Kansas State University Athletics
Saturday, March 19
Manhattan, Kan.
4 p.m.
Kansas State University
10-7
15
vs
2
Morehead State
7-11
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Morehead State
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
2
5
2
K-State
1
0
1
2
2
2
1
6
X
15
17
0
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
Photo by: Scott D. Weaver / K-State Athletics
K-State’s Offense Stays Hot in 15-2 Win Over Morehead State
Mar 19, 2022 | Baseball
MANHATTAN, Kan. – K-State backed Connor McCullough's seven-inning outing with a season-high 15 runs, 13 extra-base hits and four homers Saturday, as the Wildcats cliched the weekend series and extended their winning streak to seven games with a 15-2 triumph over Morehead State at Tointon Family Stadium.
K-State (10-7) scored in every inning except the second, tallying multiple runs in four separate innings. Ten Wildcats recorded a base hit with five finishing with multiple hits and five producing multiple RBI. K-State's offense has produced double-digit hits in 11 of its last 12 games, including each of the last six.
"Good all-around win," head coach Pete Hughes. "Any time you can score in seven out your eight plate appearances, it's consistency and guys are staying focused and locked in. I did not like the way we played with leads earlier in the season. We'd jump out to a lead and then shut it down after the third or fourth inning. The last two days we've been consistent and hungry.
"We get a really good start by Connor McCullough, and I thought we played good defense again. Offense was the storyline of the day even excluding that big (eighth) inning."
K-State leadoff man Dominic Johnson continued his torrid run, going 3-for-3 with three doubles. His three-double performance tied the single-game program record for doubles in a game, last happening in 2009. In the series, Johnson is 7-for-8 with four doubles and has registered multiple hits in each of his last eight games.
"He's on fire," Hughes said of Johnson. "I haven't seen too many guys as hot for this long and everything's hit hard, too. He's awful tough to pitch to, we need to keep him right where he's at."
Brady Day laced an RBI double in the first and Dylan Phillips followed suit in the third to hand the Cats an early 2-0 lead. Orlando Salinas promptly doubled the advantage with a 426-foot blast over the videoboard in right field.
The early offense was more than enough to support McCullough's season-long start. McCullough collected his third win of the season after striking out a season-best eight hitters and allowing just three hits with a walk.
"He had a good fastball, I thought," Hughes added of McCullough. "He held his velocity longer than I've seen in the past. Everything was pitched off his fastball today, usually I saw that about his breaking ball. I thought he had a good fastball, he located it in and out. Once he shows that breaking ball, though, it stays in the backs of those hitter's heads and makes his fastball even better."
The redshirt sophomore right-hander yielded just one hit over his first six frames of work and sat down Morehead State (7-11) in order three times. The lone run against him came in the fifth in which the Eagles did not register a hit. McCullough issued a walk and hit a batter and allowed a run on a groundout RBI.
The Cats responded in the next half inning, as Phillips' second run-producing hit brought home Johnson. Nick Goodwin added a sacrifice fly for the second of three consecutive two-run innings.
In the sixth, Day turned in his second RBI knock of the afternoon, a single up the middle to score Salinas. Day finished the day 2-for-4 with a double and two runs batted in.
K-State would bring 10 hitters to the plate in its six-run eighth inning. Dominic Hughes sparked the inning with a leadoff home run, his first of the campaign. Jeff Heinrich followed with a pinch-hit shot and, later in the inning, Cameron Uselton belted a three-run, pinch-hit bomb.
Entering Sunday, K-State had not had a pinch-hit homer since 2013.
The eighth-inning damage came off MSU reliever Ethan Young, who did not record an out. His line featured six runs (five earned) on five hits while facing six hitters.
Morehead State starter Alex Kafka took the loss after giving up six runs on seven hits with one strikeout.
Colton Becker and Alex Jacobs each doubled and turned in a pair of base hits, as the duo accounted for four of their team's five hits.
K-State's seven-game winning streak is its longest since 2017 and tied for the second longest since 2014 (12).
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
With K-State leading 2-0 in the fourth, Salinas blasted the first pitch he saw over the videoboard in right field. His two-run bomb, his second of the season, doubled the Wildcats' lead.
The two-run fourth was the first of three consecutive innings in which K-State scored two runs, as RBIs from Phillips in Goodwin came in the fifth. Day picked up his second run batted in the sixth.
K-State broke the game open with a three-homer, six-run eighth inning in which 10 hitters came to the plate. Hughes and Heinrich went back to back before Uselton later lifted a three-run home run.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
UP NEXT
K-State and Morehead State complete the series Sunday at 1 p.m. The game will be broadcast on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. Radio coverage can be heard on News Radio KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) with free, live audio is also available at K-StateSports.com/Watch.
K-State (10-7) scored in every inning except the second, tallying multiple runs in four separate innings. Ten Wildcats recorded a base hit with five finishing with multiple hits and five producing multiple RBI. K-State's offense has produced double-digit hits in 11 of its last 12 games, including each of the last six.
"Good all-around win," head coach Pete Hughes. "Any time you can score in seven out your eight plate appearances, it's consistency and guys are staying focused and locked in. I did not like the way we played with leads earlier in the season. We'd jump out to a lead and then shut it down after the third or fourth inning. The last two days we've been consistent and hungry.
"We get a really good start by Connor McCullough, and I thought we played good defense again. Offense was the storyline of the day even excluding that big (eighth) inning."
K-State leadoff man Dominic Johnson continued his torrid run, going 3-for-3 with three doubles. His three-double performance tied the single-game program record for doubles in a game, last happening in 2009. In the series, Johnson is 7-for-8 with four doubles and has registered multiple hits in each of his last eight games.
"He's on fire," Hughes said of Johnson. "I haven't seen too many guys as hot for this long and everything's hit hard, too. He's awful tough to pitch to, we need to keep him right where he's at."
Brady Day laced an RBI double in the first and Dylan Phillips followed suit in the third to hand the Cats an early 2-0 lead. Orlando Salinas promptly doubled the advantage with a 426-foot blast over the videoboard in right field.
The early offense was more than enough to support McCullough's season-long start. McCullough collected his third win of the season after striking out a season-best eight hitters and allowing just three hits with a walk.
"He had a good fastball, I thought," Hughes added of McCullough. "He held his velocity longer than I've seen in the past. Everything was pitched off his fastball today, usually I saw that about his breaking ball. I thought he had a good fastball, he located it in and out. Once he shows that breaking ball, though, it stays in the backs of those hitter's heads and makes his fastball even better."
The redshirt sophomore right-hander yielded just one hit over his first six frames of work and sat down Morehead State (7-11) in order three times. The lone run against him came in the fifth in which the Eagles did not register a hit. McCullough issued a walk and hit a batter and allowed a run on a groundout RBI.
The Cats responded in the next half inning, as Phillips' second run-producing hit brought home Johnson. Nick Goodwin added a sacrifice fly for the second of three consecutive two-run innings.
In the sixth, Day turned in his second RBI knock of the afternoon, a single up the middle to score Salinas. Day finished the day 2-for-4 with a double and two runs batted in.
K-State would bring 10 hitters to the plate in its six-run eighth inning. Dominic Hughes sparked the inning with a leadoff home run, his first of the campaign. Jeff Heinrich followed with a pinch-hit shot and, later in the inning, Cameron Uselton belted a three-run, pinch-hit bomb.
Entering Sunday, K-State had not had a pinch-hit homer since 2013.
The eighth-inning damage came off MSU reliever Ethan Young, who did not record an out. His line featured six runs (five earned) on five hits while facing six hitters.
Morehead State starter Alex Kafka took the loss after giving up six runs on seven hits with one strikeout.
Colton Becker and Alex Jacobs each doubled and turned in a pair of base hits, as the duo accounted for four of their team's five hits.
K-State's seven-game winning streak is its longest since 2017 and tied for the second longest since 2014 (12).
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
With K-State leading 2-0 in the fourth, Salinas blasted the first pitch he saw over the videoboard in right field. His two-run bomb, his second of the season, doubled the Wildcats' lead.
The two-run fourth was the first of three consecutive innings in which K-State scored two runs, as RBIs from Phillips in Goodwin came in the fifth. Day picked up his second run batted in the sixth.
K-State broke the game open with a three-homer, six-run eighth inning in which 10 hitters came to the plate. Hughes and Heinrich went back to back before Uselton later lifted a three-run home run.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- K-State scored 15 runs on 17 hits, committed no errors and left seven on base.
- Morehead State scored two runs on five hits with two errors and stranded six baserunners.
- The Wildcats scored in seven of eight innings, scoring multiple runs in four frames.
- K-State reached a season high in runs and matched its season high in hits.
- The Cats eclipsed double-digit hits for the sixth straight game and the 11th time over the last 12 contests.
- Nine doubles and four home runs were also season highs.
- Johnson and Salinas led the way with three hits each.
- Johnson was 3-for-3 with three doubles, a walk and four runs scored.
- Johnson's three doubles marked just the 10th time in program history a player has accomplished the feat, last happening in 2009 (Drew Biery).
- Salinas doubled twice and hit his second home run of the year.
- K-State lifted a season-high four home runs in the game, three coming in a six-run eighth.
- Hughes and Heinrich hit back-to-back runs in the eighth.
- Heinrich and Uselton both hit pinch-hit home runs in the eighth (K-State last had a pinch-hit home run in 2013).
- Ten Cats registered a base hit, while five turned in multi-hit games and five finished with multiple RBI.
- Dominic Johnson is 7-for-8 with four doubles and two RBI in the series.
- Brendan Jones recorded his first collegiate hit in the eighth inning.
- McCullough went a season-long seven innings with a season-best eight strikeouts.
- McCullough, Tyson Neighbors and Wesley Moore combined for 11 strikeouts against two walks.
- It is the 10th time this year K-State has struck out at least 11 batters.
- Becker and Jacobs both doubled and tallied two hits to lead Morehead State.
- Kafka took the loss after allowing six runs (five earned) on five hits over five innings.
- K-State hit .304 with runners in scoring position while MSU hit .125.
- The Wildcats recorded a leadoff hit in five of eight innings.
- K-State leads the all-time series 4-1 and has won the last four matchups.
- K-State is 4-0 at home in the series.
- The Wildcats' seven-game winning streak is the longest such streak under Hughes.
- Johnson pushed his hitting streak to 12 games, with multiple hits in each of his last eight contests.
- Josh Nicoloff now has a 11-game hitting streak and Cole Johnson owns an 10-game on-base streak.
- K-State's seven-game winning streak is its longest since 2017 and tied for the second longest since 2014 (12).
- The Cats have won their first six home games for the first time since 2014 (started 11-0 at home).
UP NEXT
K-State and Morehead State complete the series Sunday at 1 p.m. The game will be broadcast on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. Radio coverage can be heard on News Radio KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) with free, live audio is also available at K-StateSports.com/Watch.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: McCullough, Connor (3-1)
L: KAFKA, Alex (1-2)
Batting:
2B: JACOBS, Alex 1 ; BECKER, Colton 1
RBI: BECKER, Colton 1 ; ROY, Ashton 1
SH: BECKER, Colton 1
Base Running:
RUNS: GOODEN, Nick 1 ; CASTLEMAN, Logan 1
HBP: GOODEN, Nick 1
Batting:
2B: Johnson, Dominic 3 ; Day, Brady 1 ; Phillips, Dylan 1 ; Nicoloff, Josh 1 ; Goodwin, Nick 1 ; Salinas, Jr., Orlando 2
HR: Hughes, Dom 1 ; Heinrich, Jeff 1 ; Uselton, Cameron 1 ; Salinas, Jr., Orlando 1
RBI: Hughes, Dom 1 ; Day, Brady 2 ; Heinrich, Jeff 1 ; Phillips, Dylan 2 ; Goodwin, Nick 2 ; Uselton, Cameron 3 ; Salinas, Jr., Orlando 2
SF: Goodwin, Nick 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Johnson, Dominic 4 ; Hughes, Dom 1 ; Day, Brady 1 ; Heinrich, Jeff 1 ; Jones, Brendan 1 ; Nicoloff, Josh 1 ; Rugely, Cash 1 ; Goodwin, Nick 1 ; Johnson, Cole 1 ; Uselton, Cameron 1 ; Salinas, Jr., Orlando 2
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
3
R
4
H
3
RBI
0
AB
5
R
2
H
3
RBI
2
AB
4
R
0
H
2
RBI
2
Players Mentioned
INF/OF
/ BaseballOF
/ Baseball
OF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
LHP
/ Baseball
RHP
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