Kansas State University Athletics
Tuesday, April 19
Manhattan, Kan.
6 p.m.
Kansas State University
19-17
11
vs
3
Omaha
16-18
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Omaha
1
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
3
10
0
K-State
0
1
0
0
0
0
6
4
X
11
11
2
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
Heinrich’s Slam Propels K-State Over Omaha, 11-3
Apr 19, 2022 | Baseball
MANHATTAN, Kan. – K-State scored 10 runs over its final two innings, getting a go-ahead grand slam from Jeff Heinrich in the seventh, to power the Wildcats to an 11-3 victory over Omaha Tuesday night at Tointon Family Stadium.
At the seventh-inning stretch, K-State (18-17) found itself trailing 3-1. Three walks issued by Omaha reliever Tanner Olmstead loaded the bases for Heinrich, who delivered the Cats' first grand slam of the season and gave his team its first lead of the night.
Raphael Pelletier homered on the very next pitch and Cole Johnson later added an RBI single, as K-State finished with six runs in the inning. The Cats plated four more in the eighth to claim their fourth win over their last five games – all coming in the last six days.
"Nice stretch for our team, five games in six days puts a lot of pressure on your pitching staff and really your team to be able to play at a high energy level and we did that," head coach Pete Hughes said. "We went on the road yesterday (at Wichita State) and came back home and finished that stretch out. More than proud of our team over this stretch."
Entering the seventh, K-State's offense had gone 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position while stranding 10 baserunners. The Cats went 5-for-10 with men in scoring position in the seventh and eighth innings alone.
"Today it was a challenge, we played well from behind," Hughes said. "Missed some opportunities early, but we stayed with the game and stayed focused and built a really good lead in the seventh. No one panicked. That's what good baseball teams do, they play from behind and they get big hits."
K-State took advantage of seven walks issued by Omaha (16-18) relievers over the final two innings. Olmstead suffered the loss after he recorded one out while being tagged for five runs on two hits and three walks.
"It just felt like it was going to be one of those games that was not going to go our way," Hughes said. "So that was a huge relief with that specific matchup and that situation for Jeff Heinrich to come through. It just takes a lot of pressure off everyone."
In relief of starter Wesley Moore, Ty Ruhl (2-1) inherited a one-out, bases-loaded jam with his team trailing by a run in the fourth. The redshirt freshman righty induced an inning-ending 4-6-3 double play to escape any damage.
Ruhl found himself in another bases-loaded jam an inning later, this time with nobody out and a run in after he surrendered three straight singles and a walk to open the frame. He forced his second double play, a 1-2-3, followed by a groundout to keep his team within two runs at 3-1.
"Ty Ruhl sort of settled everything down and allowed us to have that (big seventh) inning," Hughes added. "You work out of the bases-loaded jam with no outs, that's equivalent, to me, to a three-run homer or grand slam. I told him I loved the situation when I took the mound visit, that I loved the fact that he was in the situation, because for us to be good down the stretch here, he's going to have to pitch himself out of those situations."
Ruhl went on to allow just one run over his 3 2/3 innings, striking out three. Moore lasted 3 1/3 innings in his start, striking out three with one earned run on four hits.
Dylan Phillips was forced to move from first base to the pitcher's mound with two outs and the bases loaded in the eighth and K-State owning a 7-3 lead.
Phillips struck out Will Hanafan to keep the Cats' lead safe, as he went on to finish the game and earn his second save of the season.
Four K-State pitchers combined to limit UNO to one hit with runners in scoring position (1-for-11) and two outs (1-for-8).
Cole Johnson went 3-for-6 with three RBI to lead the offense, as four Wildcats turned in multi-hit nights.
Heinrich and Pelletier each homered and doubled in the game. Josh Nicoloff was 2-for-5 with a run batted in.
Dominic Johnson reached base four times, drawing three walks and being hit by a pitch.
The Mavericks utilized nine pitchers in the game, as they totaled 10 walks and 10 strikeouts between them.
Mike Boeve was responsible for both of the Mavericks' runs batted in – an RBI double in the first and an RBI single in the fifth – as he went 2-for-4.
Devin Hurdle turned in a team-best three hits for UNO, ending the night 3-for-4.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Omaha took advantage of a one-out walk in the first, as Boeve doubled off the left field wall to score Hanafan from first base. The Mavericks doubled the lead an inning later after a failed pickoff attempt with runners on the corners allowed Hurdle to sprint home from third.
K-State trimmed the deficit in half with a bases-loaded walk draw by Dominic Johnson with one out. Reliever Cooper Prososki inherited the bases-loaded, one-out situation and retired the next two Wildcat hitters to escape the jam.
Ruhl inherited his own bases-loaded, one-out predicament in the top of the fourth. After falling behind 2-0, he induced a 4-6-3 twin killing to keep the Mavs off the scoreboard.
The first three UNO batters singled off Ruhl to begin the fifth, resulting in the Mavericks' third run. Later in the frame, Ruhl found himself in another bases-loaded situation with nobody out after issuing a walk. A 1-2-3 double play followed by a groundout limited the damage to a single run, as Omaha led 3-1 at the game's midway point.
The game remained a 3-1 score until the bottom of the seventh, as K-State loaded the bases with three walks drawn off Olmstead. Heinrich then connected on a go-ahead grand slam, giving the Cats their first lead of the game at 5-3. Pelletier followed with a solo shot, pushing the lead to 6-3 and ending Olmstead's outing.
An RBI single from Cole Johnson capped the six-run inning, as 10 Wildcats came to the plate, grabbing a 7-3 edge.
In the eighth, it was Omaha who loaded the bases against Tyson Neighbors. Phillips then moved from first base to the mound, getting an inning-ending strikeout of Hanafan to keep UNO off the board and the four-run lead intact.
K-State expanded its lead with four more runs in the eighth, getting an RBI single from Nicoloff and a two-RBI single from Cole Johnson. Ten of the Cats' 11 runs came in the seventh and eighth innings.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
UP NEXT
K-State hosts UC Irvine in a non-conference series, starting Friday at 6 p.m. The entire three-game series can be seen on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and with radio coverage on News Radio KMAN. Free, live audio is also available at K-StateSports.com/Watch.
At the seventh-inning stretch, K-State (18-17) found itself trailing 3-1. Three walks issued by Omaha reliever Tanner Olmstead loaded the bases for Heinrich, who delivered the Cats' first grand slam of the season and gave his team its first lead of the night.
Raphael Pelletier homered on the very next pitch and Cole Johnson later added an RBI single, as K-State finished with six runs in the inning. The Cats plated four more in the eighth to claim their fourth win over their last five games – all coming in the last six days.
"Nice stretch for our team, five games in six days puts a lot of pressure on your pitching staff and really your team to be able to play at a high energy level and we did that," head coach Pete Hughes said. "We went on the road yesterday (at Wichita State) and came back home and finished that stretch out. More than proud of our team over this stretch."
Entering the seventh, K-State's offense had gone 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position while stranding 10 baserunners. The Cats went 5-for-10 with men in scoring position in the seventh and eighth innings alone.
"Today it was a challenge, we played well from behind," Hughes said. "Missed some opportunities early, but we stayed with the game and stayed focused and built a really good lead in the seventh. No one panicked. That's what good baseball teams do, they play from behind and they get big hits."
K-State took advantage of seven walks issued by Omaha (16-18) relievers over the final two innings. Olmstead suffered the loss after he recorded one out while being tagged for five runs on two hits and three walks.
"It just felt like it was going to be one of those games that was not going to go our way," Hughes said. "So that was a huge relief with that specific matchup and that situation for Jeff Heinrich to come through. It just takes a lot of pressure off everyone."
In relief of starter Wesley Moore, Ty Ruhl (2-1) inherited a one-out, bases-loaded jam with his team trailing by a run in the fourth. The redshirt freshman righty induced an inning-ending 4-6-3 double play to escape any damage.
Ruhl found himself in another bases-loaded jam an inning later, this time with nobody out and a run in after he surrendered three straight singles and a walk to open the frame. He forced his second double play, a 1-2-3, followed by a groundout to keep his team within two runs at 3-1.
"Ty Ruhl sort of settled everything down and allowed us to have that (big seventh) inning," Hughes added. "You work out of the bases-loaded jam with no outs, that's equivalent, to me, to a three-run homer or grand slam. I told him I loved the situation when I took the mound visit, that I loved the fact that he was in the situation, because for us to be good down the stretch here, he's going to have to pitch himself out of those situations."
Ruhl went on to allow just one run over his 3 2/3 innings, striking out three. Moore lasted 3 1/3 innings in his start, striking out three with one earned run on four hits.
Dylan Phillips was forced to move from first base to the pitcher's mound with two outs and the bases loaded in the eighth and K-State owning a 7-3 lead.
Phillips struck out Will Hanafan to keep the Cats' lead safe, as he went on to finish the game and earn his second save of the season.
Four K-State pitchers combined to limit UNO to one hit with runners in scoring position (1-for-11) and two outs (1-for-8).
Cole Johnson went 3-for-6 with three RBI to lead the offense, as four Wildcats turned in multi-hit nights.
Heinrich and Pelletier each homered and doubled in the game. Josh Nicoloff was 2-for-5 with a run batted in.
Dominic Johnson reached base four times, drawing three walks and being hit by a pitch.
The Mavericks utilized nine pitchers in the game, as they totaled 10 walks and 10 strikeouts between them.
Mike Boeve was responsible for both of the Mavericks' runs batted in – an RBI double in the first and an RBI single in the fifth – as he went 2-for-4.
Devin Hurdle turned in a team-best three hits for UNO, ending the night 3-for-4.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Omaha took advantage of a one-out walk in the first, as Boeve doubled off the left field wall to score Hanafan from first base. The Mavericks doubled the lead an inning later after a failed pickoff attempt with runners on the corners allowed Hurdle to sprint home from third.
K-State trimmed the deficit in half with a bases-loaded walk draw by Dominic Johnson with one out. Reliever Cooper Prososki inherited the bases-loaded, one-out situation and retired the next two Wildcat hitters to escape the jam.
Ruhl inherited his own bases-loaded, one-out predicament in the top of the fourth. After falling behind 2-0, he induced a 4-6-3 twin killing to keep the Mavs off the scoreboard.
The first three UNO batters singled off Ruhl to begin the fifth, resulting in the Mavericks' third run. Later in the frame, Ruhl found himself in another bases-loaded situation with nobody out after issuing a walk. A 1-2-3 double play followed by a groundout limited the damage to a single run, as Omaha led 3-1 at the game's midway point.
The game remained a 3-1 score until the bottom of the seventh, as K-State loaded the bases with three walks drawn off Olmstead. Heinrich then connected on a go-ahead grand slam, giving the Cats their first lead of the game at 5-3. Pelletier followed with a solo shot, pushing the lead to 6-3 and ending Olmstead's outing.
An RBI single from Cole Johnson capped the six-run inning, as 10 Wildcats came to the plate, grabbing a 7-3 edge.
In the eighth, it was Omaha who loaded the bases against Tyson Neighbors. Phillips then moved from first base to the mound, getting an inning-ending strikeout of Hanafan to keep UNO off the board and the four-run lead intact.
K-State expanded its lead with four more runs in the eighth, getting an RBI single from Nicoloff and a two-RBI single from Cole Johnson. Ten of the Cats' 11 runs came in the seventh and eighth innings.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- K-State scored 11 runs on 11 hits with two errors and left 13 on base.
- Omaha scored three runs on 10 hits, committed no errors and stranded 12 baserunners.
- Heinrich hit a go-ahead grand slam in the bottom of the seventh inning.
- Ten of the Wildcats' 11 runs came in the seventh and eighth innings.
- Heinrich and Pelletier homered on consecutive pitches in the seventh.
- Ten batters came to the plate in K-State's six-run seventh.
- Cole Johnson went 3-for-6 with three RBI.
- Dominic Johnson reached base four times, drawing three walks while being hit by a pitch.
- Heinrich, Nicoloff and Pelletier each registered two-hit nights.
- Ruhl earned the win after allowing one run on five hits over 3 2/3 innings of relief.
- Moore got the start and logged 3 1/3 innings with two runs (one earned) on four hits.
- Four Wildcat pitchers combined to strike out 11 and walk seven.
- The K-State bullpen surrendered one earned run over 5 2/3 innings.
- Omaha utilized nine pitchers, who totaled 10 walks and 10 strikeouts.
- Olmstead suffered the loss after being tagged for five runs on two hits and three walks while recording one out.
- Hurdle led the Mavs with a 3-for-4 night.
- Boeve was responsible for both of UNO's runs batted in.
- K-State hit .238 with runners in scoring position and .200 with two outs.
- Omaha went 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position and 1-for-8 with two away.
- K-State leads the all-time series 16-2 with a 12-1 record at home.
- The Cats have won the last seven meetings in the series, including both in this year's home-and-home series.
- Hughes is 4-0 against UNO in his K-State career.
- The Wildcats have hit multiple home runs 15 times this season, improving to 11-4 in those contests.
- K-State has won four of its last five games overall, all coming in the last six days.
- The Cats have outscored their last two opponents 23-4 (Wichita State, Omaha).
- K-State scored double-digit runs in consecutive games for the third time this season.
UP NEXT
K-State hosts UC Irvine in a non-conference series, starting Friday at 6 p.m. The entire three-game series can be seen on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and with radio coverage on News Radio KMAN. Free, live audio is also available at K-StateSports.com/Watch.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Ruhl, Ty (2-1)
L: Tanner Olmstead (0-1)
S: Phillips, Dylan (2)
Batting:
2B: Mike Boeve 1 ; Cam Frederick 1
RBI: Mike Boeve 2
SH: Harrison Denk 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Harrison Denk 1 ; Will Hanafan 1 ; Devin Hurdle 1
SB: Will Hanafan 1 ; Mike Boeve 1
HBP: Eddie Satisky 1
Batting:
2B: Heinrich, Jeff 1 ; Pelletier, Raphael 1
HR: Heinrich, Jeff 1 ; Pelletier, Raphael 1
RBI: Johnson, Dominic 1 ; Johnson, Cole 3 ; Nicoloff, Josh 1 ; Heinrich, Jeff 4 ; Pelletier, Raphael 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Phillips, Dylan 1 ; Goodwin, Nick 2 ; Nicoloff, Josh 1 ; Culpepper, Kaelen 1 ; Day, Brady 1 ; Heinrich, Jeff 1 ; Pelletier, Raphael 2 ; Jones, Brendan 2
SB: Phillips, Dylan 1 ; Goodwin, Nick 1 ; Jones, Brendan 2
HBP: Johnson, Dominic 1 ; Pelletier, Raphael 1 ; Uselton, Cameron 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
cf/rf
AB
6
R
0
H
3
RBI
3
2b/1b
AB
5
R
1
H
2
RBI
1
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
4
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
1
Players Mentioned
INF
/ BaseballINF/OF
/ Baseball
OF
/ Baseball
LHP
/ Baseball
RHP
/ BaseballINF
/ BaseballC
/ Baseball
OF/LHP
/ Baseball
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