March 16, 2011
Wichita State 8, Arizona 3 (Box Score)
WICHITA, Kan. - For the first time 2011, the No. 11 Arizona baseball team dropped a series and lost consecutive games as host Wichita State downed the visiting Wildcats, 8-3, on Wednesday afternoon at Eck Stadium.
Wichita State (12-4), a day after mounting a late-inning rally to win the opener in extra innings on Tuesday night, jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the fourth inning.
Arizona (13-5) tied the game with three runs in the sixth inning, but the Shockers reclaimed the lead in the home half of the inning on a solo home run by Ryan Hege, before adding four insurance runs in the seventh to set the score at its final, 8-3.
The Wildcats sent Kyle Simon to the mount and the righty turned in three strong innings before running into a bit of trouble in the fourth. A leadoff walk and a single put two runners on with no outs.
Then, shortstop Alex Mejia was unable to handle a potential double play ball and the bases were loaded. Tyler Coughenour drove in the game's first run with a single before Simon bounced back with a strikeout with a bases loaded strikeout.
The Wildcats nearly escaped further damage as Simon induced another potential double play ball. But after second base man Bryce Ortega flipped to Mejia covering second, Mejia's throw to first deflected off the base runner which allowed two runs to score on the play.
Vincent Littleman came on in relief of Simon and closes the inning out with no further runs allowed. Simon left having allowed three runs in 3.2 innings, but just one was earned.
Arizona answered a couple innings later. Ortega led off the sixth inning with a single and moved to second base on a sacrifice bunt by Joey Rickard. Cole Frenzel followed with a bouncer back to the mound, and WSU starter Charlie Lowell fielded it and tried to get Ortega between second and third, but Ortega was able to get back to second safely while Frenzel reached on a fielder's choice.
Robert Refsnyder singled home Ortega from second to put the Wildcats on the board. With two runners on, Steve Selsky walked to load the bases. After a strikeout, Jett Bandy delivered a clutch two-out single to centerfield to tie the game 3-3.
But in the home half of the inning, Hege delivered a one-out home run off Littleman to recapture the lead for the Shockers. Littleman was charged with the loss despite giving up just the one run in 1.2 innings of relief.
The Shockers added four runs in the bottom of the seventh, punctuated by a three-run home run by Coughenour.
From there, reliever TJ McGreevy, who pitched a scoreless seventh inning, closed out the game for his first save of the season. The right-hander pitched three scoreless innings and scattered three hits and a walk.
Lowell earned the victory with 6.0 innings of work in the midweek start. He gave up three runs on five hits and two walks to go with eight strikeouts.
For Arizona, Bandy led the offense with a 3-for-4 day at the plate and two RBI. Classmate Steve Selsky, who made his season debut on Tuesday night, drew a walk and collected a single in his last two plate appearances on Wednesday.
Arizona will return home to host San Francisco this weekend, March 19-21. The series will begin on Saturday at 7 p.m. MST at Kindall Field/Sancet Stadium.
