In the first two games of the weekend series against Kansas State, Arizona’s offense struggled to plate runs, scoring just one run in each game.
On Sunday, Arizona’s offense had 13 hits including two home runs with five players recording multiple hits on the way to an 11-7 series finale win over Kansas State in Hi Corbett Field.
“They did a really good job of coming out and playing good baseball,” Arizona coach Chip Hale said.
Sunday’s win ties Arizona at 12th in the Big 12 with Texas Tech. The top 12 teams advance to the Big 12 tournament.
“We need to win series whether they’re at home or away if we plan on number one making the tournament, our own tournament,” Hale said.
Arizona (15-24, 6-12 Big 12) scored in all but one plate appearance and notched its first run in the first inning when leadoff batter Nate Novitske found the gap in right field for a double. Novitske advanced to third on a single from Caleb Danzeisen and an Andrew Cain single plated Novitske giving the Wildcats from Arizona a 1-0 lead.
TJ Adams hit his second career home run in the second inning, a 410-foot solo homer to deep center field.
“I took the first pitch and I had too; it was right down Broadway,” Adams said. “I was like, ‘Oh man, if he throws that again,’ and he did, and I got it, and I was like, ‘Oh, I think that’s gone.’ I said it as I was running out of the box.”
Kansas State (25-15, 9-9) scored four in the third to take a 4-2 lead.
One of the runs scored was off a balk by Arizona starting pitcher Luc Fladda.
The balk call was made by the plate umpire but wasn’t heard by players or the umpire at second and resulted in a bit of chaos. It appeared Arizona caught the KSU base runner in a run down between first and second. The throw to first was off target and the runner ended up safe at first but was advanced to second on the balk. The runner at third advanced home to tie the game at two apiece.
The third inning was the only inning Arizona didn’t record a run.
Maddox Mihalakis hit his second home run of the season in the fourth to bring Arizona to within one of KSU and added an RBI double in the seventh inning to go 2 for 4 for the game.
Arizona would add two runs in the fifth and one in the sixth.
In the seventh, in addition to the Mihalakis double that plated one run, freshman shortstop Cash Brennan hit a two RBI single that put Arizona up 9-4.
“I really focus on staying up the middle, hitting it right back off the pitcher,” Brennan said about his success with left-handed pitchers. “Sometimes I’ll get out a little out in front, and it’s up the middle for a hit, or sometimes, as you see, I’ll get jammed and drop one in there behind the six hole.”
On the trajectory of play from the start of the season to the current game by the freshmen, Hale said, “I think they are doing a really good job.”
“They’ve never played this many games. Yhey’ve never had to come get focused and eat the right thing and get enough sleep this many times in a season so we’re starting to see a few guys hit a wall. We just got to get pushed through that and they should kind of come out on the other side next week.”
KSU’s last runs of the game came off of a Bear Madliak three-run home run in the top of the eighth.
In the bottom of the inning, Arizona added its final two runs on an RBI triple by Cain and an RBI single by Beau Sylvester.
On the mound, Sunday afternoon’s game was a script flip from the first two series games.
In Friday and Saturday’s losses, Owen Kramkowski and Smith Bailey pitched lights out, going at least six innings before handing off to the bullpen.
Fladda lasted three innings after allowing four hits and four runs before being relieved by Collin McKinney with Arizona trailing KSU.
McKinney, who earned the win, pitched four innings, struck out six and allowed two hits and two runs. He started the eighth but after giving up back-to-back singles to the first two batters he faced, he was relieved by Maclain Roberts.
After Roberts gave up the three-run homer to Madliak and a single to the next batter, he was pulled and replaced by closer Garrett Hicks.
“We need to get Maclain Roberts back to where he was, he was a real leverage for us, of late he has not been as good so we need to get him back,” Hale said.
Hicks was able to get out of the eighth with no further damage and got the batters out in order in the ninth to secure the win for Arizona.
“Our saying is go one and oh today and today that’s what we did. We’re going to focus on the next game,” Brennan said about getting through the valley’s of the season.
Arizona will be back in action in Hi Corbett Field for a Thursday-Saturday series with BYU (2-18, 9-9).
First pitch on Thursday is scheduled for 6 p.m. The game can be streamed on ESPN+
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