Tulane loses Saturday slugfest by run-rule at Wichita State

WICHITA, Ks. – Despite an offensive bounce back, the Tulane University baseball team (30-21-1, 10-10) fell by a final score of 18-8 to Wichita State (18-32, 7-13) in eight innings on Saturday afternoon. The Green Wave collected 12 hits and pushed eight runs across the plate, but a pair of big innings by the Shockers offense proved to be too much to overcome for Tulane.

Freshman Brady Marget led the offensive resurgence for the Green Wave with his eighth multi-hit performance of the year. The Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin, product picked up three hits and a pair of runs driven in against the Shockers. Brady Hebert and Bennet Lee also notched a pair of hits on the day while Banks added two runs driven in on one hit.

Tulane sent six different pitchers to the mound during the contest as starter Grant Siegel tossed just three innings while allowing five runs on seven hits. Keaton Kneuppel (1-1) took the loss on the bump after giving up four runs on four hits while recording only two outs in the fourth inning.

The offense started clicking early for the Green Wave as Tulane plated four runs in the top of the first inning. Following a pair of walks and a hit by pitch, Marget got the scoring going with a sacrifice to left field to put the Wave on the board. On the next pitch Jackson Linn brought the second run across the plate with an RBI-single back through the middle. Teo Banks capped the big inning for Tulane with a two-out two-run double down the right field line to give Siegel a four-run cushion before taking the mound.

Tulane tacked on another run in the following frame as Hebert launched his fourth home run of the season with a solo shot to right center field.

After working a pair of scoreless innings to start the afternoon, Siegel ran into trouble in the bottom of the third. The Wichita State offense responded with five runs on five hits in the frame to make it a tie ballgame heading into the fourth inning.

The score did not stay tied for long, however, as Tulane strung together four singles in the top of the fourth to plate another run and retake the lead. Marget picked up his second RBI on the day on a single through the right side that scored Jared Hart from third to put the Wave up 6-5.

In the bottom of the fourth Wichita State mounted a big response scoring seven runs on six hits including a grand slam with two outs.

Tulane got a run back in the next frame on when Simon Baumgardt crossed the plate on a groundout by Hart to pull the Wave within five trailing 12-7.

Sophomore Cristian Sanchez worked a clean frame for the Green Wave in the bottom of the fifth retiring all three hitters he faced. The Shockers got to the right-hander in the sixth to put three more runs on the board before Kyle Beaty finished the frame on the mound for Tulane.

The Green Wave scratched a run across in the top of the seventh thanks to the 118th and 119th doubles of the season for Tulane. A pinch hit double by Jacob Laprarie to leadoff the inning set the table for an RBI-double off the bat of Trevor Minder to put Tulane down 15-8.

Wichita State added two more runs in the bottom of the seventh inning on a pair of wild pitches. The Shockers brought the game to an end in the next inning by bringing one more run across the plate to push the score to 18-8.

Cameron Bye (5-1) earned the victory for Wichita State tossing six innings while allowing three runs on seven hits.

UP NEXT
Tulane returns to action for the series finale on Sunday at Wichita State with the first pitch set for 1 p.m.