Hilltopper Baseball's Historic Season Ends with Loss to Top-Seeded Dallas Baptist

Saturday, May 27

Houston, Texas

12:30 PM CT

Western Kentucky University

33-26

Dallas Baptist

45-13

WKU

DBU

Hilltopper Baseball's Historic Season Ends with Loss to Top-Seeded Dallas Baptist

5/27/2023 4:36:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)Season Stats

HOUSTON, Texas – WKU Baseball's season ended with a 5-0 defeat from top-seeded Dallas Baptist in the Conference USA Championship Semifinals on Saturday afternoon.

"If you would have told me we were going to do that, I would have thought you were crazy or a liar," said head coach Marc Rardin on being in the Conference USA Semifinals. "The kids have blown me away. They've impressed me. I was 180 degrees different then what the guys that were returning were used to and I wasn't who the guys that signed here signed up for. They all adapted to me the best they could, and I was impressed with that."

The Hilltopper offense was stagnant all afternoon, only recording three total hits on their way to being blanked for just the second time this season. Tristin Garcia was the only Hilltopper with a multi-hit effort with a 2-for-3 outing in the defeat.

Defensively, WKU held a high-powered, Patriot offense to just five runs on seven hits and five free passes. Dallas Baptist used three homers and a wild pitch to accumulate the five scores over the course of eight hitting opportunities.

HOW WE GOT HERE

Prior to the start of the 2023 season, WKU Baseball was picked to finish in last place in Conference USA after a 2022 season where the team finished with the third-most losses in program history (18-36).

Newly hired head coach Marc Rardin took the helm after a decorated 20-year career at Iowa Western Community College where he won three NJCAA Division I National Championships and took the Reivers to 12 JUCO College World Series'.

Under the leadership of Rardin, the 104th team in WKU Baseball history accomplished something the program had not seen in 14 years.

After a 2-10 start to conference play, the Hilltoppers turned the tables to win five consecutive conference series for the first time since 2009 and tying for the most consecutive series wins in program history, including sweeps over Florida Atlantic, Charlotte, and Rice on their way to winning 14 of their final 18 league games to finish the season at the No. 4 spot in the C-USA rankings, tied for their highest rank going into the C-USA Championship since joining the league in 2015. Not only did the Hilltoppers finish fourth in the standings with a winning record in 2023, but they topped 30 wins in a season for the first time since 2011 while their 33-26 overall record is tied for the fourth-best in a season since 2004 and best since joining C-USA.

On top of all of that, WKU won two games in the C-USA Championships and advanced to the semifinals for the first time since joining the league with two wins over Florida Atlantic, 9-8 and 9-7.

The Hilltoppers faced a six-run deficit in both games against the Owls in the seventh inning before storming back to win the games in the late stages to advance to the next round. Not only did the Tops win both games against FAU in postseason play, but they also swept the Owls for the first time in program history earlier this season in Bowling Green. In game two, the Hilltoppers faced a six-run deficit in the bottom of the sixth inning before completing the comeback and eventually winning in a 14-inning contest, 9-8.

The comeback wins over the Owls were just three of the 15 come-from-behind wins the Hilltoppers completed over the course of the season, doing it in nearly half of the total wins.

Hilltopper Baseball will look to build on the success of year one of the Rardin Era heading into the 2024 campaign.

How to follow WKU Baseball: For complete information on WKU Hilltopper Baseball, visit WKUSports.com or follow the program via social media @WKU_Baseball on Twitter and @WKUBaseball Instagram.