Around the Big 12: Jayhawks Take Sole Possession of Second
Sawyer Smith’s grand slam in the eighth inning put the Kansas Jayhawks ahead to stay, as they overcame a three-run deficit to complete a sweep of the Utah Utes in Salt Lake City. The win saw the Jayhawks take sole possession of second place.
Smith was one of five Jayhawks with two or more hits in the contest. Derek Cerda led Kansas with three hits, while Jackson Hauge drove in three runs. Utah starter Dylan Gazaway was the only pitcher to last more than 2.1 innings, as neither team could slow down the opposing offense.
Austin Roellig and Cameron Gurney got three hits for Utah, which lost its fifth straight. The Utes sit anchored to the Big 12 basement at 5-16 in the league. Kansas trails West Virginia by two games, with the teams scheduled to face off in Morgantown in the final series.
The Jayhawks will host Missouri on Tuesday. Utah won’t play again until traveling to Houston on Friday.
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Red Raiders Win Series With Arizona
Logan Hughes hit a three-run home run to break things open, and Texas Tech kept its faint hopes of being eligible for the NCAA tournament alive with a 9-3 win over Arizona in Lubbock.
Texas Tech sits nine games under .500 with 14 remaining. If the Red Raiders do not win at least once this weekend in Morgantown, their only hope at the postseason will be to win the Big 12 tournament.
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Texas Tech hit five doubles and swiped three bases, while getting a strong showing out of the bullpen. Jack Cebert picked up the win, holding Arizona to one run in 3.1 innings of relief.
Aaron Walton homered in the fifth to provide most of the Wildcats’ offense. Two losses in Lubbock knocked Arizona to fifth place and could be costly in its efforts to host a regional. Arizona will host New Mexico State Tuesday, while Texas Tech begins a two-game series with Texas-Rio Grande Valley.
Bears Edge Frogs to Avoid Sweep
Ty Johnson secured Baylor’s victory with a two-run single in the sixth inning, allowing the Bears to double up TCU with a 6-3 victory.
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Lucas Davenport gave the Bears 3.2 shutout innings out of the bullpen to earn his third win of the year. Gabe Craig picked up his seventh save of the season, as TCU didn’t score after the fourth inning. Karson Bowen had the Frogs’ only extra base hit, one of three hits for him on the day.
TCU dropped a game behind Kansas for second place. The Frogs will host Texas-Arlington on Tuesday. Baylor will travel to Sam Houston State on Tuesday.
Cowboys Salvage Win Over Bearcats
Nolan Schubart homered and drove in three runs overall, as Oklahoma State scored four in the fourth inning of an 8-1 rout of Cincinnati.
Sean Youngerman struck out seven in seven innings of work, holding the Bearcats to just three hits. His only mistake was a fifth-inning home run off the bat of Quinton Coats. Cincinnati managed just four base runners for the entire game.
Oklahoma State will travel to Tulsa to face Oral Roberts on Tuesday. Cincinnati won’t play until heading to Kansas on Friday.
Cougars Outlast Wildcats
Tyler Cox doubled in the winning run in the ninth inning, as Houston withstood a Kansas State comeback and avoided the sweep in Manhattan with a 6-5 win.
Neither starting pitcher made it out of the first inning, but both bullpens turned in strong efforts. Antoine Jean went 5.2 innings in relief for Houston, while James Guyette pitched 5.1 innings out of the bullpen for K-State.
Cade Climie homered and notched three hits for the Cougars. Houston moved into 11th place with the win and is on track to qualify for the league tournament. Shintaro Inoue homered in the loss for K-State, which visits Nebraska Tuesday. Houston travels to McNeese State.
Hurdsman’s Slam Lifts Cougars Past Grand Canyon
Bryker Hurdsman hit a grand slam in a six-run third inning for BYU, which held on for a 10-9 win over Grand Canyon on Monday in Phoenix.
The Cougars stuck around to play the Antelopes after getting swept by Arizona State. BYU has lost five straight in the league and sits tied for the last spot in the league tournament.
Luke Anderson homered and drove in four runs in the contest. BYU resumes play Thursday, when it will host Kansas State.
