LAWRENCE, Kan. – On a day when Omaha's bats were making noise, it's loudest one had been silent.
Mike Boeve, the Summit League's batting leader and reigning conference player of the week, was 0 for 4 with a walk as the Mavericks entered the final inning at Hoglund Ballpark Tuesday trailing Kansas 10-9.
For the first time in his college career, an opponent fully shifted its defensive alignment against the left-handed slugger. Jayhawk shortstop Maui Ahuna moved to the right of second for every Boeve at-bat.
There was an enormous gap on the left side of the infield, one Boeve was fixated on when he came to the plate for the final time with two outs in the ninth and the potential tying run at third. He would've been happy with an opposite-field single, but instead drove a pitch to his pull side that left the playing field.
Boeve's two-out, two-run home run off Kansas reliever Kolby Dougan – into the teeth of wind howling in at up to 40 miles an hour – gave Omaha a thrilling 11-10 victory in a wild back-and-forth midweek battle.
"I was surprised they didn't walk me," he said. "I wanted to go [left] the whole day, but I couldn't do it. They were throwing me slow stuff. I, honestly, was trying to go to left-center. But the fastball got a little inside, and my hands did the work. It might have been the hardest hit ball in my life, getting out in that wind."
Boeve's homer was the last of 15 hits by the Mavericks on a day of breakout performances.
Garrett Kennedy, who entered the game with just one hit on the season, homered and drove in six runs.
Drew Hmielewski, limited to five at-bats before Tuesday, had a three-hit day while
Jack Lombardi tallied four.
Omaha enjoyed an early 4-0 advantage after Kennedy's second-inning blast, and it reclaimed the lead 9-8 during a four-run sixth when he plated two runs with a single. The Jayhawks rallied on both occasions.
The Mavericks (15-15) used 12 pitchers in the game on a planned bullpen day, implemented to get some relievers needed work. They kept Kansas (13-18) scoreless in six different innings, but gave up multiple runs in others.
Tanner Olmstead,
Tyler Mattingley and
Wyatt Sellers got Omaha out of a jam at different spots.
"We got out of those with [runners in scoring position]. Somebody came in to get the last couple of outs in really tight jams," Maverick coach
Evan Porter said. "That's what we're going to need going into those conference weekends – figuring out who can come in in tight situations and stay comfortable and collected."
Sellers, who got the win, struck out three of the four batters he faced in the seventh and eighth innings.
Joey Machado earned his second save when he finished a 1-2-3 ninth by fanning all three Jayhawks he saw.
The final result gave Omaha a nonconference win over a Big 12 opponent in a season in which had already beaten teams from the Pac-12 (UCLA), Big East (Creighton) and Big Ten (Rutgers and Nebraska).
Tuesday's game started 90 minutes earlier than scheduled due to potentially bad weather in the area.
"We kind of rushed to warm up," Boeve said. "That didn't really matter. They just went out there and hit."
Kennedy's three-run blast in the second started it. Boeve's two-run shot in the ninth finished the job.
"Our offense showed up today," Porter said. "It's tough to be on a bus for 3½ hours then get some energy to get going. But we came on a mission today and it showed. I'm proud of the offense today."
Like his star player, Porter was surprised Boeve got a chance to swing away with the game on the line.
"He's playing really well. And he's the guy that every team is trying to pitch around," he said. "He's still finding a way to get big hits in big moments. That's tough to do because they're not giving him anything. Even though they're not putting him on intentionally, they're usually not giving him anything to hit."
