K-State Set for Dillons Sunflower Showdown

MANHATTAN, Kan. – K-State will host the Dillons Sunflower Showdown this weekend at Tointon Family Stadium, as rival Kansas visits Manhattan for a three-game Big 12 series starting Friday at 6 p.m.

The middle game of the series is set for a 4 p.m. start on Saturday while the finale will begin at 1 p.m. on Sunday. The Wildcats sit two games behind the Jayhawks in the Big 12 standings with three conference series left on this season's schedule.

The Cats own a 191-188-1 (55-36 Big 12) edge in the all-time series with KU, after sweeping past the Jayhawks in the regular season last year, along with a 7-1 triumph in the Big 12 Championship tournament. K-State has more wins and games played against Kansas than any other team in program history.

All three games will be broadcast on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. Radio coverage is available on News Radio KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM). Free, streaming audio is also available at K-StateSports.com/watch and on the K-State Sports app.

With just six home games left of the regular season, fans can purchase single-game tickets at K-StateSports.com/Tickets, call 1-800-221-CATS (2287), or stop by the K-State Athletics Ticket Office in Bramlage Coliseum.

How to follow the 'Cats: Stay up to date on K-State baseball online at www.kstatesports.com and on the team's social media channels on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

GAME #45
K-STATE (26-18, 10-11 Big 12) v. KU (26-15, 12-9 Big 12)
Friday, May 3 // 6 PM // Tointon Family Stadium
Projected Starters: LHP Owen Boerema v. RHP Reese Dutton
Watch: Big 12 Now on ESPN+ // Brian Smoller, Mike Clark, Sophie Smith (reporter)
Radio: 1350AM/93.3/93.7FM // Matt Walters, Trevor Hurley
Listen Online: kstatesports.com/watch

GAME #46
K-STATE (26-18, 10-11 Big 12) v. KU (26-15, 12-9 Big 12)
Saturday, May 4 // 4 PM // Tointon Family Stadium
Projected Starters: RHP Jackson Wentworth v. RHP Dominic Voegele
Watch: Big 12 Now on ESPN+ // Brian Smoller, Craig Wilson, Sophie Smith (reporter)
Radio: 1350AM/93.3/93.7FM // Matt Walters, Mike Clark
Listen Online: kstatesports.com/watch

GAME #47
K-STATE (26-18, 10-11 Big 12) v. KU (26-15, 12-9 Big 12)
Sunday, May 5 // 1 PM // Tointon Family Stadium
Projected Starters: TBA v. TBA
Watch: Big 12 Now on ESPN+ // Brian Smoller, Craig Wilson, Sophie Smith (reporter)
Radio: 1350AM/93.3/93.7FM // Matt Walters, Mike Clark
Listen Online: kstatesports.com/watch

A LOOK AT K-STATE
Coming off a difficult loss at former conference rival Nebraska, K-State (26-18, 10-11 Big 12) returns to league action to take on rival Kansas at Tointon Family Stadium, starting Friday at 6 p.m. … K-State is slashing .284/.391/.458 as a team including 80 doubles, a league-high 13 triples and 54 home runs with two starters hitting over .300 … Brady Day's .349 average leads the Wildcat offense and is 10^th in the Big 12 followed by Kaelen Culpepper hitting .322 … Chuck Ingram and Raphael Pelletier each have belted nine homers this season … K-State has stolen a league-high 105 bases this season led by 31 from Brendan Jones …The Wildcats have a 5.75 team ERA with 413 strikeouts compared to 167 walks … K-State ranks second in the league and ranks 28^th in DI with a 2.47 strikeout-to-walk ratio while posting the third lowest walks allowed per nine innings (3.83) … Owen Boerema (4-3, 5.43 ERA) will get the start in the opener while Jackson Wentworth (3-2, 3.86 ERA), who is fifth in the league with 75 total strikeouts, will start Saturday.

SCOUTING KU
Kansas (26-15, 12-9 Big 12) sits in fifth place in the conference standings and brings a seven-game winning streak to Manhattan after defeating in-state rival Wichita State, 8-1, Wednesday ... KU is 9-1 in its last 10 games … The Jayhawks, who have won four Big 12 series this season, are 11-8 on the road including 7-4 in true road games while going 6-3 during league games ... John Nett paces KU's offense with his .367 average while Jake English, brother to Nick English, is the team leader with 12 home runs and 43 RBI ... English is hitting .324 with a team-best .634 slugging percentage ... On the mound, starters Dominic Voegele (6-2, 2.90 ERA) and Reese Dutton (7-2, 3.14 ERA) combine for 125 strikeouts through 125 innings ... As a team, the Jayhawks own the Big 12's third-best ERA of 4.50.

INSIDE THE SERIES
K-State leads the all-time series 191-188-1 (55-36 Big 12), dating back to 1897 ... K-State's 191 victories in the series is its highest win total against any single opponent ... All-time in Manhattan, the Wildcats own a 108-88-1 record after capturing a 2-1 series win in 2022 ... Overall, the Cats bring a six-game winning streak into the weekend series after a 7-1 triumph in the 2023 Big 12 Tournament ... Six of the last 10 meetings have been decided by three runs or fewer ... 2022 marked the Wildcats' last home series victory while the last home sweep came in 2008 ... K-State swept its in-state rival last season, that included the highest scoring game in series history with a 21-18 victory in Lawrence.

LAST FIVE MEETINGS
W, 6-3 – May 8, 2022 (Manhattan)
W, 5-4 – April 13, 2023 (Lawrence)
W, 6-1 – April 14, 2023 (Lawrence)
W, 21-18 – April 15, 2023 (Lawrence)
W, 7-1 -May 26, 2023 (Arlington)

THE STRENGTH OF 2024
It's no question the level of strength behind the 2024 schedule this season, as 17 of K-State's 27 opponents this season currently hold an RPI of 80 or higher, including nine foes with an RPI higher than 50 … In 44 games, K-State has played 27 contests against teams with an RPI of 80 or higher … Since April 1, K-State has played 13 of its last 18 games on the road, including 12 against Top 40 RPI teams … Of the 13 road games, which is the most by any Big 12 team in that time frame, nine were against Top 40 RPI teams …

HOME. SWEET. HOME.
K-State is 16-5 when playing at home this season, including a 5-4 record in conference games at Tointon … At home, the Wildcat offense is slashing .331/.437/.554 with 37 home runs and 174 RBI ... K-State averages 9.4 runs/game on 12.1 hits while drawing 134 walks with 64 stolen bases... The Wildcat bullpen boasts a 5.14 ERA at home, holding opponents to a .247 average … The Cats have struck out 206 compared to 78walks for a 2.64 strikeout-to-walk ratio ... Day's .395 average at Tointon leads the Cats, as the redshirt-junior has generated 34 hits with a team-leading 27 RBI … K-State baseball is 408-217 when playing at home since 2002 … The Wildcats are 97-40 (.708) at home under Hughes and 83-28 (.745) since 2021.

RECORD WATCH
Nick English turned in his 17^th double of the season to match the freshmen class single-season doubles record set by current Major Leaguer Nick Martini (2009) … With two stolen bases in the series with TCU , Jones moved to fourth in the K-State all-time career leaderboard with 61, tying Tim Decker (1993-95) … Jones has stolen a career-high 31 bases this season, which is fourth in the single-season records … K-State stole four bases against TCU to bring the season total to 105, which ties seventh all-time in school history … With his fourth save against TCU, now stands alone in fourth in the school record book with 15 career saves.

CALL THE COPS
The Cats have stolen a league-high 105 bases this season, ranking eighth overall in Division I … The Cats 2.39 stolen bases/game is first in the Big 12 and 10^th in the nation … Jones has stolen a league-high 31 bases this season, ranking fourth in Division I … K-State is just nine steals away from matching last season's 114 … The K-State single-season record is 149 set in 2009 through 62 games.

WILDCATS VS. THE BIG 12
The Cats are eighth in the Big 12 standings … K-State is hitting .275 in Conference play, averaging 6.0 runs on 9.9 hits … Day is slashing .333/.440/.476 in Big 12 games … The pitching staff posts a 6.30 ERA, with opponents hitting .271 … K-State's Big 12 slate features 30 games, highlighted by series against all four league newcomers (Cincinnati, Houston, UCF, and BYU) … K-State finished its 2023 Big 12 schedule tied fourth in the league at 13-11.

WINNING TIME
In K-State's 26 wins this season, the Wildcats are hitting .318 with runners in scoring position and .323 with two outs ... Conversely, the Cats have a .169 average with runners in scoring position while hitting .238 with two outs over 18 losses ... K-State has produced 85 two-out RBI in victories with just 26 in 18 losses ... Overall, K-State hits .315 in victories against just .236 in defeats ... K-State posts a 1.3 strikeout-to-walk ratio in wins while owning a 1.9 mark in losses.

FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS
At Tointon Family Stadium, K-State is undefeated in series openers with a perfect 6-0 record, including 4-0 in Big 12 action … In series openers at home, K-State is outhitting opponents .338-.222 and averages 9.7 runs a game on 12.3 hits … Overall, the Cats are 7-3 in series openers, including 4-3 in Big 12 action hitting .289 against opponents .271 average, outscoring opponents 72-60 (+12) … Fifteen of the Wildcats 54 home runs have come in series openers, led by three from Day and Pelletier.

UP NEXT
Following the Dillons Sunflower Showdown, just six games remain of the regular season, as K-State sets east for a three-game set against West Virginia (27-16, 14-7 Big 12) in Morgantown, starting Friday, May 10 at 5:30 p.m. CT.

How to follow the 'Cats: Stay up to date on K-State baseball online at www.kstatesports.com and on the team's social media channels on Facebook, X (formally known as Twitter) and Instagram.

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Kansas State University, the nation's first operational land-grant institution and a Carnegie Foundation Tier One university, is recognized as one of the nation's best colleges with world-class research and academic excellence located in America's No. 1 College Town (Manhattan, KS).

Kansas State University Athletics

Players Mentioned

Owen Boerema

Kaelen Culpepper

Brady Day

Nick English

Chuck Ingram

Brendan Jones

Raphael Pelletier

Jackson Wentworth

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