In the bottom of the second inning, senior catcher Max Kaufer’s swing gave Wichita State its first lead of the season.
The Shockers didn’t look back for the rest of the game. Kaufer hit a two-run home run to deep left field to put Wichita State up by two runs.
Wichita State went on to defeat Northern Colorado handedly in the season opener Friday at Eck Stadium, 11-4. The Shockers brought a lot of power to the plate, hitting four home runs in the win.
“We’ve got a bunch of guys that can hit the ball out,” head coach Brian Green said. “The threat of power is a nice thing to have.”
Two of these homers were hit by Kaufer, who finished 2-4 at the plate, to deep left field. He is thankful to be playing the sport he loves at the Division I level.
“I’m just present and I’m happy to be playing baseball,” Kaufer said. “I’m just so grateful to be on the baseball field.”
Another big contributor in the bottom of the lineup was junior infielder Zeb Henry. Henry walked three times, stole two bases and scored three runs. He also helped force a double play to end the top of the fifth inning.
“His backhand was not a strength of his a year ago,” Green said. “Zeb’s a self-made player, and the diving play was great. He’s a hard worker.”
Graduate infielder Alex Ulloa and senior infielder Jayson Jones also had successful outings at the plate. Ulloa recorded a two-RBI double in the bottom of the fourth, and Jones hit a two-run shot of his own to left-center field.
The Shockers (1-0) also performed well on the mound. Junior Brady Hamilton, Wichita State’s starting pitcher, had a good outing to start the year. He gave up a double and an RBI single in his first two at bats but was able to bounce back, pitching a scoreless second inning.
In four innings, Hamilton gave up five hits, one earned run and one extra base hit. Hamilton recorded five strikeouts and didn’t walk a single batter.
Junior Mitchell Johnson (1-0) was credited with the win after pitching 1.1 innings and giving up a hit in relief for Hamilton.
Ryan Morrison, a graduate pitcher, came in during the top of the sixth and allowed two runs on four hits. Finally, graduate Brady Pacha closed out the game with three strikeouts in the ninth inning.
Wichita State will look to keep the momentum going through the rest of the series against Northern Colorado (0-1).
The Shockers’ doubleheader Saturday was moved to Sunday due to threat of inclement weather. Saturday’s first pitch will now be at 4:05 p.m., and the first game of Sunday’s doubleheader will start at 11:05 a.m.
Editor’s note: this story was updated as game time information was made available.
