ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Cole Johnson scored on a squeeze bunt by Josh Nicoloff in the 11th inning and seventh-seeded Kansas State stayed alive in the Big 12 Tournament with a 6-5 victory over second-seeded Texas Tech on Friday night.
Johnson opened the inning by reaching second base when Easton Murrell dropped his fly ball in the corner, just fair, as he approached the wall. A sacrifice bunt by Kaelen Culpepper put Johnson on third, with the perfectly executed bunt coming on a 1-0 pitch.
First baseman Dylan Phillips came on to pitch a perfect ninth with two strikeouts for his eighth save.
Kansas State had tied the game in the top of the ninth on a two-out, bases-loaded wild pitch. The Wildcats were 0 for 24 when trailing after eight innings.
The Red Raiders (37-20) beat K-State (29-28) 5-3 to open the tournament before losing to Oklahoma. The Wildcats now face the third-seeded Sooners on Saturday, needing two wins to make the championship game.
K-State jumped on top with three runs in the second inning with Nick Goodwin hitting a solo home run and Justin Mitchell a two-run single.
A three-run sixth put Texas Tech on top with Ty Coleman’s two-run double the big hit.
After the Wildcats tied the game in the seventh, Dillon Carter followed Parker Kelly’s double to make it 5-4 for Texas Tech.
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