Big 12 Tournament: Frogs Survive After Beating Kansas State 9-4

After being blanked by Oklahoma and sent to the losers bracket, TCU rebounded against Kansas State with early offensive production and great starting pitching from an unlikely source.

Sam Myers went 3-for-4 in TCU's Round 3 win over Kansas State in the Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship. / Barry Lewis/KillerFrogs

The TCU Horned Frogs (33-20), who only had three hits during the second day of the tournament, took an early lead in their Thursday morning matchup with the Kansas State Wildcats (32-24) and never looked back. TCU defeated K-State 9-4 in Game Nine of the Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship in Arlington.

The team finished the game with 14 hits, including a three-hit performance by freshman Sam Myers. Three other Horned Frogs had multi-hit days. Myers, who extended his on-base streak to 16 games, went 3-4 with a double, two singles, and three RBIs on the day. Logan Maxwell and Brody Green finished the day with two RBIs each, and Kurtis Byrne and Karson Bowen each had one.

TCU Head Coach Kirk Saarloos handed the ball to Ben Abeldt to start the elimination game for the Horned Frogs. Abeldt, who carried a 1.83 era and had accumulated eight saves on the year out of the bullpen, was masterful on the mound today. Abeldt earned career highs in innings pitched (5), number of pitches thrown (85), and strikeouts (9).

After the game, Abeldt contributed to his success by being stretched out in the fall as a starting pitcher and knew what would be expected of him on the mound during the day's contest.

Louis Rodriguez came out of the bullpen and earned a 3.2-inning save for the Frogs, allowing only two hits and striking out two Wildcats. The length given by the sophomore, Rodriguez, enables Saarloos to use more arms for day four if the Frogs have to play two games back to back.

The Horned Frogs will face Kansas at 9 a.m. Friday morning in the win-or-go-home side of the bracket. If the Frogs take down the Jayhawks, they will play again right after against the Oklahoma Sooners, whom they are 0-4 against this season, for a trip to the championship.

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