ROUND ROCK, Texas (Feb. 23, 2024) – Washington State starting pitcher Grant Taylor held No. 24 Kentucky to two hits over six innings in a 6-4 win on the opening game of the Karbach Round Rock Classic at Dell Diamond Friday afternoon.
 
The Cougars (4-1) collected eight hits led by Max Hartman and Nate Swarts who each recorded two hits for WSU who knocked off their first SEC team since beating Texas A&M at the Frisco Classic in 2022. Hartman also drove in a run and stole a base while Swarts tripled home two runs and added another RBI on a bases-loaded walk.
 
Taylor won his second straight start to open the season after holding a Kentucky team, who reached the Super Regional round last season and opened the year 4-0, to just two hits and struck out three. Chase Grillo recorded the final five outs to notch his first save of the season and his tenth of his career, moving into a tie for tenth-most in WSU history.
 
WSU erased a 1-0 deficit with three runs in fourth, one in the fourth and two in the eighth to start 4-1 for the second straight season.
 
KEY MOMENTS OF THE GAME
In the bottom of the first inning, Kentucky pulled a two-out 3-2 pitch into the right-centerfield gap to drive in a run but the Cougar 9-6-5 relay got the hitter trying to stretch things to a triple to end the frame.
 
WSU threatened with runners on second and third in the second inning as Crew Parke hammered one deep to left-centerfield but the Kentucky left fielder made a nice catch on the run at the warning track to end the inning.
 
In the fourth, Joey Kramer singled to right field and Cole Cramer reached on a fielder's choice before Swarts rocketed the first pitch he saw into the left-centerfield gap for a two-run triple and a Cougar lead. One batter later, Hartman pulled a two-out RBI-single into right field to score Swarts for a 3-1 WSU advantage.
 
In the fifth, Jacob Morrow lined a ball off the centerfielder's glove for a three-base error and scored on a Casen Taggart's RBI-groundout to second base.
 
Taylor worked a perfect fifth before working around a pair of hit-by-pitches to strand a pair of Kentucky baserunners to end the sixth.
 
Kentucky worked walks to start the seventh, pushed one run across on an RBI-single and added another on a Cougar error after a Kentucky bunt cut the lead to 4-3. With runners on first and second, Baughn ended the threat with a foul out to Kramer at first base who came all the way down to the front of the Cougar first base dugout to make the diving catch and end the threat.
 
In the eighth, WSU answered with a pair of runs on back-to-back bases-loaded walks by Swarts and Parke to push the lead to 6-3. Kentucky pushed a run across in the bottom of the frame on a pair of walks, a wild pitch and sacrifice fly before Chase Grillo ended the threat with a fly out to left.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Max Hartman led off the game with walk, has reached base in all 5 games in 2024
Cole Cramer earned a pitch clock violation walk in the 2^nd, has reached base in all 5 games in 2024
Hartman singled to lead off the 2nd has hit safely in all 5 games
Shibley reaches on a bloop single in the 2nd, has hit safely in all 5 games
Both teams combined for a Round Rock Classic record 8 hit-by-pitches
 
NEXT UP
WSU continues play at the Round Rock Classic with a Saturday matchup against Kansas with first pitch set for 10 a.m. (PT).