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  • Kansas State Baseball Stuns No. 5 Arkansas With The Wildcats Beating The 'Backs, 3-2

Kansas State Baseball Stuns No. 5 Arkansas With The Wildcats Beating The 'Backs, 3-2

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Baseball

Micah Dean's go-ahead RBI double in the seventh, combined with 11 strikeouts from Jacob Frost and Blake Dean, propelled K-State to a 3-2 stunner over No. 5 Arkansas on Friday night at the Amegy Bank College Baseball Series at Globe Life Field.

After Arkansas (4-1) evened the score with a pair of solo home runs, Micah Dean knocked the clutch hit into left field, driving in the game-winning run and handing the Razorbacks their first loss of the season. The redshirt freshman from Richmond, Texas was named the Player of the Game by FloSports with his first collegiate RBI.

"So proud of our guys for their toughness and resilience through a challenging stretch," said K-State (2-4) head coach Pete Hughes. "We had great pitching, and our guys competed in the zone all night. Defensively, we played clean baseball. Offensively, we executed situational baseball well and performed against a really good arm."

Frost, who carried a one-hitter into the sixth, held the Razorbacks to two runs in his first start of the season. The senior left-hander allowed four hits and struck out six before handing the ball over to Blake Dean, who logged 3 2/3 scoreless innings.

Dean (1-0), a Big 12 All-Freshman Team honoree last season, picked up the win and scattered just three hits in his relief outing. The sophomore retired 11 of the 14 batters he faced, including striking out a season-high five.

"This game is a good reflection of our team's character and an important momentum builder, but we have some ground to make up," Hughes added.

In the second consecutive victory over nationally-ranked Arkansas, both Dee Kennedy and Bear Madliak led the Wildcats' offense with two-hit days while Dean, Kennedy and Shintaro Inoue each drove in a run.

Four pitchers made an appearance for Arkansas with Tate McGuire (0-1) taking the loss. The right-hander surrendered the go-ahead run and allowed two hits in his 1 1/3 innings in relief of sophomore starter Gabe Gaeckle, a 2024 Freshman All-American by Baseball America, D1Baseball and NCBWA.

HOW IT HAPPENED
After two scoreless innings, K-State broke through in the third when Kennedy drove in Dean from second with a single through the left side. The Cats added to their lead in the next frame as Martin doubled down the left field line and scored on Inoue's single to right.

With the Cats leading 2-0 in sixth, Arkansas made its first call to the bullpen and handed the ball over to McGuire. The right-handed reliever quickly picked up the final out to keep K-State off the board for the second consecutive inning.

The Razorbacks' Wehiwa and Kuhio Aloy each built momentum for Arkansas, as they ended the shutout with solo home runs.

Tied 2-2, K-State took back the lead in the seventh as Dean laced a 0-1 pitch down the left field line to score David Bishop after the senior led off the inning with an infield single.

Dean kept the Cats ahead, 3-2, in the home half of the inning when the redshirt freshman gunned down the runner out at third on a hit into center. The Wildcats' defense continued to shut down the Razorbacks, holding off the tying run in the seventh and ninth.