Bat Cats receive bid to NCAA Baseball Tournament for first time since 2013
For the first time in over a decade, Kansas State has been selected to play in the NCAA Baseball Tournament. The Bat Cats heard their name called Monday morning during the NCAA Selection Show.
They will now travel to the Fayetteville Regional, hosted by Arkansas, in addition to SEMO and Louisiana Tech. The regionals are double elimination with the regional winner advancing to Super Regionals and being just two wins shy of the College World Series.
K-State finished their regular season at 32-24, going 15-15 in Big 12 play. After a sluggish start to the season, K-State started Big 12 play 6-1. But then a myriad of problems struck and the Wildcats found themselves dropping 2/3 games in series many times over the final month and a half of the season.
This will be the Wildcats’ first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2013. That season coincides with the only regional the Wildcats have ever advanced out of, which they hosted. They fell one game short of the College World Series against Oregon State.
The Bat Cats spent the last three seasons on the wrong side of the bubble despite making late-season charges to try and get in. To improve their chances of being on the right side this season, head coach Pete Hughes scheduled a tougher non-conference with an emphasis on heavily RPI-weighted road games. In 2022, K-State’s RPI was 98th. Last season, it was 53rd. This year they moved inside the top 50 at No. 45.
To make it out of the Fayetteville Regional, K-State will have to win three games while avoiding a loss. They can also advance with one loss but would require four wins with the third and fourth having to come against the same opponent.
The third-seeded Bat Cats will face No. 2 Louisiana Tech on Friday to start regional play and then will face the winner or loser of No. 1 Arkansas and No. 4 SEMO.
This is the third time in school history that K-State will be in the same regional as Arkansas. Losing in the Fayetteville Regional in 2011, and advancing to the Super Regionals in 2013 when they hosted Arkansas, Wichita State and Bryant.
