Tops Split Doubleheader with Aggies, Clinch #3 Seed in CUSA Championships

Thursday, May 16

Bowling Green, Ky.

3:00 PM CT

Western Kentucky University

New Mexico State

Photo by: Steve Roberts, WKU Athletics

Tops Split Doubleheader with Aggies, Clinch #3 Seed in CUSA Championships

5/16/2024 10:58:00 PM | Baseball

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BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – WKU Baseball and New Mexico State split today's doubleheader with the Aggies winning game one, 5-4, and the Hilltoppers taking game two, 11-9. The Hilltoppers move to 33-20 (14-9 CUSA) while the Aggies move to 25-26 (10-13 CUSA).

With a win in game two, WKU has officially clinched the No. 3 seed in the Conference USA Championships, the highest ranking the Tops have ever had since joining CUSA in 2015. The victory also marks the 1,000th career win of head coach Marc Rardin's coaching career.

"Right now, winning is winning," said head coach Marc Rardin. "It feels like we've lost like 10 in a row. We've taken some gut punches. We have high expectations this year and nothing changes between disappointment and things of that nature. We were just trying to get on the good side here and get a W."

The first game saw the Aggies score four runs in the first two innings before the Tops answered with four of their own over the next three frames. Sophomore Dylan O'Connell drove in a run with a sacrifice fly in the second while junior Brady Browning scored two with a single through the left side. An RBI groundout from junior Blake Cavill tied the game in the fourth inning.

The score remained even until New Mexico State poked a two-out RBI single up the middle, proving to be the difference as the Aggies held on for the one-run win.

Overall, the Tops bullpen held the New Mexico State offense to just one run over the last 7.2 innings. Junior Cole Heath didn't allow a run in 3.2 frames while striking out one while graduate student Coby Moe and junior Cal Higgins tossed a shutout inning each in the eighth and ninth innings.

In game two, the Tops jumped out to an early 3-0 lead on an RBI single from junior Eli Burwash, a sacrifice fly from Browning, and an RBI single from senior Jaylin Rae, but the Aggies responded with four runs over the next two innings to take the lead after the third inning.

New Mexico State pushed its lead to four with a three-run home run in the fourth, but a two-RBI single from O'Connell and another RBI single from Burwash brought WKU within one.

In the fifth, the Aggies tacked on another, but another three-run burst from the Tops offense in the sixth inning gave them their first lead of the afternoon. Browning drove in one with a double before junior Kyle Hayes plated another with a groundout. Junior Zayd Brannigan bunted with two-outs to push across another and put WKU in front.

Brannigan added a pair of insurance runs in the eighth with a double, which was needed as New Mexico State got within two after scoring a run in the ninth.

That was all the Aggies could muster as senior closer Mason Burns earned the final three outs to secure his 15th save of the year. Burns now owns the program's single season record for saves in a season, passing Ian Thompkins who recorded 14 in the 2014 season. His 15 saves are also tied for the nation's lead in the category.

Sophomore Lucas Litteral earned the win, hurling, a career-high, 4.2 innings while striking out, a career-high, seven batters. The southpaw only allowed just one run on two hits and no walks.

UP NEXT

The Hilltoppers will conclude the regular season with a rubber game against New Mexico State on Saturday beginning at 1 p.m. CT at Nick Denes Field. Senior Day festivities will begin at 12:30 p.m. CT.

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.