MANHATTAN, Kan. — BYU baseball finished its inaugural Big 12 season on a high note with Parker Goff delivering a game-winning grand slam as the Cougars defeated Kansas State 12-8 in 10 innings on Saturday afternoon at Tointon Family Stadium.
The Cougars and Wildcats went back-and-forth with BYU up 5-3 in the fourth before K-State clawed back to a 7-5 lead in the fifth. BYU took advantage of a Wildcat error to score a go-ahead three runs in the top of the ninth. K-State then sent the game to extra innings with a solo shot in its half inning.
The Cougars loaded the bases to start the 10th and made the Wildcats pay with Goff bringing everyone home on a bomb over the left field wall.
“After tough losses the first two nights, it feels a lot better to come out on top,” said BYU head coach Trent Pratt. “We kept fighting, we found a way to win and a lot of guys contributed to that win.”
The Cougars totaled four players with multiple hits, led by seven combined from both Goff and Crew McChesney. Boston Mabeus and Stone Cushing closed the game for BYU on the mound with a strikeout a-piece. Cushing (2-3) earned the win as the Cougars delivered K-State its first defeat in 30 games this season when leading after eight innings.
BYU’s 12 runs came on 14 hits while the Wildcats’ eight runs followed 11 hits. Each team recorded an error and stranded nine runners.
Player Highlights
- Crew McChesney: 4-5, 4 Runs, RBI, 2B
- Parker Goff: 3-6, 1 Run, 5 RBI, 2B, HR
- Luke Anderson: 2-3, 3 Runs, 1 RBI, HR
- Ryker Schow: 2-4, 2 Runs
McChesney burst onto the scene from the get-go with a leadoff single to left. A passed ball and flyout allowed him to move to third before a Cooper Vest single gave the freshman outfielder his first run of the day.
McChesney then helped preserve BYU’s 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first with his latest display of outfield athleticism in a diving grab that robbed the Wildcats of bases.
Anderson put the Cougars up 2-0 with a solo shot to left in the second. K-State answered in the bottom of the second with a two-out RBI double that cut into the BYU lead at 2-1. The Cougars were quick to respond with McChesney leading off the third with another single. The freshman speedster stole second and scored shortly after as Goff doubled to third on his first hit of the day. With Goff and McChesney leading the way, BYU took a 3-1 lead into the bottom of the third.
The Wildcats squared the game 3-3 with a 2-RBI triple off the right-center wall but didn’t deter the Cougars for long.
Kuhio Aloy and Anderson led off the fourth with consecutive walks. Aloy scored BYU’s fourth run on a Crew Robinson sacrifice fly. The Cougars didn’t stop there in the fourth with McChesney singling down the third base line to score Anderson and take a 5-3 lead.
K-State regained momentum in the bottom of the fourth as they scored four unanswered beginning in the bottom of the fourth.
Trailing 7-5 in the top of the ninth, BYU fought its way back with a three-run inning. Ryker Schow began the scoring surge with a single to short. McChesney again found a soft spot down the third base line, doubling himself and advancing Schow to third. Collin Reuter walked to load the bases and set up a crucial at bat for Vest as the game hung in the balance.
On a full count, Vest put the ball in play and used a costly K-State error to get aboard while McChesney and Schow came home. A wild pitch allowed pinch runner Bryker Hurdsman to score one more run as the Cougars finished their half of the ninth up 8-7.
The Wildcats, however, weren’t done yet. K-State tied the game 8-8 with a solo home run in the bottom of the ninth. Cushing and the Cougars registered a pop up, strikeout and groundout to close the ninth and send the game to extras.
Singles from Anderson and Schow, along with a McChesney walk stacked the sacks for BYU in the top of the 10th. Goff then came to the plate and cleared the bases with a rocketed homer to left. The Cougars made quick work of the Wildcats in the bottom of the 10th, preserving their 12-8 lead and the Big 12 win.
BYU concludes the 2024 season at 21-31 and 7-23 in Big 12 play.
“This isn’t the season we wanted, we know that,” Pratt said. “Even still, our guys came out and played hard every day. We have to find a way to not just compete in the Big 12 but win in the Big 12. We all have to get better this offseason; coach better, play better. We’re excited to get to work.”