Series: Wichita State sweeps 3-0
- Wichita State 8, Creighton 0
- Wichita State 8, Creighton 3
- Wichita State 8, Creighton 7
Creighton: 22-20, 9-12 MVC (5th)
Well, that was ugly.
I don’t even really want to talk about it. There was a shutout, a blowout and a heart-breaker. That’s about all you need to know, really, about Creighton’s final Missouri Valley Conference baseball series. Wichita State swept the Jays over the weekend and it wasn’t pretty.
The Friday series-opener, a noon contest at Rosenblatt Stadium, enticed fans with the offer of one dollar beers, sodas and hot dogs from 11 a.m.-noon. If you told me that the team also dabbled in the cheap dogs and beers, I wouldn’t have doubted it. The Bluejays came out flat and uninspired in the 8-0 loss. Even the umpires were disinterested — one of the crew members showed up four innings late after a delayed flight.
Creighton had the lead-off man on base in six of the nine innings and the Jays were 6-for-13 with the bases empty, but managed only three hits with runners on.
In the “Well, obviously” department, Wichita State first baseman Johnny Coy went 3-for-5 with an RBI and was 10-for-15 with three RBIs and a home run in the series. The 6-8 Coy, of course, was pursued by Creighton in high school for his basketball skills. He settled on Arizona State and then transferred to Wichita.
Game two wasn’t much better for the Jays, though they were able to jump out to a 1-0 lead in the first. With the game tied at two in the fifth, Wichita State’s Cody Lassley hit a three-run bomb to put the Shockers up for good. They would go on to win by an 8-3 count.
Creighton actually took a lead into the ninth inning of the series finale on Sunday at the CU Sports Complex. But that meant it was up to the bullpen and, frankly, the bullpen’s been a disaster for the Jays recently.
The Bluejays were up 7-5 headed into the ninth with freshman left-hander Mark Winkelman on the mound. Back-to-back singles started the inning for Wichita State. After an out, Preston Springer his an RBI single to cut the lead to one, and then (wait for it…) Coy added an RBI single of his own to tie the game.
Senior Bobby Lackovick was called in from the pen and got the second out on a fielder’s choice. Then, with Springer at third, Lackovick uncorked a wild pitch that allowed the go-ahead run to score. The Jays couldn;t come up with anything in the home half of the inning, and the sweep was secured.
Creighton will play a double header at North Dakota State on Wednesday and will come back home for a three-game set against Seattle over the weekend. Friday’s opener is set for 7 p.m. at Rosenblatt Stadium, with Saturday and Sunday’s contests coming at 2 p.m. and noon, respectively, at the Plex.
