Kansas State University Athletics
Sunday, May 15
Manhattan, Kan.
1 p.m.
Kansas State University
27-23, 8-13
7
vs
5
Baylor
24-24, 6-15
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Baylor
2
1
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
5
9
1
K-State
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
6
X
7
7
0
Goodwin’s Go-Ahead Slam Highlights Cats’ Comeback
May 15, 2022 | Baseball
MANHATTAN, Kan. – Facing a four-run deficit after seven innings Sunday afternoon, K-State rallied to score six runs in the eighth inning, highlighted by a go-ahead grand slam from Nick Goodwin to propel the Wildcats to a 7-5 victory over Baylor in the series' rubber game on Senior Day at Tointon Family Stadium.
Through seven innings, K-State's offense managed just one run on three hits against Baylor starter Blake Helton. The Wildcats (27-23, 8-13 Big 12) batted around in their six-run eighth against reliver Matt Voelker, erasing a 5-1 deficit.
"What a great day for Senior Day, what a great way for us to finish our season at the Toint," said head coach Pete Hughes. "I say it all time, we play in front of the best fan base and community. Our kids know it and I know it, we appreciate it. A gift to them, a gift to our seniors who are all well deserving."
The eighth-inning rally started when BU shortstop Jack Pineda misplayed a ground ball hit by Josh Nicoloff with one out. Jeff Heinrich and Dylan Phillips followed with back-to-back singles, bringing Nicoloff home. Dominic Johnson then drew a walk to load the bases for Goodwin, who hit his first career grand slam.
"The conditions weren't offensive. When they brought the left-hander (Voelker) in – he's got arm-side run – which runs away from the righty's barrel, which leads to balls hit to right field," said Hughes. "So I thought we had a chance. Then to get that error (by Pineda) and a walk, that's how big innings start.
"Good for Goodie, he went down 0-2 and got back into the count. He took what they gave him, a fastball away, and he was disciplined with it and put a good swing on it. Big hit by a great kid, just great stuff."
"I faced (Voelker) Friday night and he worked me away, fastballs away over and over again, so I had an idea of what I was looking for that at-bat," Goodwin said. "He got me down two strikes pretty quick, so I was kind of in defensive mode, still looking fastball out over the plate. I got a pitch up and put a good swing on it.
"It's awesome, I don't even know how to describe it myself, to be honest."
Two hitters after Goodwin's slam, Cash Rugely went the other way for a pinch-hit solo home run to cap the six-run frame. K-State tallied four hits in the inning, bringing nine to the plate.
Helton allowed three hits over a season-long seven innings in a no-decision effort. He walked four and struck out four in not holding K-State scoreless after the first inning.
Baylor (24-24, 6-15 Big 12) scored runs in four of the day's first five innings in building its 5-1 lead. Jared McKenzie put BU in front with a two-run homer in the first, his second of the series.
After K-State cut the lead in half with a two-out RBI single from Goodwin, the Bears added single runs in the second, third and fifth innings.
Wildcat starter Connor McCullough lasted three innings and yielded four runs (three earned) on five hits before giving way to reliever Ty Ruhl.
Ruhl went on to log a career-high five innings to earn the win, putting zeroes up in four of his five innings of work. He struck out four, walked one and scattered four hits.
"It doesn't happen without Ty Ruhl coming out of the bullpen, settling everything down for the second straight Sunday," added Hughes. "Good team win, really good team win."
Ruhl pitched into the ninth and left after giving up a leadoff single to Kyle Nevin. For the second straight day, Phillips moved from first base to the mound with a runner on base and in a save situation.
Phillips, who was one of seven seniors honored before the game, retired the first two he saw before issuing a two-out walk. With the tying runs on base, he struck out Alex Gonzales to pick up his second straight save and seal the Cats' first series win against Baylor since 2017.
At the plate, Phillips walked three times and drove in a run in his only official at-bat.
Goodwin ended the day 2-for-5 with a career-high five runs batted in. The sophomore shortstop was the only Wildcat to register multiple hits or multiple runs driven in.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
McKenzie launched a two-run home run in the top of the first to hand the Bears an early 2-0 lead. His second home run of the series scored Pineda, who led off the game with an infield single.
K-State cut the lead in half on Goodwin's two-out single. The RBI single was set up by walks drawn by both Nicoloff and Phillips.
An unearned run in the second pushed BU's lead back to two runs. Jacob Schoenvogel doubled with two outs and later stood on third on a passed ball. Esteban Cardoza-Oquendo's infield single allowed Schoenvogel to score for a 3-1 advantage.
Baylor added single runs in both the third and fifth innings to push its lead to 5-1. Nevin lifted a sacrifice fly in the third and Pineda brought in Schoenvogel with an RBI single in the fifth.
After being held to one run on three hits over seven innings by Helton, K-State broke through against Voelker in the eighth inning. An error by the shortstop Pineda with one out allowed Nicoloff to reach first base. Heinrich and Phillips followed with back-to-back singles to trim the deficit to three runs.
Johnson then drew a walk to load the bases for Goodwin. Falling behind 0-2, Goodwin worked the count back to even before taking an outside fastball to the opposite field and over the right field fence for a go-ahead grand slam.
Two batters later, Rugely hit an opposite-field home run as a pinch hitter to cap the Wildcats' six-run eighth. K-State brought all nine hitters to the plate and rattled off four hits against Voelker.
With a runner on first, Phillips took over on the mound for Ruhl, who pitched five innings of one run ball. Phillips retired the first two he faced before issuing a two-out walk, putting the tying runs on base. He struck out Gonzales, a pinch hitter, to earn his second straight save and seal the series.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
UP NEXT
K-State will begin a four-game road swing to close out the regular season, beginning at No. 5 Virginia Tech Tuesday night before making the trek to West Virginia. Tuesday's game can be seen on the ACC Network and the ESPN app. Radio coverage will be available on News Radio KMAN with free, live audio streaming at K-StateSports.com/Watch.
Through seven innings, K-State's offense managed just one run on three hits against Baylor starter Blake Helton. The Wildcats (27-23, 8-13 Big 12) batted around in their six-run eighth against reliver Matt Voelker, erasing a 5-1 deficit.
"What a great day for Senior Day, what a great way for us to finish our season at the Toint," said head coach Pete Hughes. "I say it all time, we play in front of the best fan base and community. Our kids know it and I know it, we appreciate it. A gift to them, a gift to our seniors who are all well deserving."
The eighth-inning rally started when BU shortstop Jack Pineda misplayed a ground ball hit by Josh Nicoloff with one out. Jeff Heinrich and Dylan Phillips followed with back-to-back singles, bringing Nicoloff home. Dominic Johnson then drew a walk to load the bases for Goodwin, who hit his first career grand slam.
"The conditions weren't offensive. When they brought the left-hander (Voelker) in – he's got arm-side run – which runs away from the righty's barrel, which leads to balls hit to right field," said Hughes. "So I thought we had a chance. Then to get that error (by Pineda) and a walk, that's how big innings start.
"Good for Goodie, he went down 0-2 and got back into the count. He took what they gave him, a fastball away, and he was disciplined with it and put a good swing on it. Big hit by a great kid, just great stuff."
"I faced (Voelker) Friday night and he worked me away, fastballs away over and over again, so I had an idea of what I was looking for that at-bat," Goodwin said. "He got me down two strikes pretty quick, so I was kind of in defensive mode, still looking fastball out over the plate. I got a pitch up and put a good swing on it.
"It's awesome, I don't even know how to describe it myself, to be honest."
Two hitters after Goodwin's slam, Cash Rugely went the other way for a pinch-hit solo home run to cap the six-run frame. K-State tallied four hits in the inning, bringing nine to the plate.
Helton allowed three hits over a season-long seven innings in a no-decision effort. He walked four and struck out four in not holding K-State scoreless after the first inning.
Baylor (24-24, 6-15 Big 12) scored runs in four of the day's first five innings in building its 5-1 lead. Jared McKenzie put BU in front with a two-run homer in the first, his second of the series.
After K-State cut the lead in half with a two-out RBI single from Goodwin, the Bears added single runs in the second, third and fifth innings.
Wildcat starter Connor McCullough lasted three innings and yielded four runs (three earned) on five hits before giving way to reliever Ty Ruhl.
Ruhl went on to log a career-high five innings to earn the win, putting zeroes up in four of his five innings of work. He struck out four, walked one and scattered four hits.
"It doesn't happen without Ty Ruhl coming out of the bullpen, settling everything down for the second straight Sunday," added Hughes. "Good team win, really good team win."
Ruhl pitched into the ninth and left after giving up a leadoff single to Kyle Nevin. For the second straight day, Phillips moved from first base to the mound with a runner on base and in a save situation.
Phillips, who was one of seven seniors honored before the game, retired the first two he saw before issuing a two-out walk. With the tying runs on base, he struck out Alex Gonzales to pick up his second straight save and seal the Cats' first series win against Baylor since 2017.
At the plate, Phillips walked three times and drove in a run in his only official at-bat.
Goodwin ended the day 2-for-5 with a career-high five runs batted in. The sophomore shortstop was the only Wildcat to register multiple hits or multiple runs driven in.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
McKenzie launched a two-run home run in the top of the first to hand the Bears an early 2-0 lead. His second home run of the series scored Pineda, who led off the game with an infield single.
K-State cut the lead in half on Goodwin's two-out single. The RBI single was set up by walks drawn by both Nicoloff and Phillips.
An unearned run in the second pushed BU's lead back to two runs. Jacob Schoenvogel doubled with two outs and later stood on third on a passed ball. Esteban Cardoza-Oquendo's infield single allowed Schoenvogel to score for a 3-1 advantage.
Baylor added single runs in both the third and fifth innings to push its lead to 5-1. Nevin lifted a sacrifice fly in the third and Pineda brought in Schoenvogel with an RBI single in the fifth.
After being held to one run on three hits over seven innings by Helton, K-State broke through against Voelker in the eighth inning. An error by the shortstop Pineda with one out allowed Nicoloff to reach first base. Heinrich and Phillips followed with back-to-back singles to trim the deficit to three runs.
Johnson then drew a walk to load the bases for Goodwin. Falling behind 0-2, Goodwin worked the count back to even before taking an outside fastball to the opposite field and over the right field fence for a go-ahead grand slam.
Two batters later, Rugely hit an opposite-field home run as a pinch hitter to cap the Wildcats' six-run eighth. K-State brought all nine hitters to the plate and rattled off four hits against Voelker.
With a runner on first, Phillips took over on the mound for Ruhl, who pitched five innings of one run ball. Phillips retired the first two he faced before issuing a two-out walk, putting the tying runs on base. He struck out Gonzales, a pinch hitter, to earn his second straight save and seal the series.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- K-State scored seven runs on seven hits without an error and left four on base.
- Baylor scored five runs on nine hits, committed one error and stranded three baserunners.
- Goodwin hit a go-ahead grand slam in the bottom of the eighth, highlighting a six-run inning.
- Goodwin's grand slam was K-State's third go-ahead home run in the eighth inning this season.
- Goodwin registered K-State's only multi-hit and multi-RBI game (2-for-3, five RBI).
- The five runs batted in marked a career high for Goodwin.
- The Wildcats recorded just three hits over the game's first seven innings.
- Rugely added a pinch-hit home run to cap the scoring in the eighth.
- Rugely's third homer of the year also marked the third pinch-hit homer by a Cat this season.
- Ruhl logged a career-high five innings of relief, scattering four hits with one run allowed.
- Phillips earned his second straight save and his team-high sixth of the season.
- Helton lasted a season-long seven innings in the start for Baylor.
- Helton allowed one run on three hits with four walks and four strikeouts.
- Voelker suffered the loss after being tagged for six runs (four earned) while recording two outs.
- McKenzie homered for the second straight game for BU.
- McKenzie, Pineda and Schoenvogel each had two-hit efforts.
- K-State went 3-for-5 with runners in scoring position while Baylor was 3-for-6.
- The Cats finished 2-for-7 with two outs compared to the Bears going 2-for-8.
- K-State recognized seven seniors prior to the game: Heinrich, Chris Herb, Justin Mitchell, Wesley Moore, Nicoloff, Phillips and Terrence Spurlin.
- With the win, the Wildcats cliched a spot in this year's Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship at Globe Life Field in Arlinton, Texas.
- Baylor leads the all-time series 53-32 (49-26 Big 12), dating back to 1966.
- K-State is 17-19 at home against the Bears.
- It marked the Wildcats' first series win against BU since 2017 and first home series victory since 2016.
- The Cats finished with a home record of 21-7, winning 12 of the last 16 at Tointon Family Stadium.
- K-State has reached 20 home wins for the second straight year (last time with consecutive 20-win seasons at home was 2009-11).
- K-State now has 78 home runs on the season, the second-most in a single season in program history.
- The Wildcats have homered in six straight games and in eight of their last nine overall.
- K-State improves to 17-7 when hitting two or more home runs.
- Sixty of K-State's 78 home runs have come at home.
- Goodwin's grand slam marked the Cats' second this season.
- The Wildcats are 3-0 this season in series rubber games.
- Each of the Cats' last eight games have been decided by three runs or fewer (seven have been two-run contests).
UP NEXT
K-State will begin a four-game road swing to close out the regular season, beginning at No. 5 Virginia Tech Tuesday night before making the trek to West Virginia. Tuesday's game can be seen on the ACC Network and the ESPN app. Radio coverage will be available on News Radio KMAN with free, live audio streaming at K-StateSports.com/Watch.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Ruhl, Ty (4-2)
L: Voelker, Matt (4-6)
S: Phillips, Dylan (6)
Batting:
2B: Schoenvogel, Jacob 1
HR: McKenzie, Jared 1
RBI: Pineda, Jack 1 ; McKenzie, Jared 2 ; Nevin, Kyle 1 ; Cardoza-Oquendo, E. 1
SH: Cardoza-Oquendo, E. 1
SF: Nevin, Kyle 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Pineda, Jack 1 ; Richardson, Tre 1 ; McKenzie, Jared 1 ; Schoenvogel, Jacob 2
SB: Pineda, Jack 1 ; Valdez, Antonio 1
CS: Pineda, Jack 1 ; Cardoza-Oquendo, E. 1
HBP: Richardson, Tre 1
PO: McKenzie, Jared 1
Batting:
HR: Goodwin, Nick 1 ; Rugely, Cash 1
RBI: Phillips, Dylan 1 ; Goodwin, Nick 5 ; Rugely, Cash 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Nicoloff, Josh 1 ; Heinrich, Jeff 1 ; Jones, Brendan 1 ; Phillips, Dylan 1 ; Johnson, Dominic 1 ; Goodwin, Nick 1 ; Rugely, Cash 1
CS: Johnson, Dominic 1
HBP: Goodwin, Nick 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
3
R
1
H
2
RBI
5
AB
4
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
1b/p
AB
1
R
1
H
1
RBI
1
cf/rf
AB
4
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
INF
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OF/RHP
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OF
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RHP
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/ Baseball
LHP
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/ BaseballOF/LHP
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INF
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