Slate: Silver Linings on a Rainy Day

Baseball

This will not go down as a great overall season for K-State baseball, but the Wildcats have finished the season strong. Yesterday afternoon, amidst rainy conditions at Tointon Family Stadium, the BatCats completed their non-conference schedule with an 11-5 victory over the visiting Texas State Bobcats. The win caps a 5-game non-conference winning streak, a turnaround in mid-week games from some embarrassing losses in early April.

This weekend the Wildcats will host West Virginia for their final home series of the season. The Wildcats need just three wins over their final six games to secure their place in the Big 12 Championships later this month, and three of those six come against KU in Lawrence to end the regular season. West Virginia has struggled at times in Big 12, but sit at fourth in the conference standings at 11-10 (the Big 12 has been brutual this year, only four teams are above .500 in conference play, but three sit at 8-10).

Basketball

Yesterday we brought the news that Bruce Weber had officially signed JUCO point guard David Sloan to be the newest member of the 2019 recruiting class for the Kansas State Wildcats. With that, Drew stopped in the drop a profile of the newest basketball recruit and broke down what to expect from the Kentucky native. Kellis Robinett had two different looks at the recruiting situation at K-State; first, a look at the unconventional path that Sloan took to get to K-State; and second, a look at what the Wildcats hope to do with the final open scholarship for the 2019 cycle.

Speaking of Kellis Robinett, Luke Thompson finally got the Eagle/Star reporter lined up for Bring on the PodCats, and we talked with Robinett about basketball (before Sloan’s announcement) and football.

On a sour note, Maize, KS product Caleb Grill chose Iowa State over offers from UNLV and K-State to end the recruitment of what many hoped to be a major late steal for the Wildcats.

Softball

No, softball is not an official sport at K-State, at least one supported by the athletic department. That there isn’t one in a state filled with great softball talent is a crime. There is absolutely no reason why K-State shouldn’t have a D1 softball team. None. Zero. Do it already Gene Taylor (and add wrestling too). But I digress.

The club softball team had a strong season this year, going 10-2 and qualifying for regionals. The team credits their success to strong leadership and hard work, coupled with more structured practices, that has lead to a positive competitive environment. Just four years ago, the squad struggled to just four wins, and now has a chance to take home some real hardware. We wish these ladies the best of luck while they continue to represent our beloved Alma Mater.

Track & Field

Thirty one (!!) members of the K-State en’s and women’s track team were selected to the 2019 Academic All-Big 12 teams on Tuesday. This includes 24 First Team selections and seven Second Team selections, while six members nominated had 4.0 GPA’s (that’s hard enough even when you aren’t also trying to be a D1 athlete).