KANSAS CITY, Mo. – For the second straight week, Kansas and Missouri went to extra innings and this time the Jayhawks defeated the Tigers 4-3 in 10 innings at Kauffman Stadium. Collier Cranford hit a sacrifice fly in the 10th inning to score Tyler Gerety, who pinch ran for Jake English after a leadoff double.
Evan Shaw started for Kansas and pitched five innings, allowing three runs and striking out six. Kolby Dougan, Cooper Moore, Tegan Cain and Hunter Cranton combined to throw five scoreless innings of relief and keep the Missouri offense silent.
HOW IT HAPPENED
• Kansas (11-8) scored first on Tuesday night with two runs in the second inning. Janson Reeder started the inning with a double and Chase Jans drove him in with an RBI triple. John Nett came up next and brought in Jans with a sacrifice fly, giving Kansas a 2-0 edge.
• Missouri (9-12) got a run back in the bottom of the third on an RBI single by Thomas Curry to make the score 2-1.
• The Jayhawks loaded the bases in the fifth inning and scored a run on a bases loaded walk to Luke Leto. KU led 3-1 in the middle of the fifth.
• The Tigers answered back with two runs in the bottom of the fifth, scoring a run on a throwing error on an attempted steal which was followed up by a solo home run from Jackson Lovich to tie it up at 3-3.
• Missouri got two runners on base in the eighth inning, but Tegan Cain was able to escape the jam with a strikeout to end the frame.
• The Jayhawks had a pair of runners on base in the ninth but were unable to score.
• In the 10th inning, English led off the inning with a double. Leto moved Gerety, who pinch ran, to third base and Cranford scored Gerety on a sacrifice fly.
• In the bottom of the 10th, Ben Hartl made a diving catch on a bunt pop up in foul territory and then Cranton induced a double play to end the game.
PITCHERS OF RECORD
Win: Hunter Cranton (2-0)
Final line: 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 SO
Loss: Ryan Magdic (0-1)
Final line: 1.1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 1 SO
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Hunter Cranton: Cranton entered the game in the ninth and held the Tigers scoreless in the inning and then preserved a one-run lead in the 10th to win the game. He struck out the side in the ninth inning. Cranton has not allowed an earned run in eight appearances this season.
SOCIAL POST OF THE GAME
Enjoy the long trip home 👋 pic.twitter.com/u9xZH4Yyi0
— Kansas Baseball (@KUBaseball) March 20, 2024
QUOTABLES & NOTABLES
“In a game like this I don’t think it’s ever about losing the lead when it’s a tie game. In games like this, it’s really just whoever scores last. That’s why we continually talk about just playing one pitch at a time and playing against the strike zone and not making more of it than it is. I thought we pitched out of some stuff and I thought the bullpen – Dougan, Moore, Cain, and Cranton was about as awesome as it gets.” – Head Coach Dan Fitzgerald
• Kansas’ bullpen threw five scoreless innings of relief.
• Kansas won its first extra innings game of the season and first since April 26, 2023 at Wichita State.
• Kansas improved to 5-3 at Kauffman Stadium and 11-7 all-time at MLB Ballparks.
• Nett has reached base safely in all 19 games this season. He also extended his hitting streak to eight games.
• English had two doubles to tally his fifth multi-hit game of the season.
UP NEXT
Kansas will host UCF this weekend at Hoglund Ballpark in a three-game series, beginning on Friday at 6 p.m. CT. Fans can purchase tickets by contacting the Kansas ticket office at 785-864-3141 or by visiting the ticketing page here. Students receive free admission all season by presenting their KU student ID at the ticket booth.
