Jayhawks Rally Past Benedictine, 7-2
March 26, 2008
LAWRENCE, Kan. –
Freshman T.J. Walz pitched 5 1/3 innings of one-hit relief, while three different Jayhawks collected two hits as the Kansas baseball team rallied from an early hole for a 7-2 triumph over Benedictine College in a non-conference game at Hoglund Ballpark Wednesday.<?xml:namespace prefix=”o” ns=”urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office”?>
Kansas improves to 18-9 overall, while the Ravens fall to 9-8.
Walz, a freshman from Omaha, Neb., was the difference in the game, pitching 5 1/3 innings of relief. The 6-foot righty entered the game in the fourth inning and retired 16 of the 17 Ravens, including the first 11 he faced. His only blemish was a two-out double to Sean Good in the seventh.
Walz struck out a season-high six batters, and did not walk anybody.
Trailing 2-0 early, KU got back into the game on an error in the third inning. Senior John Allman hit a routine ground ball to second base with two outs that was thrown into the Benedictine dugout and allowed two runs to score.
In the sixth, the Jayhawks took advantage of more Raven miscues. After a pair of walks, senior Erik Morrison singled to center to give the home team its first lead at 3-2. KU wasn’t done there. Morrison and Ryne Price executed a perfect double steal to move runners to second and third.
After Preston Land delivered a sacrifice fly, Nick Faunce and Robby Price collected back-to-back RBI singles as KU built a 6-2 lead. The Jayhawks added another run in the eighth on Justin Ellrich’s first career triple.
Senior Hiarali Garcia got the start for the Jayhawks and allowed two first inning runs, but retired the Ravens quietly in the second and third innings. Freshman Brett Bochy recorded the final two outs.
Juniors Preston Land and Nick Faunce each had a pair of hits in the game, while freshman Tony Thompson was 2-for-3 with two runs scored.
The Jayhawks (18-9) will play host to No. 20 Texas A&M in a three-game Big 12 series, beginning Friday afternoon at Hoglund Ballpark. The first pitch has been moved up to 4 p.m. to allow for fans to watch the KU basketball game later that evening.
