BatCats lose to Texas Tech

Happy Easter to all those celebrating and to those merely indulging in bunny-shaped treats!

Baseball

Despite taking an early 4-0 lead, Kansas State lost 12-8 to Texas Tech to drop yet another Big 12 series.

The early lead was thanks in part to a two-run homer from Jake Scudder, his third in as many days. But the Red Raiders made four runs in the third inning and then five more in the seventh to win the series.

The BatCats did manage a small comeback in the seventh inning, with Josh Rollete getting two runs and Kyle Barfield opening the inning with a single. Quintin Crandall also added an RBI double in the bottom of the ninth.

Up next, Kansas State will take on New Mexico in a doubleheader on Tuesday at Tointon. First pitch in the first game is scheduled for 2:30 PM.

Golf

A slow start on Day 2 and a rain delay put paid to any aspirations Kansas State’s men’s golf team had at the Hawkeye Invitational. After two rounds, the Wildcats are in 11th place with an overall score of 16-over-par. Individually, Matt Green is low Wildcat and is tied for 21st place at +1.

Tennis

The Sunflower Showdown was a tightly contested match for match of the day, but Kansas State ultimately dropped the meeting 4-2.

The Wildcats have now lost four matches in a row and this is the third consecutive loss to Kansas.

Up next, Kansas State finishes up the regular season at Baylor and Texas next weekend, followed by the Big 12 Championships.

Track and Field

Now for the good news.

The Kansas State women’s track and field team, currently ranked No. 26, took home first place at the Texas Invitational in Austin. The team had 150 points to finish in first place for the first meet victory of the season. The points were the result of four first-place finishes and a number of top five finishes for the women. The men’s team finished in fourth place.

Friday saw Janeé Kassanavoid (hammer throw), Kayla Doll (3000m steeplechase) and Shardia Lawrence (triple jump) take first place, and yesterday, they were joined by Lawrence’s twin sister Shadae, who took first place in the discus throw with a mark of 59.61m.

A number of women also placed well in their events to add to the Wildcats’ points total. Rhizlane Siba finished third in the high jump, while teammates Wurrie Njadoe and Zanri Van der Merwe finished 2-and-3 in the long jump. Marija Stambolic finished second in the women’s 800m race, while A’Keyla Mitchell ran a solid race to finish fourth in the 400m event. It was Jess St. John who finally put the women over the top with a third place finish in the shot put.

On the men’s side, Christoff Bryan predictably took first in the high jump, and Brett Neely equalled the feat in the shot put. Neely also finished in the discus throw. Lukas Koch and Kain Ellis continued their stellar seasons with a 2-and-3 finish in the 1500m race.

The Wildcats’ next meet is the John McDonnell Invitational at the University of Arkansas next weekend.