Friday, March 18
McLane Stadium at Kobs Field | East Lansing, Mich.
1:05 PM
Michigan State University
8-7
4
vs
3
Houston Baptist
6-13
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Houston Baptist
0
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
3
4
3
Michigan State
0
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
1
4
6
0
Photo by: Leann Espinoza
Kark Crushes Walk-Off HR In Victory For MSU In Home Opener
3/18/2022 7:02:00 PM | Baseball
Sophomore infielder smacks first pitch into trees over left field wall.
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Dillon Kark's solo walk-off home run propelled Michigan State baseball to a 4-3 Victory for MSU over Houston Baptist in the Spartans' home opener Friday afternoon at McLane Stadium at Kobs Field.
The sophomore infielder came to the plate with one out and crushed the first pitch he saw from HBU reliever Andrew Reitmeyer down the left field line and into the trees beyond the wall and sparking the Spartan celebration. Kark was mobbed and doused with water by his teammates at home plate in MSU's second-straight Friday afternoon walk-off home run victory celebration.Â
"I just saw a fastball coming in and I knew I could put a good swing on it, and I just hit it out of here and knew it was gone, it just felt great to win. This team just came back and we never gave up so it was just a good, all-around team win," Kark said.
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Kark had a solid feeling that it was gone off the bat.
"I had a good feeling, and the wind was blowing out a little bit to left, and I knew I put a really good swing on it, and it went out," Kark said, and noted that it was his first ever walk-off home run of his baseball career.
Last Friday, March 11, sophomore infielder Mitch Jebb blasted a two-run walk-off homer to complete MSU's comeback from an 8-5 deficit in the ninth to a 10-8 triumph over Cincinnati in the opening game of the 2022 First Pitch Invitational in Greenville, S.C. at Fluor Field, home of the Greenville Drive.
Kark's home run also capped a Spartan comeback Friday afternoon, as the visiting Huskies took a 3-0 lead in the top of the second. MSU kept chopping and got a run back in the home half of the second, Â one in the fourth and one in the sixth to tie it up, before Kark's heroics in the ninth.
"This team just really never has a give up attitude, we've come back against Cincinnati when Mitch hit a walk-off. It's just great to see that this team never gives up and we just know that we're always in it to win it," Kark said.
"Right off the bat you knew it was gone," MSU head coach Jake Boss Jr. "He squared that thing up pretty good, and the ball was carrying today to left field for some reason, I don't know, it doesn't usually carry like that this early in the year, but I don't think that one needed a whole lot of help."Â
The walk-off home run was Kark's lone hit on the day, as MSU had six hits on the day. Sophomore outfielder Jack Frank had half of the Spartans' hits, going 3-for-3 with an RBI and three runs scored, hitting a solo home run in the fourth, coming to bat in the eighth a triple shy of the cycle, but drawing a walk. Junior outfielder Zaid Walker was 1-for-3 with two RBI, while junior outfielder Casey Mayes had the other hit, coming on a triple in the first inning.
"It was early, so there's a lot of time left and their guy was throwing well and we just kept feeling like if we can just chip away a little bit, that three runs was a tough second inning, but you get one here, one there, all of a sudden you're back into the ballgame, and one swing can really change it at that point," Boss said. "We had a couple good at bats out of Jack Frank, he had a really good day for us. We still left some opportunities out there but  if you can still figure out a way to win and these guys did it, so I give them credit."
Before the ninth inning, Coach Boss told the dugout to get ready for a walk-off celebration.
"I told them to get the water bottles ready and we had a great walk-off win last weekend, and I think you've got to go into the bottom of the ninth feeling pretty good with the score tied and you get the last at bat, so yeah, let's go, get the water bottles ready and get ready to celebrate!" Boss said.
On the mound, Spartan newcomer sophomore right-hander Harrison Cook went 6.0 IP in his home debut, striking out seven and only yielding four hits, including holding the Huskies hitless after the second inning. After HBU scored all three of its runs in the second stanza, Cook rang up five-straight strikeouts, getting the last out of the second on a swinging strikeout, then struck out the side in the third and the first batter of the fourth, adding another leadoff strikeout in the fifth. He limited HBU to just one base runner after the second innig, coming on a two-out walk in the sixth, but getting lineout to end the frame.
Cook gave way to junior Conner Tomasic, also a Spartan newcomer making his home debut. Tomasic set the Huskies down in three-up, three-down order in all three innings of work, earning the win to improve to 2-0.
"That was really big for Harrison to bounce back after that second inning. He really settled into it and they only had one base runner after the second inning, so I thought Harrison was really good," Boss said. "Conner was outstanding as well out of the pen today, and they kept it there for us, and that was really important for us to be down three-nothing, and you can't let it get away from you and they kept it right there for us."
HBU got on the board in the second on an RBI single by Logan Letney followed by a two-run home run by Parker Edwards for a 3-0 lead.
MSU got a run back in the home half of the second, on an RBI single by Walker to plate Frank, who led off with a single and moved to third on an error. Frank launched his home run just inside the left field foul pole in the second to get the Spartans within a run at 3-2. In the sixth, Frank again sparked the rally with a two-out double just inside the first base line. After moving to third on a passed ball, Frank scored on a Husky error off the bat of Walker to knot the score up at 3-all.
The Spartans threatened to win it in the eighth, loading the bases with only one out after Farquhar led off by reaching on an error, and two batters later, sophomore infielder Brock Vradenbug drew a walk, prompting an HBU pitching change. Tim Ewald came on to face Frank, and the Spartan won the battle and drew a walk to fill the bases. HBU made another pitching change, bringing Reitmeyer in and he rang up back-to-back strikeouts to thwart the Spartan threat, setting up the bottom of the ninth excitement.
With the win, MSU was won nine of its last 10 home openers and the Spartans improved to 12-2 in their first game of the year played at McLane Stadium at Kobs Field under Coach Boss, as MSU got back in the win column in home openers after last year's loss to Indiana snapped an eight-game home opening win streak for Michigan State.
Game two of the series between the Spartans and Huskies is slated for Saturday at 1:05 p.m., preceding Sunday's series finale at 1:05 p.m.
The weekend schedule is subject to change based on weather.
Along with any further schedule updates, fans can follow the games with links for live stats, live audio (when available) and live streaming from Big Ten Network+ at MSUSpartans.com.Â
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The sophomore infielder came to the plate with one out and crushed the first pitch he saw from HBU reliever Andrew Reitmeyer down the left field line and into the trees beyond the wall and sparking the Spartan celebration. Kark was mobbed and doused with water by his teammates at home plate in MSU's second-straight Friday afternoon walk-off home run victory celebration.Â
"I just saw a fastball coming in and I knew I could put a good swing on it, and I just hit it out of here and knew it was gone, it just felt great to win. This team just came back and we never gave up so it was just a good, all-around team win," Kark said.
Â
WALK-OFF for the HOME OPENING #VICTORYFORMSU!!!!
— Michigan State Baseball (@MSUBaseball) March 18, 2022
Dillon Kark with the walk-off HR for the 4-3 win over Houston Baptist!! #GoGreen | #REACH | @KarkDillon pic.twitter.com/UANHY74fxk
Kark had a solid feeling that it was gone off the bat.
"I had a good feeling, and the wind was blowing out a little bit to left, and I knew I put a really good swing on it, and it went out," Kark said, and noted that it was his first ever walk-off home run of his baseball career.
Last Friday, March 11, sophomore infielder Mitch Jebb blasted a two-run walk-off homer to complete MSU's comeback from an 8-5 deficit in the ninth to a 10-8 triumph over Cincinnati in the opening game of the 2022 First Pitch Invitational in Greenville, S.C. at Fluor Field, home of the Greenville Drive.
Kark's home run also capped a Spartan comeback Friday afternoon, as the visiting Huskies took a 3-0 lead in the top of the second. MSU kept chopping and got a run back in the home half of the second, Â one in the fourth and one in the sixth to tie it up, before Kark's heroics in the ninth.
"This team just really never has a give up attitude, we've come back against Cincinnati when Mitch hit a walk-off. It's just great to see that this team never gives up and we just know that we're always in it to win it," Kark said.
"Right off the bat you knew it was gone," MSU head coach Jake Boss Jr. "He squared that thing up pretty good, and the ball was carrying today to left field for some reason, I don't know, it doesn't usually carry like that this early in the year, but I don't think that one needed a whole lot of help."Â
The walk-off home run was Kark's lone hit on the day, as MSU had six hits on the day. Sophomore outfielder Jack Frank had half of the Spartans' hits, going 3-for-3 with an RBI and three runs scored, hitting a solo home run in the fourth, coming to bat in the eighth a triple shy of the cycle, but drawing a walk. Junior outfielder Zaid Walker was 1-for-3 with two RBI, while junior outfielder Casey Mayes had the other hit, coming on a triple in the first inning.
"It was early, so there's a lot of time left and their guy was throwing well and we just kept feeling like if we can just chip away a little bit, that three runs was a tough second inning, but you get one here, one there, all of a sudden you're back into the ballgame, and one swing can really change it at that point," Boss said. "We had a couple good at bats out of Jack Frank, he had a really good day for us. We still left some opportunities out there but  if you can still figure out a way to win and these guys did it, so I give them credit."
Before the ninth inning, Coach Boss told the dugout to get ready for a walk-off celebration.
"I told them to get the water bottles ready and we had a great walk-off win last weekend, and I think you've got to go into the bottom of the ninth feeling pretty good with the score tied and you get the last at bat, so yeah, let's go, get the water bottles ready and get ready to celebrate!" Boss said.
On the mound, Spartan newcomer sophomore right-hander Harrison Cook went 6.0 IP in his home debut, striking out seven and only yielding four hits, including holding the Huskies hitless after the second inning. After HBU scored all three of its runs in the second stanza, Cook rang up five-straight strikeouts, getting the last out of the second on a swinging strikeout, then struck out the side in the third and the first batter of the fourth, adding another leadoff strikeout in the fifth. He limited HBU to just one base runner after the second innig, coming on a two-out walk in the sixth, but getting lineout to end the frame.
Cook gave way to junior Conner Tomasic, also a Spartan newcomer making his home debut. Tomasic set the Huskies down in three-up, three-down order in all three innings of work, earning the win to improve to 2-0.
"That was really big for Harrison to bounce back after that second inning. He really settled into it and they only had one base runner after the second inning, so I thought Harrison was really good," Boss said. "Conner was outstanding as well out of the pen today, and they kept it there for us, and that was really important for us to be down three-nothing, and you can't let it get away from you and they kept it right there for us."
HBU got on the board in the second on an RBI single by Logan Letney followed by a two-run home run by Parker Edwards for a 3-0 lead.
MSU got a run back in the home half of the second, on an RBI single by Walker to plate Frank, who led off with a single and moved to third on an error. Frank launched his home run just inside the left field foul pole in the second to get the Spartans within a run at 3-2. In the sixth, Frank again sparked the rally with a two-out double just inside the first base line. After moving to third on a passed ball, Frank scored on a Husky error off the bat of Walker to knot the score up at 3-all.
The Spartans threatened to win it in the eighth, loading the bases with only one out after Farquhar led off by reaching on an error, and two batters later, sophomore infielder Brock Vradenbug drew a walk, prompting an HBU pitching change. Tim Ewald came on to face Frank, and the Spartan won the battle and drew a walk to fill the bases. HBU made another pitching change, bringing Reitmeyer in and he rang up back-to-back strikeouts to thwart the Spartan threat, setting up the bottom of the ninth excitement.
With the win, MSU was won nine of its last 10 home openers and the Spartans improved to 12-2 in their first game of the year played at McLane Stadium at Kobs Field under Coach Boss, as MSU got back in the win column in home openers after last year's loss to Indiana snapped an eight-game home opening win streak for Michigan State.
Game two of the series between the Spartans and Huskies is slated for Saturday at 1:05 p.m., preceding Sunday's series finale at 1:05 p.m.
The weekend schedule is subject to change based on weather.
Along with any further schedule updates, fans can follow the games with links for live stats, live audio (when available) and live streaming from Big Ten Network+ at MSUSpartans.com.Â
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Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Tomasic, Conner (2-0)
L: Reitmeyer, Andrew (1-2)
Batting:
2B: Miller, Jake 1 ; Trinidad, Sebastian 1
HR: Edwards, Parker 1
RBI: Letney, Logan 1 ; Edwards, Parker 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Miller, Jake 1 ; Letney, Logan 1 ; Edwards, Parker 1
Batting:
2B: Frank, Jack 1
3B: Mayes, Casey 1
HR: Frank, Jack 1 ; Kark, Dillon 1
RBI: Frank, Jack 1 ; Walker, Zaid 2 ; Kark, Dillon 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Frank, Jack 3 ; Kark, Dillon 1
CS: Walker, Zaid 1
HBP: Farquhar, Trent 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
3
R
3
H
3
RBI
1
AB
4
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
2
AB
4
R
1
H
1
RBI
1
Players Mentioned
RHP
/ BaseballOF
/ Baseball
INF
/ BaseballINF
/ BaseballOF
/ Baseball
RHP/INF
/ BaseballOF
/ BaseballPursuit to Greatness | Spartans All-Access
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