LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Gritty, tough and relentless; interchangeable words that describes a Kansas baseball team that refused to go down without a fight Sunday afternoon in NCAA postseason play.

Although the unthinkable didn’t happen, the Jayhawks (35-26) gave Kentucky a run for its money clawing their way back from an 8-0 deficit to pull within two runs of the Wildcats (37-24) at Jim Patterson Stadium.

“When we got down early in the game, it was too early in the game to give up,” senior catcher Ka’iana Eldredge said. “We were down seven runs in the fourth, with so much game left to be played. As you saw, we made a run at the end and put ourselves in a position to win the game late. Fortunately for Kentucky, they were able to put up two more runs than us and that won the ball game.”

Eldredge made sure to do his part to help the Jayhawks attempt an 8-0 comeback, mashing one over the wall in left field on his final collegiate at bat for the second home run of his career.

“So many things go through your head when you walk up to the plate late in a ball game and you’re down,” Eldredge said. “I remember thinking the same thing in high school; this could possibly be my last at bat. You just have to go up there and have fun with it. I didn’t think too much and I got a good pitch to hit and put a good swing on it. It was great that it went out of the ballpark so I can tell my kids my last collegiate at bat was a home run.”

The round tripper came two innings after Kansas rallied to put up a five-spot in the sixth with a little help from five-consecutive base hits. Kansas opened the frame with four-straight singles , before sophomore first baseman Jacob Boylan roped a two-run double down the line in left field, all with no outs. A sacrifice fly and an RBI ground out later, KU had cut that 8-0 deficit down to just three runs, 8-5.

Had the Jayhawks pitchers been a bit more effective, five runs may have been the difference in the ballgame. However, the staff combined to give up eight runs off 11 hits including five runs and five hits for right-handed starter Robert Kahana (4-7).

“I made the comment yesterday that (Robert) Kahana didn’t get to pitch in the Big 12 Tournament,” Kansas head coach Ritch Price said. “It has been almost two weeks since he has been on the mound. We scrimmaged ourselves before we left and he was actually pretty good. I was concerned – if he got off to a good start I think you would have seen a completely different guy. Unfortunately for us, his command wasn’t very good and he was behind in the count. Kentucky can really hit the fastball.”

Price gives credit to Kentucky starter freshman Zack Brown (1-1), for holding the Jayhawks scoreless through five frames.

“You look at the numbers of hits per innings pitched and you look at his opponent batting average at .360 – we liked our chances,” Price said. “I think the thing was we got buried early and I think it took us a while mentally to recover from that after they hit us in the mouth in the first and second inning. He commanded his fastball well and showed a good breaking ball.”

Brown kept KU off the board until the sixth inning when Kansas put up the five-spot. KU didn’t score again until the eighth when the dinger by Eldredge cut the lead to two runs, 8-6, and allowed for the Jayhawks to take one final stab at completing the comeback in the ninth inning.

Kansas managed to get the tying run to the plate after a one-out walk by sophomore second baseman Colby Wright, but two quick outs followed to end the game and season for the Jayhawks.

Although the comeback didn’t quite happen like the movies portray, Eldredge hopes the team can use the momentum left by the senior class and continue the growth of the KU program.

“For the seniors, this was our first time in the NCAA Tournament,” Eldredge said. “It has been cool to be here and an awesome experience. We told the younger guys it’s all a learning experience. They know what to do and how hard to play going forward, and coach Price is going to have a lot more NCAA tournament appearances if the young kids continue to work hard and have the passion for the game.”

— KU Sports Information —

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – It’s hard to put up a crooked number in the error column and win a ballgame, and that is what the Kansas baseball team faced Saturday night, as the Jayhawks recorded three errors en route to picking up their first loss in NCAA postseason play against regional host Louisville, 6-3, inside Jim Patterson Stadium.

Four defensive miscues, which included the three errors, dug KU (35-25) into a hole early and couple that with the Jayhawks’ poor offensive approach early in the game, made it nearly impossible to amount a comeback.

“I didn’t think it (our offensive approach) was very good,” Kansas head coach Ritch Price said. “That was the one thing I addressed with our guys afterwards. (Then) we made four bad plays defensively and got ourselves in a hole we couldn’t dig ourselves out of.”

The hole came in the first four innings when senior right-handed hurler Frank Duncan (6-4) gave up five runs off seven hits, with a little help of his team’s miscues on defense. To his credit, Duncan managed to regain his composure and toss the fifth complete game of the season to save the Kansas bullpen.

“I’ll be honest guys, I didn’t think he was going to get out of the sixth inning. To his credit, he went back out there and put zeroes up after that. The whole thing with him is you look at his line score he only walked one, he hit one and he struck out two. So you wonder how he gave up 11 hits and only threw 105 pitches, it’s because he doesn’t strike out many guys, he pitches to contact. Normally we catch the ball a lot better than we did today.”

“I didn’t keep them off the bases as good as I could have with the 11 hits,” Duncan added. “You’re able to make the big pitches when you need to and minimize the damage as best you can. That’s what I tried to do and I thought I did a pretty good job of that.”

Duncan bulldogged his way through 105 pitches to preserve the Kansas bullpen and give the Jayhawks a shot at completing the comeback, closing the game with three scoreless innings. However, the righty didn’t get much help from his offense.

The potent bats that showed up against the Wildcats in game one, seemed almost dormant against the Cardinals with three missed opportunities with bases loaded after getting the leadoff man on to start each frame. Price credits Louisville (47-15) starter Anthony Kidston (8-0) with being able to pitch when it matters the most.

“He (Kidston) made some good pitches,” Price said. “When he had to he made some good pitches. We thought we hit two balls hard that were caught. The ball yesterday was a home run that (Tucker) Tharp hit today. The ball didn’t play like that today.”

The Jayhawks tallied six hits on the day, but gained most of their baserunners by being patient at the plate and drawing the walk. Junior shortstop Justin Protacio, sophomore second baseman Colby Wright and sophomore first baseman Jacob Boylan each had two walks, while Protacio and Wright each had a hit on the day.

Despite getting runners on, Kansas couldn’t find a way to score and stranded 11 runners on base throughout the course of the game, including bases loaded to end the contest.

Louisville right fielder Corey Ray led all hitters with a 3-for-4 performance at the plate, legging out two routine singles into doubles and showing off that Cardinal speed.

“We saw him play in high school and he is a phenomenal talent,” Price said. “He swung at a breaking ball out of the zone a couple times early in the game and then he was on time with the fastball. He put two really good swings on the ball. He is a really good athlete.”

Kansas looks to bounce back in NCAA Regional action Sunday, as the Jayhawks take on Kentucky in an elimination bout at 11 a.m.

— KU Sports Information —