After playing nailbiters with Nebraska on consecutive days, Omaha fell behind Kansas State early.
The Mavericks trailed 8-0 before putting a runner on base Tuesday at Tal Anderson Field.
Mike Boeve homered for the third straight game, but Omaha managed only three hits in its 8-4 loss to the Wildcats.
Cole Johnson and Josh Nicoloff homered during a five-run second for K-State (8-7), Nicoloff, who drove in four runs, also plated two runs with a double in the fourth as the Wildcats did all of their damage early.
"We dug ourselves into too big of a hole early on," Omaha coach
Evan Porter said. "I think we came out flat today, and we really haven't done that yet this season. I know we had to more emotional games – two walk-offs – the previous two days, but we need to be better than that."
Maverick starter
Jackson Gordon (0-2) retired only four of the 11 batters he faced Tuesday and was lifted after 38 pitches. Omaha ended up using seven pitchers. Only two pitched more than an inning.
Harrison Kreiling,
Parker Weddle and
Tyler Mattingley held K-State scoreless over the final five frames.
"It was good to see our bullpen put up four or five zeroes in a row, and it was four or five different guys too that got some work in tonight," Porter said. "We could've folded and that could've been a more lopsided ballgame than a four-run game."
Boeve's two-run blast off winning pitcher Griffin Hassall (2-2) in the fourth gave the Mavericks life. A pair of Wildcat errors following a
Noah Greise RBI single in the sixth cut the Kansas State lead to four.
Omaha, however, didn't record a hit after that. But it had runners on base in every inning.
"Whenever you're within four or less, one swing can tie it," Porter said. "You've got to just keep trying to go one guy at a time – and one at-bat at a time – and not try to do too much in those moments. Our guys did a good job. We were down 8-0, and we got a couple of two-run innings. If we get a guy on base and run into a ball then it's a two-run ballgame, and the momentum starts building a little bit more.
"Those are things we'll keep getting better at. We've got a lot of work to do. We'll click at some point. We're not there yet, but we'll get there."
