Wildcats Win Opener, Drop Next Three to Pirates in First Heart Road Trip of 2024
Game 2
Game 2
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Baker (KS) | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 12 | 0 |
|
Park | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | X | 12 | 10 | 1 |
Game 2
Game 2
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Baker (KS) | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 8 | 10 | 2 |
|
Park | 0 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | X | 14 | 11 | 0 |
Game 1
Game 1
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Baker (KS) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 3 |
|
Park | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | X | 7 | 6 | 4 |
Game 1
Game 1
| Final (8) | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Baker (KS) | 0 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 11 | 0 |
|
Park | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 |
PARKVILLE, Mo. - Playing against a conference opponent on the road for the first time this season, Baker baseball cruised to an 11-1 victory over Park in the series opener before dropping the final three games to the Pirates earlier this week in Parkville, Mo.
With weather shifting things to a Sunday-Monday series, the Wildcats followed up their conference-opening sweep of Missouri Valley last week by earning their fifth straight win in Sunday's opener. The Pirates went on to outscore BU, 33-17 for the remainder of the series.
Game 1 - BU 11, Park 1
Baker scored 10 runs between the third and fourth innings and used an impressive outing from ace Caden Pogue to win game one, 11-1.
Brayden Vawter smacked a solo home run to spark the big six-run top of the third for BU as Jon Jenkins followed with an RBI double and Kolden Howerton and Tanner Twillman added a couple of RBI knocks.
In the fourth, Chris Bollefer followed up a bases-loaded walk with an RBI single before Sevon Battle's two-run single capped the scoring for the Wildcats. After giving up a harmless solo shot in the bottom of the fourth, Pogue allowed just two hits the rest of the way as he finished with nine strikeouts for his third win of the season.
Game 2 - Park 14, BU 8
The Pirates took their turn reaching double-digit runs in the second game of Sunday's doubleheader with the Wildcats' five-run sixth inning coming a little too late.
An RBI single by Vawter and a two-run single by Twillman gave Baker an early 3-0 lead before the Park lineup finally got hot and surged ahead with an eight-run bottom of the second. The Pirates extended their lead with five more runs in the third.
Jaxon Holzem homered to lead off the top of the sixth and Twillman roped a bases-clearing triple to creep the 'Cats a little closer. Vawter drove in Twillman on the following at-bat, but BU's rally would end there as Park evened the series up.
Game 3 - Park 7, BU 4
A four-run sixth inning from the Pirates dealt a devastating blow to a Baker side that let its one-run lead slip away in the first game on Monday.
Twillman continued to stay hot from the plate with his two-run home run in the top of the fifth giving BU a 3-2 lead. Pinch-runner Preston Drake would come around to score later on in the fifth to make it a two-run advantage for the Wildcats.
After getting within one in the bottom half of the fifth, the Pirates tacked on three more runs in the sixth to earn their own comeback victory, 7-4.
Game 4 - Park 12, BU 5
For the fourth time in the series, the Wildcats were first to the scoreboard with a three-run opening frame, but the Pirates scored eight runs between the fifth and sixth to win the finale.
Eli Young sent a three-run bomb over the fence in right-center to give BU a 3-0 lead in the top of the first before the Pirates responded with three runs in the home-half.
After the Pirates took the lead in the second, Holzem's RBI single tied things back up again and Battle put the 'Cats ahead again in the top of the fourth with his fourth RBI of the series. Park took the lead for good in the fifth, scoring six runs and adding two more in the sixth.
Continuing Heart play, Baker will return to Baldwin City for a home matchup against William Penn with the series kicking off on Saturday, March 16 at 1 p.m. at Sauder Field.
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