WKU Baseball eliminates New Mexico State, 8-2, to advance in CUSA Championships

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (WBKO) – WKU Baseball defeated New Mexico State to advance in the Conference USA Championships, 8-2, Thursday evening at Pat Patterson Park. The third-seeded Hilltoppers will face the loser of sixth-seeded FIU and two-seeded Dallas Baptist on Friday at 4 p.m. CT in another elimination game.

It was a pitcher’s duel early as the game entered the sixth inning with a 1-1 score. With two outs and the bases loaded, junior Austin Haller laced one up the middle to score a pair of runs before junior Kyle Hayes did the same thing two batters later. The Hilltoppers tacked on three more in the seventh courtesy of an Aggie error and a pair of RBI from sophomore Dylan O’Connell.

Haller continued off his momentum from yesterday, driving in three runs in a two-hit outing while scoring a run. O’Connell also had a pair of hits with two RBI while Hayes accounted for the other two RBI. Juniors Blake Cavill, Joey Baran, and Zayd Brannigan tallied multi-hit performances.

The WKU pitching staff allowed just two runs on seven hits and three walks on the day to a New Mexico State lineup averaging over eight runs with over 10 hits per game.

Junior Grant Burleson made his first start on the mound since the end of February and surrendered one run on one hit while punching out two. Senior Cory Bosecker checked in to start the third inning and tossed 3.0 shutout frames while conceding three hits with a trio of strikeouts. The next 3.0 innings belonged to junior Cole Heath and sophomore Jack Bennett who combined to give up zero runs on two hits while fanning two. Heath earned the winning-decision and improved his 2024 record to 1-0.

The Aggies got on the board first in the second inning, but an RBI groundout from Haller tied the game in the third.

In the sixth, Haller put the Tops in front with a two-run single before Hayes added a pair of insurance runs with another two-run single.

WKU poured it on in the seventh with a New Mexico State error scoring one before O’Connell singled to score a couple more.

The Aggies added a second run in the top of the ninth, but that would be all they could muster.

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