Kansas State Baseball Drops Extra-Inning Decision to Louisiana on Walk-Off Homer
There are losses that sting, and then there are losses that linger. On Wednesday night in Louisiana, the Kansas State Wildcats experienced the latter.
In an 11-inning battle defined by grit, sharp defense, and clutch moments, K-State fell 3-2 to the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns at M.L. Tigue Moore Field. The deciding blow came off the bat of Drew Markle, who launched a solo home run to left field in the bottom of the 11th inning to seal the walk-off victory.
Kansas State's Grant Gallagher’s Ninth-Inning Blast Forces Extras
The loss drops Kansas State to 6-3 on the season and closes the road trip on a sour note. For Louisiana, the win extends its streak to seven straight and improves its record to 7-2.
Final pic.twitter.com/EiM0kciM45
— K-State Baseball (@KStateBSB) February 26, 2026
The final swing may have belonged to Louisiana. However, the game would not have reached extra innings without Grant Gallagher’s heroics.
Trailing 2-1 entering the ninth inning, the Wildcats needed a spark. They got one undoubtedly. Gallagher crushed a 416-foot home run to straightaway center field, tying the game at 2-2. The ball left his bat at 102 mph and instantly shifted the energy in the K-State dugout.
It was his second home run of the season and a clutch reminder of his power. Gallagher finished 2-for-4 with a game-high two RBI and a walk, continuing a strong stretch at the plate. His late-game blast extended the Wildcats’ hopes and forced the extra frames.
Before that moment, offense had been hard to come by. Kansas State had endured a 15-inning scoreless stretch before breaking through in the sixth inning. Dee Kennedy ignited a two-out rally with a double. Gallagher followed with an RBI single to right field, driving Kennedy home to tie the game at 1-1.
The Wildcats collected four of their seven hits in that sixth inning alone. Three of those hits came with two outs. Louisiana, by contrast, did not record a single two-out hit all night. Even in defeat, K-State showed an ability to deliver in pressure situations.
Matt Flores made his first start for Kansas State and delivered 3 2/3 innings of composed work. After allowing a sacrifice fly in the first inning, he settled in and retired nine consecutive batters. Flores finished with one earned run allowed on four hits, one walk, and four strikeouts.
Louisiana’s Tyler Papenbrock matched him pitch for pitch. Papenbrock worked five shutout innings and surrendered just one hit. His no-hit bid carried into the fifth before Shintaro Inoue broke it up with a dribbler to third base.
Tazwell Butler entered in the fourth inning with the bases loaded and two outs. On four pitches, he struck out the batter to escape the jam. Butler went on to retire 10 consecutive hitters and delivered 4 1/3 innings of one-run ball, with the lone run unearned. He struck out four and logged his second-longest career outing. Over 6 1/3 innings this season, he has allowed just one run.
Cohen Feser took over in the ninth inning and worked 2 1/3 innings. He allowed just one run, the decisive solo homer in the 11th, along with one walk and one strikeout. Feser was charged with the loss after Markle connected on a 2-2 pitch for the walk-off shot.
On the Louisiana side, Bryce Wilson earned the win. He limited the Wildcats to one hit across two scoreless innings in the 10th and 11th.
Extra-Inning Heartbreak Seals the Series
Louisiana struck first in the opening inning on a sacrifice fly from Rigoberto Hernandez, taking a 1-0 lead. After Kansas State tied the game in the sixth, the Ragin’ Cajuns reclaimed a 2-1 advantage in the eighth inning.
Despite committing two errors to K-State’s one, Louisiana minimized damage in key spots. Markle, who finished 2-for-5, was the only Louisiana player with multiple hits and ultimately delivered the game-winning swing with one out in the 11th.
The final box score reflected just how tight the contest was. Louisiana scored three runs on five hits with two errors and left five runners on base. Kansas State scored two runs on seven hits with one error and left four runners stranded. Six different Wildcats recorded a hit, highlighted by Gallagher’s two-RBI night.
The win completed a two-game series sweep for Louisiana and gave the Ragin’ Cajuns a 3-0 lead in the all-time series. Wednesday marked the first meeting between the programs since March 13, 1986.
Under head coach Pete Hughes, Kansas State now moves to 7-8 in extra-inning games. It was the Wildcats’ first extra-inning appearance since February 28, 2025, against No. 2 LSU. The Wildcats are also 3-1 in games where they out-hit their opponent.
Next up, Kansas State opens the home portion of its 2026 schedule at Tointon Family Stadium with an eight-game homestand against the Columbia Lions. The series begins with a Friday doubleheader at 2 p.m. CT, with Game 2 starting approximately 45 minutes after the opener. The weekend concludes Saturday at 1 p.m.
Stay up to date with the Wildcats by bookmarking Kansas State On SI and following us on X/Twitter.
Shayni Maitra is a sports girl through and through writing about everything from locker room drama to game-day legends in the NFL and NBA. She’s covered the action for outlets like College Sports Network, Sportskeeda, EssentiallySports, NB Media, and PinkVilla, blending sharp takes with a deep love for storytelling. Whether it’s college football rivalries, Olympic gold-chasers, or the off-field chaos that keeps Twitter alive, Shayni brings the heat with heart—and just the right amount of humor.