Kansas State University Athletics
Sunday, April 24
Manhattan, Kan.
11 a.m.
Kansas State University
21-18
5
vs
3
UC Irvine
22-15
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
UC Irvine
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
3
7
0
K-State
0
1
0
0
2
2
0
0
X
5
8
1
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
Hassall, Home Runs Punctuate Wildcats’ Series Win Sunday
Apr 24, 2022 | Baseball
MANHATTAN, Kan. – Griffin Hassall turned in a quality start while his offense hit three home runs, including a go-ahead shot from Nick Goodwin, and K-State claimed a 5-3 win over UC Irvine in the series' rubber game Sunday at Tointon Family Stadium.
Hassall logged a season-high six innings, as he allowed just one earned run on four hits. Goodwin, along with Brady Day and Cole Johnson, each homered as all five of K-State's runs came via the long ball. Goodwin's home run was a two-run blast with two outs in the fifth inning, giving the Wildcats (21-18) their first lead of the day.
"Really good win for our program for a lot of reasons," said head coach Pete Hughes. "You love to see resiliency; your team bounce back after getting it put to us pretty good yesterday. To have a quick turnaround with the morning game and to play with energy and urgency and efficiency. I loved seeing that. I loved seeing us play good in a series-deciding game. I loved seeing us have conference energy against a really good opponent.
"It begins and ends with really good pitching. Griffin Hassall did his thing and he's ever dependable and allowed us to build a lead and allowed us to get some big hits. And we did it with two outs, another sign of a good baseball team. So today was a really good day for our program."
Hassall's six innings marked a season high – and his longest outing since his freshman season in 2019. The right-hander surrendered one hit after the third inning in keeping UC Irvine (22-15) scoreless over his last three frames.
"Mixing up speeds, keeping them off balance," Hughes added on Hassall's outing. "You can out-guess, but against these guys you have to locate or they're going to burn you. So really Griff did a great job of keeping those guys off balance and executing our game plan. His ability to throw strikes and stay out of fastball counts was the key to his performance today."
The Anteaters scored the game's initial run, as they took advantage of a Wildcat error that extended the second inning. Luke Spillane lifted a sacrifice fly that allowed Justin Torres to race home.
Day answered UCI's run when he led off the bottom of the inning with his first career blast, coming off starter Cameron Wheeler. Day matched his career high with three hits in a 3-for-4 day.
Ben Fitzgerald reclaimed a one-run lead for UCI with a solo home run in the third. It was Fitzgerald's third of the series, as he homered twice in Saturday's contest.
It remained a one-run tilt until the bottom of the fifth inning. Justin Mitchell reached after being hit by a pitch and later stood on second base after Dominic Hughes laid down a sacrifice bunt. With two outs, Goodwin launched a two-run blast over the left field wall to hand K-State its first lead of the game.
Goodwin, who doubled earlier in the game, homered for the second time in as many games. The sophomore has seven bombs this season and 17 in his career.
Johnson punctuated the Wildcats' second straight series victory an inning later, as he registered a two-out, two-run home run of his own. His opposite-field shot was the third of the day for the Wildcats and marked their third and fourth runs batted in with two outs.
Blake Corsentino took over for Hassall in the seventh and sat down four of the first five UCI hitters he faced. In the eighth, Abraham Garcia-Pacheco poked a pinch-hit single up the middle to trim K-State's lead to two at 5-3, but the junior righty escaped further damage with an inning-ending strikeout of Fitzgerald.
Corsentino closed the game and earned his second save of the season after scattering three hits over his three innings. He struck out three without a walk.
Hassall and Corsentino combined to hold UC Irvine to one hit with runners on base (1-for-14) and two hits with two outs (2-for-11).
Conversely, the K-State offense finished hitting .333 with two away and with runners in scoring position.
Day, Goodwin and Mitchell each carded multi-hit days for the Cats, as the trio accounted for seven of the team's eight base hits.
Fitzgerald's homer marked UCI's only extra-base hit of the day. Dub Gleed recorded the only two-hit day for his side, going 2-for-5.
Wheeler suffered the loss after giving up five earned runs on seven hits over 5 2/3 innings. He walked one and struck out two.
K-State finished the series with 10 home runs over the three-game series, hit by seven different players. Seventeen of the Wildcats' 25 RBI over the weekend came via home runs.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
UC Irvine took advantage of a K-State error that extended the second inning. Spillane lifted a sacrifice fly with the bases loaded that allowed Torres to race home for the game's first run.
In the bottom half of the second, Day led off the frame with a game-tying home run – the first of his K-State career. The Anteaters reclaimed the lead in the next half inning, as Fitzgerald started the third with his third long ball of the series.
The score remained at 2-1 until the bottom of the fifth when Goodwin launched a go-ahead two-run homer with two gone, bringing in Mitchell who stood on second. It marked Goodwin's second home run in as many games.
The Cats' third home run of the day, this one from Cole Johnson with two outs, extended the lead to 5-2 in the sixth inning.
UCI made it a two-run game with an RBI, pinch-hit single from Abraham Garcia-Pacheco and, with two outs, the Anteaters had runners on the corners. Corsentino escaped the jam with a strikeout of Fitzgerald, who earlier homered, to keep the Cats' lead intact.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
ON DECK
K-State makes a Tuesday trip to Lincoln, Nebraska, to take on the Nebraska Cornhuskers at 6:30 p.m. at Haymarket Park. The game can be seen on BTN+ with radio coverage on News Radio KMAN. Free, live audio is also available at K-StateSports.com/Watch.
Hassall logged a season-high six innings, as he allowed just one earned run on four hits. Goodwin, along with Brady Day and Cole Johnson, each homered as all five of K-State's runs came via the long ball. Goodwin's home run was a two-run blast with two outs in the fifth inning, giving the Wildcats (21-18) their first lead of the day.
"Really good win for our program for a lot of reasons," said head coach Pete Hughes. "You love to see resiliency; your team bounce back after getting it put to us pretty good yesterday. To have a quick turnaround with the morning game and to play with energy and urgency and efficiency. I loved seeing that. I loved seeing us play good in a series-deciding game. I loved seeing us have conference energy against a really good opponent.
"It begins and ends with really good pitching. Griffin Hassall did his thing and he's ever dependable and allowed us to build a lead and allowed us to get some big hits. And we did it with two outs, another sign of a good baseball team. So today was a really good day for our program."
Hassall's six innings marked a season high – and his longest outing since his freshman season in 2019. The right-hander surrendered one hit after the third inning in keeping UC Irvine (22-15) scoreless over his last three frames.
"Mixing up speeds, keeping them off balance," Hughes added on Hassall's outing. "You can out-guess, but against these guys you have to locate or they're going to burn you. So really Griff did a great job of keeping those guys off balance and executing our game plan. His ability to throw strikes and stay out of fastball counts was the key to his performance today."
The Anteaters scored the game's initial run, as they took advantage of a Wildcat error that extended the second inning. Luke Spillane lifted a sacrifice fly that allowed Justin Torres to race home.
Day answered UCI's run when he led off the bottom of the inning with his first career blast, coming off starter Cameron Wheeler. Day matched his career high with three hits in a 3-for-4 day.
Ben Fitzgerald reclaimed a one-run lead for UCI with a solo home run in the third. It was Fitzgerald's third of the series, as he homered twice in Saturday's contest.
It remained a one-run tilt until the bottom of the fifth inning. Justin Mitchell reached after being hit by a pitch and later stood on second base after Dominic Hughes laid down a sacrifice bunt. With two outs, Goodwin launched a two-run blast over the left field wall to hand K-State its first lead of the game.
Goodwin, who doubled earlier in the game, homered for the second time in as many games. The sophomore has seven bombs this season and 17 in his career.
Johnson punctuated the Wildcats' second straight series victory an inning later, as he registered a two-out, two-run home run of his own. His opposite-field shot was the third of the day for the Wildcats and marked their third and fourth runs batted in with two outs.
Blake Corsentino took over for Hassall in the seventh and sat down four of the first five UCI hitters he faced. In the eighth, Abraham Garcia-Pacheco poked a pinch-hit single up the middle to trim K-State's lead to two at 5-3, but the junior righty escaped further damage with an inning-ending strikeout of Fitzgerald.
Corsentino closed the game and earned his second save of the season after scattering three hits over his three innings. He struck out three without a walk.
Hassall and Corsentino combined to hold UC Irvine to one hit with runners on base (1-for-14) and two hits with two outs (2-for-11).
Conversely, the K-State offense finished hitting .333 with two away and with runners in scoring position.
Day, Goodwin and Mitchell each carded multi-hit days for the Cats, as the trio accounted for seven of the team's eight base hits.
Fitzgerald's homer marked UCI's only extra-base hit of the day. Dub Gleed recorded the only two-hit day for his side, going 2-for-5.
Wheeler suffered the loss after giving up five earned runs on seven hits over 5 2/3 innings. He walked one and struck out two.
K-State finished the series with 10 home runs over the three-game series, hit by seven different players. Seventeen of the Wildcats' 25 RBI over the weekend came via home runs.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
UC Irvine took advantage of a K-State error that extended the second inning. Spillane lifted a sacrifice fly with the bases loaded that allowed Torres to race home for the game's first run.
In the bottom half of the second, Day led off the frame with a game-tying home run – the first of his K-State career. The Anteaters reclaimed the lead in the next half inning, as Fitzgerald started the third with his third long ball of the series.
The score remained at 2-1 until the bottom of the fifth when Goodwin launched a go-ahead two-run homer with two gone, bringing in Mitchell who stood on second. It marked Goodwin's second home run in as many games.
The Cats' third home run of the day, this one from Cole Johnson with two outs, extended the lead to 5-2 in the sixth inning.
UCI made it a two-run game with an RBI, pinch-hit single from Abraham Garcia-Pacheco and, with two outs, the Anteaters had runners on the corners. Corsentino escaped the jam with a strikeout of Fitzgerald, who earlier homered, to keep the Cats' lead intact.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- K-State scored five runs on 12 on eight hits with one error and left four on base.
- UC Irvine scored three runs on seven hits, committed no errors and stranded 10 baserunners.
- All five of K-State's runs came on three home runs.
- Day equaled his career high with three hits (3-for-4) and hit his first career homer.
- Goodwin homered for the second straight day, hitting a go-ahead, two-run homer in the fifth.
- Goodwin also doubled and is the team leader with 12 multi-RBI efforts this season.
- Johnson hit a two-run, two-out home run in the sixth inning.
- Four of the Cats' five RBI came with two outs.
- Mitchell was 2-for-2 and one of three Cats to register multiple hits.
- Hassall turned in his first quality start of the season and logged a season-high six innings (1 earned run).
- Hassall scattered four hits and struck out two on 99 pitches.
- Corsentino earned his second save of the season after allowing one run on three hits over the day's final three frames.
- Fitzgerald connected on his third home run of the series in the third inning.
- The home run marked UCI's only extra-base hit.
- Gleed produced the Anteaters' lone multi-hit game in a 2-for-5 day.
- Three UCI pitchers combined for three strikeouts and one walk.
- UC Irvine had just one hit with runners in scoring position (1-for-10) and with men on base (1-for-14).
- K-State hit .333 (4-for-12) with two outs and with runners in scoring position (2-for-6).
- K-State now leads the all-time series 3-2, as this is the first series between the teams since 2008.
- All five matchups have taken place at Tointon Family Stadium.
- The Cats are 3-4 against teams from the Big West this season.
- The Wildcats have hit multiple home runs 18 times this season and are now 13-5 in those contests.
- K-State finished with 10 home runs in the three-game series, hit by seven different players.
- The Cats have registered two or more home runs in four consecutive contests.
- Of K-State's 25 runs batted in over the weekend, 17 came via home runs.
- The Cats have won four of their last five games and six of their last eight.
ON DECK
K-State makes a Tuesday trip to Lincoln, Nebraska, to take on the Nebraska Cornhuskers at 6:30 p.m. at Haymarket Park. The game can be seen on BTN+ with radio coverage on News Radio KMAN. Free, live audio is also available at K-StateSports.com/Watch.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Hassall, Griffin (4-4)
L: Wheeler, Cameron (2-4)
S: Corsentino, Blake (2)
Batting:
HR: Fitzgerald, Ben 1
RBI: Fitzgerald, Ben 1 ; Spillane, Luke 1 ; Garcia-Pacheco, A. 1
SH: Smith, Myles 1
SF: Spillane, Luke 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Fitzgerald, Ben 1 ; Torres, Justin 1 ; Castro, Jacob 1
SB: Hadeen, Woody 1 ; Torres, Justin 1 ; Kendle, Caden 1
HBP: Kendle, Caden 2
Batting:
2B: Goodwin, Nick 1
HR: Goodwin, Nick 1 ; Day, Brady 1 ; Johnson, Cole 1
RBI: Goodwin, Nick 2 ; Day, Brady 1 ; Johnson, Cole 2
SH: Hughes, Dom 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Goodwin, Nick 1 ; Day, Brady 2 ; Johnson, Cole 1 ; Mitchell, Justin 1
SB: Phillips, Dylan 1
CS: Day, Brady 1
HBP: Mitchell, Justin 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
2
AB
2
R
1
H
2
RBI
0
cf/rf
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
2
Players Mentioned
RHP
/ BaseballINF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ BaseballINF/OF
/ BaseballC
/ BaseballK-State BSB | Postgame Press Conference vs Texas
Sunday, June 01
K-State Baseball | Game Highlights vs Houston Christian (Austin Regional)
Sunday, June 01
K-State BSB | Game Highlights vs Houston Christian (Austin Regional)
Saturday, May 31
K-State BSB | Postgame Press Conference vs Houston Christian
Saturday, May 31