-State will take on the Beavers Friday at 1 p.m. CT before taking on Gonzaga (Saturday, Monday) and New Mexico (Sunday). The four-day event is hosted at Surprise Stadium, the Spring Training home of the Kansas City Royals and Texas Rangers.
The Wildcats finished the pandemic-shortened 2020 season with a 10-7 record, winning seven of their final nine games. Twenty-seven letterwinners return for 2021, including all nine position players and four starting pitchers headlined by Big 12 Preseason Co-Pitcher of the Year Jordan Wicks.
Wicks will take the mound on Opening Day. The lefty led all Big 12 starters with a .035 ERA last season and was named a preseason all-American by multiple outlets.
Right-hander Carson Seymour, a top-100 college prospect according to D1Baseball, will get the ball on Saturday. Connor McCullough takes the mound Sunday and senior Kasey Ford is slated to start in the finale on Monday.
All four games of the tournament will be broadcast on FloBaseball.TV (paid). Radio coverage will be available all weekend on News Radio KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) with live streaming audio at K-StateSports.com/watch and the K-State Sports app.
GAME #1
K-STATE (0-0) vs. OREGON STATE (0-0)
Friday, February 19 // 1 p.m. CT // Surprise Stadium (10,500) // Surprise, Ariz.
Projected Starters: LHP Jordan Wicks (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. RHP Kevin Abel (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
Watch: FloBaseball.TV ($)
Radio: KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Mitch Fortner, Christopher Brown
Listen Online: K-StateSports.com/watch // 1350KMAN.com
Listen Online | Live Stats
GAME #2
K-STATE (0-0) vs. GONZAGA (0-0)
Saturday, February 20 // 6 p.m. CT // Surprise Stadium (10,500) // Surprise, Ariz.
Projected Starters: RHP Carson Seymour (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. RHP Alek Jacob (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
Watch: FloBaseball.TV ($)
Radio: KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Mitch Fortner, Christopher Brown
Listen Online: K-StateSports.com/watch // 1350KMAN.com
Listen Online | Live Stats
GAME #3
K-STATE (0-0) vs. NEW MEXICO (0-0)
Sunday, February 21 // 6 p.m. CT // Surprise Stadium (10,500) // Surprise, Ariz.
Projected Starters: RHP Connor McCullough (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. RHP Tristin Lively (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
Watch: FloBaseball.TV ($)
Radio: KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Mitch Fortner, Christopher Brown
Listen Online: K-StateSports.com/watch // 1350KMAN.com
Listen Online | Live Stats
GAME #4
K-STATE (0-0) vs. GONZAGA (0-0)
Monday, February 22 // 11 a.m. CT // Surprise Stadium (10,500) // Surprise, Ariz.
Projected Starters: RHP Kasey Ford (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. RHP Trystan Vrieling (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
Watch: FloBaseball.TV ($)
Radio: KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Mitch Fortner, Christopher Brown
Listen Online: K-StateSports.com/watch // 1350KMAN.com
Listen Online | Live Stats
A LOOK AT K-STATE
K-State begins its 121st baseball season at the Sanderson Ford College Classic in Surprise, Arizona, where the Wildcats will meet Oregon State, Gonzaga and New Mexico over the four-day event ... The Cats' 2020 season ended after just 17 games due to the COVID-19 pandemic ... The Wildcats finished the season 10-7 after winning seven of their final nine games after a two-game split with South Dakota State and taking three of four games at Stanford ... K-State brings back all nine position starters as well as four starting pitchers from 2020, including the team leader in every statistical category ... In total, K-State retains 27 letterwinners while losing just three from a year ago ... The Cats welcome in 12 newcomers (eight freshmen) to their 2021 roster.
A LOOK THE FIELD
The field of the 2021 Sanderson Ford College Classic includes K-State, Gonzaga, New Mexico and Oregon State ... OSU, an NCAA Tournament team in 2019 and 2018 national champion, went 5-9 under first-year head coach Mitch Canham last season ... Gonzaga went 6-10 while New Mexico was 14-4 in the pandemic-shortened campaign.
INSIDE THE SERIES
K-State begins the 2021 season against 2018 nation champion Oregon State ... In the series history, the Beavers own an 8-4 edge after winning the last five in the series ... The Wildcats and Beavers last met in 2016, also in Surprise, Ariz., with OSU winnings 14-0 ... K-State and OSU clashed in the 2013 Corvallis Super Regional, with Oregon State advancing to the College World Series in three games ... The Cats and Bulldogs will meet for the first time and will play twice during the tournament ... K-State leads the all-time series with New Mexico, 8-7-1, after sweeping a two-game midweek series in Manhattan in 2017.
RETURN AISLE
The Wildcats bring back every statistical leader from 2020 along with its entire starting lineup and pitching rotation ... K-State lost just three letterwinners, including Luke Bay and Brett Lockwood ... Lockwood signed an undrafted free-agent contract with the Cincinnati Reds following the five-round 2020 MLB Draft ... Bay graduated from K-State and is currently a graduate assistant on Coach Hughes' staff.
GOING STREAKIN'
Zach Kokoska and Dylan Phillips each bring in career-best streaks into 2021 ... Kokoska reached base safely in each of the final 16 games of last season while Phillips put together an 11-game hitting streak ... Phillips went 7 for 11 with three homers and seven RBI in his last three games ... The K-State bullpen enters the new year on an extended streak of its own after not allowing a run over the final 22 innings of the season ... The streak began on March 7 at Stanford while 10 different Wildcat relievers have appeared, led by 5 2/3 innings from Zak Herbers.
WICKY WICKY YEAH
K-State lefty Jordan Wicks has racked up the preseason honors, including being named the 2021 Big 12 Co-Preseason Pitcher of the Year ... Wicks was tabbed a preseason all-American by D1Baseball, Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball and NCBWA ... The Conway, Ark., product is K-State's first preseason all-America nod since 2014 and the first Big 12 preseason of-the-year award winner.
LAST NINE
K-State won seven of its last nine games, limiting opponents to one or no runs in all seven wins ... During that nine-game stretch, the Wildcats have out-scored their opponents 78-17 for a +64 run differential ... Three Cats hit over .400 during the streak, with Zach Kokoska hitting a team-high .424 ... Terrence Spurlin drove in 16 over the last nine games while Dylan Phillips registered 12 RBI ... The K-State pitching staff boasted a 1.35 ERA (12 ER, 80.0 IP) over the last nine games.
WHAMMER HAMMER
Dylan Phillips tallied a career-high four hits in what would be the final game of 2020, extending his career-long hitting streak to 11 games ... Phillips launched two homers against South Dakota State, his second career multi-homer game, and drove in five in a 10-0 win ... The sophomore two-way player hit three home runs over his last three games and led K-State with five long balls (tied for second in the Big 12) ... Phillips has a dozen RBI over his last eight games.
PROMISING PROSPECTS
K-State's Jordan Wicks and Carson Seymour both cracked D1Baseball's top 100 collegiate prospects list ahead of the 2021 MLB Draft ... Wicks came in at No. 10 while Seymour was rated at No. 83 ... K-State was one of just three Big 12 teams with multiple selections on the top-100 list (TCU, Texas) ... Seymour checked in as the 56th-best prospect ahead of the 2020 MLB Draft by D1Baseball and No. 95 by MLB Pipeline.
IRON MAN, CAM
Cameron Thompson has started every game during his Wildcat career and is on the verge of breaking into the program's top-10 list in the category at 184 career starts ... Thompson eclipsed the 200-hit mark against Fairleigh Dickinson and is five hits away from cracking the top 10 in program history ... Thompson, a four-year senior and team captain, has started games in center field, third base, second base and shortstop ... Now slotted as the everyday third baseman, Thompson has led the Cats in hits in two of the last three seasons ... If the Pasadena, Texas, product starts all 52 scheduled regular-season games in 2021, he would tie Craig Wilson for the K-State record in career starts with 236 ... Thompson is also on the brink of K-State's career top-10 list in career at-bats, singles and games played.
FROM THE PEN
After logging 7 1/3 scoreless frames in the final victory over South Dakota State, the K-State bullpen extended its scoreless streak to 22 innings, going back to March 7 at Stanford ... Ten different Cat relievers appeared in that stretch, led by 5 2/3 scoreless innings from Zak Herbers ... Herbers earned two wins in that span while contributing in K-State's combined shutout Wednesday ... At home, the Wildcat pen boasted a 0.42 ERA (1 ER, 21.1 IP) with 25 strikeouts against eight walks ... Overall, the bullpen has a combined ERA of 1.72 with 61 strikeouts and four saves.
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