K-State Sets Sights on Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship

MANHATTAN, Kan. – K-State heads to Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, for the 2025 Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship, as the sixth-seeded Wildcats take on 11^th-seeded Houston at 8 p.m. CT Wednesday.

K-State (31-23, 17-13), which set a program record with 17 conference wins, is making its sixth consecutive run in the Big 12 tournament. Houston (29-24, 12-17 Big 12) is making its first appearance in the tournament since joining the league in 2024. K-State took two of three games in Manhattan earlier this season, outscoring the Cougars 24-13.

Senior lefty Jacob Frost, who earned All-Big 12 Honorable Mention recognition, will get the start on the mound for K-State. In addition to Frost, Seth Dardar and James Guyette also earned honorable mention honors. Maximus Martin and Keegan O'Connor were each tabbed Second Team All-Big 12 with AJ Evasco earning a spot on the All-Freshman Team.

The Wildcats are 22-28 all-time at the Big 12 Championship, while it is the first meeting against the Cougars in the postseason. K-State is 7-3 against Houston all-time, with a 5-2 record in games played in Texas.

Wednesday's game will air on ESPN2 and ESPN+. Radio coverage is available on the K-State Sports Network with streaming audio at kstatesports.com/watch.

The 2025 Championship, which features an increase to 12 teams, will be played in a single-elimination format for the first time. All 12 teams participating in the event own a top 90 RPI, with eight in the top 50. All-session and single-session tickets for the 2025 Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship at Globe Life Field can be purchased here.

How to follow the Cats: For complete information on K-State Baseball, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team's social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.

GAME #55
No. 6 K-STATE (31-23, 17-13 BIG 12) vs. No. 11 HOUSTON (29-24, 12-17 BIG 12)
Wednesday, May 21 // 8 PM CT // Globe Life Field (Arlington, Texas)
Projected Starters: LHP Jacob Frost (1-3, 5.16 ERA) vs. RHP Paul Schmitz (4-5, 5.37 ERA)
Watch: ESPN+/ESPN2 // Keith Moreland, Greg Swindell
Radio: K-Sports Sports Network // Brian Smoller, Matt Walters
Listen Online: KStateSports.com/watch
Watch | Listen Online | Live Stats

2025 Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship Schedule
Wednesday, May 21
Game 1 – No. 5 Arizona State vs. No. 12 BYU – 9 a.m. – ESPN+
Game 2 – No. 8 Cincinnati vs. No. 9 Texas Tech – 12:30 p.m. – ESPNU & ESPN+
Game 3 – No. 7 Oklahoma State vs. No. 10 Baylor – 4 p.m. – ESPNU & ESPN+
Game 4 – No. 6 Kansas State vs. No. 11 Houston – 8:00 p.m. – ESPN2 & ESPN+

Thursday, May 22
Game 5 – No. 4 Arizona vs. Game 1 Winner – 9 a.m. – ESPN+
Game 6 – No. 1 West Virginia vs. Game 2 Winner – 12:30 p.m. – ESPN+
Game 7 – No. 2 Kansas vs. Game 3 Winner – 4 p.m. – ESPNU & ESPN+
Game 8 – No. 3 TCU vs. Game 4 Winner – 7:30 p.m. – ESPNU & ESPN+

Friday, May 23
Game 9 – Game 5 Winner vs. Game 6 Winner – 4 p.m. – ESPN+
Game 10 – Game 7 Winner vs. Game 8 Winner – 7:30 p.m. – ESPN+

Saturday, May 24
Game 11 – Championship Game – 6 p.m. – ESPNU & ESPN+

*All times listed as Central.

THE MATCHUP
K-State heads to Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, for the 2025 Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship, as the sixth-seeded Wildcats take on 11^th-seeded Houston at 8 p.m. CT Wednesday … K-State (31-23, 17-13), which set a program record with 17 conference wins, is making its sixth consecutive run in the Big 12 tournament. Houston (29-24, 12-17 Big 12) is making its first appearance in the tournament since joining the league in 2024. K-State took two of three games in Manhattan earlier this season, outscoring the Cougars 24-13.

A LOOK AT K-STATE
The Wildcats enter the Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championships as the No. 6 seed after wrapping up the regular season 31-23 overall – their sixth consecutive winning season – with a 17-13 conference mark … In the regular season, K-State won eight its 11 series in the regular season … The Wildcats are hitting .282 as a team with 115 doubles, four triples and 92 homers, the second-most in the league … The team's 92 home runs are the most in a single-season in school history … Four everyday starters are hitting north of a .300 clip, led by Maximus Martin (.337) … Seth Dardar trails Martin with a .327 average, followed by Keegan O'Connor (.324) and true freshman AJ Evasco (.306) … O'Connor's 16 homers tie the single-season school record … The pitching staff boasts a 5.66 ERA, striking out 478 with opponents hitting .268 … Senior lefty Jacob Frost (1-3, 5.16 ERA), who earned All-Big 12 Honorable Mention recognition, will get the start on the mound for K-State.

TOURNAMENT BREAKDOWN
West Virginia (19-9) is the top-seeded team in the 12-team field after clinching its first outright Big 12 regular season title in program history … The Mountaineers earned a bye and will face the winner of No. 8 seed Cincinnati and No. 9 seed Texas Tech … Kansas (20-10) earned the second seed, its highest Big 12 seeding in program history, and will open the Conference Championship against the winner of No. 7-seeded Oklahoma State, who won the 2024 Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship, and No. 10-seeded Baylor, who will be making its first appearance in the tournament since 2022 … TCU (19-11) took the No. 3 seed, its highest spot since being ranked No. 1 in the 2022 Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship, and will face the winner of No. 6 Kansas State or No. 11 Houston … Arizona (18-12) rounds out the teams with an opening-day bye as the No. 4 seed after holding the tiebreaker over Arizona State due to its 2-1 series win in April ... The Wildcats will make their Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship debut against the winner of game 1 between No. 12 BYU and No. 5 Arizona State.

SCOUTING HOUSTON
The Cougars are making their first appearance in the Big 12 Championships, after finishing their second season in the league with a 12-17 mark to earn the No.11 seed … Houston owns an overall record of 29-24 which includes a 14-11 record on the road … Xavier Perez leads the offense, hitting .303 with 12 doubles, two triples and nine home runs … Perez has driven a team-leading 45 RBI, followed by Cade Climie (37) … Climie hit .364 against K-State back in April, going 4-for-11, while Brandon Bishop hitting a pair of homers … As a team, the Cougars are hitting .257 with a .777 OPS … The pitching staff, led by Antoine Jean's 2.43 ERA, boasts a 5.57 team ERA and a 2.2 strikeout-to-walk ratio … Jean was tabbed the 2025 Big 12 Pitcher of the Year with a 5-1 record and five saves, along with 104 strikeouts – the second most in the league.

INSIDE THE SERIES
Wednesday's contest marks the 11^th meeting between the Wildcats and Cougars, and first in neutral territory … K-State leads the all-time series 7-3, that includes a 5-1 advantage in Big 12 play … K-State has won all three series … In 10 games, K-State has outscored Houston 75-43 (+32) … The Cats are 5-2 in games played in Texas against the Cougars … K-State is 4-1 in the last five, outscoring Houston 39-21 … Under Hughes, K-State is 5-1 … The Cats won the regular-season series, out-hitting the Cougars .227-.219 … O'Connor paced K-State hitting .500 (5-for-10) with an incredible 1.745 OPS … The pitching staff boasted a 4.33 ERA, striking out 26 batters.

LAST FIVE MEETINGS
W, 6-5 – March 23, 2024 (Houston)
W, 9-3 – March 24, 2024 (Houston)
W, 5-2 – April 25, 2025 (Manhattan)
W, 14-5 – April 26, 2025 (Manhattan)
L, 5-6 – April 27, 2025 (Manhattan)

CATS AT THE BIG 12 CHAMPIONSHIP
The Wildcats are 22-28 all-time at the Big 12 Championship, while it is the first meeting against the Cougars in the postseason. K-State is 7-3 against Houston all-time.

RECORD BREAKERS
Behind five scoreless innings from Tazwell Butler and five runs batted in by David Bishop, K-State set a school record for most conference wins in a season en route to a 9-5 victory against Cincinnati … With the win, the Wildcats finish the regular season with a winning record for the sixth consecutive year, that includes a 17-13 mark in Big 12 play ... The Cats' 17 conference wins are the most in school history, breaking the previous record held by the 2013 team.

WINNING TIME
In K-State's 31 wins this season, the Wildcats are hitting .379 with runners in scoring position and .297 with two outs ... Conversely, the Cats have a .191 average with runners in scoring position while hitting .201 with two outs over 23 losses ... K-State has produced 86 two-out RBI in victories with just 32 in 23 losses ... Overall, K-State hits .331 in victories against just .212 in defeats ... In 23 losses, K-State pitchers have combined for 127 walks (5.5 per game) while in victories the staff averages three walks per game (97 walks in 31 wins).

ALL-BIG 12 HONOR ROLL
Six K-State baseball players were voted to the All-Big 12 Conference Tuesday afternoon, as the conference unveiled the 2025 All-Big 12 Baseball Awards … Junior Maximus Martin and graduate Keegan O'Connor earned Second Team honors, while AJ Evasco was named to the All-Freshman Team ... Additionally, Seth Dardar, Jacob Frost and James Guyette received honorable mention accolades. The 2025 All-Big 12 Baseball Teams were selected by a vote of the league's 14 head coaches … Evasco is the sixth player to earn All-Freshman Team recognition in the Hughes era.

BIG BAT CATS
K-State's 92 home runs ranks second in the Big 12 and 19^thin the nation … K-State's record-breaking 90^th home run came in poetic fashion, as Seth Dardar's grand slam capped a seven-run eighth-inning rally to hand the Cats a 14-9 victory over then-No. 12 West Virginia … O'Connor became the fourth player in school history to launch 16 home runs, tying the single-season record, while he is the fifth player to send out three in a single game ... For the first time since 2022, four different players have reached double figure home runs: O'Connor (16), Martin (14), Dardar (12) and Kennedy (11) … The Cats have hit multiple home runs in 28 contests this season (24-3) ... In total, 13 different players have sent one out this season … Five different players have each turned in multi-home run performances … K-State recorded a season-high six homers in three contests this year: vs. William & Mary (March 9), vs. Wichita State (April 22), at BYU (May 2) … The Cats have generated eight back-to-back performances this season (Latest: Dardar, O'Connor at BYU, May 2) … Martin, Evasco and Dardar have each launched a grand slam this season … Since 2019, K-State's offense has turned in five of the top six seasons in terms of total home runs in program history, including the top four.

POWER SUPPLY
This year, K-State has 11 different players with multiple home runs … Keegan O'Connor, Maximus Martin, Dee Kennedy and Seth Dardar have produced 10+ homers in 2025, marking the first time since 2022 K-State had four different players reach double figures … With a team-leading 16 homers on the year, O'Connor is the fourth player in school history to tie the school record… He ties second in the Big 12 with 10 home runs in conference play.

NUMBERS NUGGETS
K-State has a +72-run differential through 54 games this season ... The Wildcats outscore opponents 126-69 (+57) between the second and third innings ... K-State scored nine runs in the fifth inning against William & Mary - its largest run total in a single inning this season ... The Cats are 28-11 when hitting a home run and 25-3 when hitting multiple homers ... K-State has won 12 of 19 games in which it has not committed an error while going 19-16 when committing at least one error ... When holding opponents to five or fewer runs, the Wildcats are 20-4 ... Conversely, K-State has a record of 6-19 when scoring five or fewer runs in a game and is 25-4 when scoring at least six runs ... K-State is 8-8 in games decided by two runs or fewer ... Home runs account for 166 of the 392 runs batted in on the season (41 percent) … K-State is hitting .316 on the season with runners in scoring position and .256 with two outs, driving in 118 runs with two away ... Last season, the Cats managed a .274 average with runners in scoring position while hitting .267 with two outs.

K-State Sets Sights on Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship

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Players Mentioned

David Bishop

Tazwell Butler

Seth Dardar

AJ Evasco

Jacob Frost

James Guyette

Dee Kennedy

Maximus Martin

Keegan O'Connor

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